City puts contract out on bunnies‘ heads
Ron Seymour
2008-05-13

An unknown number of rabbits will be killed under a controversial bunny-control program approved Monday by Kelowna city council.

Council awarded a $54,000, one-year contract to EBB Environmental Consulting for a rabbit-control plan that includes both culling and live trapping.

“Let me assure council that we‘d like to see a minimal cull,” parks manager Joe Creron told council.

Councillors Norm Letnick, Brian Given, Colin Day and Andre Blanleil voted in favour of the accepting EBB‘s bid, which was the lowest of six received by the city.

Mayor Sharon Shepherd and Coun. Michele Rule were opposed, with both saying they were disappointed with the lack of specifics in the report from staff as to how, exactly, the control program would be carried out.

“The report was not very full of information,” Rule complained, and Shepherd termed it “unclear.”

Pest control supervisor Ian Wilson apologized for the lack of specifics regarding how the rabbits would be dealt with, but he said some of those details are still to be worked out.

In response to a question from Shepherd, Wilson said EBB Environmental Consulting had overseen a rabbit-control program in another city that involved the animals being killed.

Outside council chambers, Sinnika Crosland of The Responsible Animal Control Society accused the city of being “trigger happy” in its response to the rabbit situation.

Society supporters have already trapped more than 200 of the rabbits, Crosland said. The group would be willing to take any rabbits trapped by EBB, Crosland suggested.

“But we would expect some funding to do that,” she added, noting the cost of relocating rabbits to secure, sex-separated enclosures and caring for them for the rest of their lives.

There are said to be at least 2,000 wild rabbits in Kelowna. Most are concentrated along Enterprise Way, but colonies have been reported in other parts of the city.

The rabbits are a problem because they destroy landscaping and pose a threat to agricultural crops. Their burrowing action could also jeopardize utilities and destabilize building foundations, Wilson said.

The six rabbit-control programs were evaluated on the following basis: 50 per cent on cost, 30 per cent on the probability of success and 20 per cent on the applicant‘s experience in such matters.

Though he proposed that council accept EBB‘s bid, even Letnick said that he would rather “save the animals than kill the animals.” He proposed a second motion instructing staff to work with EBB on ways to minimize the cull and report back to council at a later date.

That motion passed unanimously. Councillors Barrie Clark, Robert Hobson and Carol Gran were absent.