The Morning Star
Sunday, June 20, 2004

Bunnies abound neighbourhood By Cara MacDonald
Morning Star Staff

They're multiplying like rabbits and one Vernon neighbourhood is worried about what to do with its bounty of bunnies.
People living near W.L. Seaton Secondary School first noticed there were a lot of domestic rabbits that had gone wild about a year and a half ago.
"Now we have four does who are having babies. They had their first batch and some are ready to have another litter this year," said Maurie Deaton, who lives in the area.
"Some people fed them over the winter and we don't mind having them around but we've reached maximum capacity. The rabbits are eating everyone's gardens. The cats and dogs chase them and some of the kids catch them and torture them."
Rabbits mature in three months and can have litters every 28 days.
Deaton and some of the neighbourhood children have been catching the bunnies with a fishing net and keeping them safe in cages while they try to find homes for them.
She found that the SPCA won't take rabbits and the municipal government has no provisions for trapping and relocating rabbits as it does for other nuisance animals.
People who keep them as pets usually have them neutered and they can be trained to use a litter box inside.
"Some irresponsible pet owners have been letting them go and it's not fair because they aren't going to survive and the ones that do will just keep spreading and not be safe because they don't have a lot of defenses," said Deaton.
"We hope we can get people to take them as inside or outside pets or maybe have some go to petting zoos. We have all colours and they are nice quiet animals that do have their own personalities."
To adopt a bunny call Deaton at 558-7720.