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NEWS Please click on any of the links below for news from the year 2000.  Bunnies Found Abandoned Near London
New Mexico Bunny Chase Is Canceled Due to Protests of Animal Cruelty
Cruelty to Rabbits Is On the Rise
Barry Leighton, “Rabbits Dumped: Pets Saved From Death in the Wild,” Daily Press (London), March 9, 2000 Six pet rabbits were virtually sentenced to death when they were dumped in the woods to fend for themselves. But before predators could pounce, the animals were rescued by a group of walkers who found them huddled together. Last night the RSPCA, which is now caring for the rabbits, branded the people who dumped them as "cruel and irresponsible." RSPCA officer Nicky Ketchley said: "These rabbits would have been at risk from predators and without doubt would not have survived for very long in the wild. It is very sad and totally unnecessary that they were left to their own fate, given the numerous animal welfare organisations that are around to offer help." Walkers in Savernake Forest near Marlborough discovered the shivering rabbits on Sunday. Fresh tyre marks nearby indicated that someone had recently dumped them from a vehicle. The RSPCA is now hoping to gather evidence to prosecute whoever released the large adult rabbits, as well as trying to find new homes for the creatures. Carolyn Appelman, “Scramble for Rabbits Canceled,” Albuquerque Journal (New Mexico), March 4, 2000 A proposed "bunny scramble" with Casper Baca's Easter rodeo was called off a month ago after rodeo organizers found out it would be illegal in Bernalillo. The scramble in which 300 children, divided into groups, attempt to catch 100 rabbits has been part of Baca's rodeo series in the past. Children who don't catch a rabbit receive an Easter chick to take home. Casper Baca Rough Stock Rodeo has been held in Belen for the past 16 years. This year Baca is splitting the 10-weekend series between Bernalillo and Winslow, Ariz. The scheduled scramble reportedly drew opposition from some people in the area. Gary Miles, co-owner of Placitas Animal Rescue, said Friday that he showed up at Thursday's Sandoval County Commission meeting to protest the scramble. He said he told the commission the event constituted animal abuse and the county should not support it. But county spokesman Gayland Bryant said Friday the county has nothing to do with the rodeo, or the now-canceled scramble, because it's being held in the town of Bernalillo. A recent article in the March edition of the monthly Placitas- based Northside Signpost said Baca had said he would go ahead with plans for the scramble unless someone came up with an alternative activity that he approved. An editor's note said a rodeo promoter was trying to come up with an alternative, "but as of Feb. 26 none had yet been confirmed." The article urged people to call one of the sponsors to protest the event. The article also quotes Michele Rokke, education and outreach coordinator for the Animal Protection Society of New Mexico, as saying that "offering a live animal to a child as a prize is not only a clear violation of the law in Bernalillo, but a cruel excuse for entertainment." On Friday, Baca said that "shortly after announcing the rodeo series was going to Bernalillo, we were made aware of the town ordinances and canceled the scramble event planned for Easter Sunday. I have no problem complying with the ordinances." Baca claims The Signpost did not contact him to see what the plan was going to be after he became aware of the ordinances. "I would like to have presented my side," Baca said in an interview from Winslow. "I do not want to come into a town and go against the town's wishes." Baca also said a full-page ad in The Signpost did not list the scramble on the rodeo's Easter schedule. When the Journal tried to reach the publishers of The Signpost Friday afternoon, an answering service said the office was closed until Monday. Baca said the scramble has been one of the Easter rodeo's most popular events. The rodeo also gives out free Easter baskets to the first 200 children to show up, Baca said. Other events include sheep riding, calf riding, steer riding, a children's dance competition. Since 1985, Bernalillo has had ordinances that protect animals such as rabbits and chicks. The ordinances say "No person shall sell, offer for sale, barter, or give away, any baby rabbits or fowl under four (4) weeks of age in any quantity less than six (6)" and "No person shall offer as a premium, prize, award, novelty, or incentive to purchase merchandise, any live animal." Rusty Rodriguez of Belen has been attending the Baca series for at least 10 years and he says he has never seen an animal get hurt or abused. He thinks the bunny scramble is a good thing for children and rabbits alike. "All my kids have participated in the event," he said Friday. "And they keep the bunnies until they die of old age." Rodriguez said Baca handles the event with the animals' safety in mind. "City people have no idea how this event is run," Rodriguez said. "Country kids are raised knowing how to handle animals. There is not a mad rush of kids scrambling to attack the bunnies." Baca said children are divided into age groups to try to catch the rabbits. Also, he said, rabbit food, care information and boxes to take the animals home are given to the children. "A rabbit-raising group was on hand at the Belen scrambles to teach the children how to care for the bunnies," Baca said. "If people could see the look in the eyes of the kids when they take the animal home, and hear them talk about their new pets at later rodeos, they would see how well these bunnies get taken care of." Rodriguez said he and other parents he knows who allow their children to participate in the scrambles make sure the youngsters understand the commitment that goes along with taking home the animals. A spokeswoman for Sam's Club, which is a sponsor of the rodeo, said they donate the Easter baskets for the rodeo as a way of giving back to the community and the children. "We would never willingly participate in any event that was cruel to animals in any way," Melissa Berryhill said in a phone interview from Arkansas. "We were never a sponsor in the scramble. We provide the baskets." Baca said Sam's Club is working with him to provide a little something extra to replace the bunnies for the Bernalillo Easter scramble. Sam's Club also provides some of the rodeo prize buckles for the Easter events. Plans are under way to have a different type of scramble this year. One of the ideas is to have a hot-air balloon drop stuffed toy bunnies to the children. The rodeo series opened Feb. 26 in Winslow and will run for five weekends before heading to Bernalillo for the first weekend in April. “Rabbits Getting A Raw Deal,” Daily Press (London), February 15, 2000 Cruelty to rabbits is on the increase, the RSPCA warned yesterday. The Bath Cats and Dogs Home, which can care for up to ten rabbits at a time, is struggling to look after all the rabbits needing new homes and currently has a list of 37 unwanted bunnies waiting to come in. Local RSPCA inspector Ian Burns has already been called to a worrying number of incidents of neglected or abandoned rabbits this month. The reason for the increase in cases was unclear, although it could simply be due to the increasing popularity of the animals as pets for children, who later lose interest. He said: "In the last few days I have found rabbits living in sodden hutches that haven't been waterproofed properly, neglected rabbits left without food and water and even domestic rabbits that have apparently been released into the wild by their bored owners and are unable to fend for themselves. "None of the cases are severe enough to take to court but they do indicate the raw deal that many rabbits get." Rabbits can live for 8-10 years in captivity and require space, activity and companionship. |