NZ Slaughters Over 20,000 Bunnies During 'Easter Bunny Hunt'
- by: For The Animals
- recipient: Alexandra Lions Club New Zealand, New Zealand Goverment
THE shooting of more than 23,000 rabbits in New Zealand by gun wielding citizens, during a charity hunting event held over the Easter vacation weekend is nothing less than a tabu way to celebrate the slaughter of an icon known world wide to children and adults alike as generous, sweet and magical.
The Annual Charitable Event has caused an uproar world wide from animal welfare campaigners and many feel their is a better solution to the ever growing rabbit population.
While organizers of the annual Great Easter Bunny Hunt, held across the southern region of New Zealand's South Island, argued the event was ridding farmland of an introduced, rampant pest; welfare groups and furious citizens view things very differently, SAFE director Hans Kriek said he is against the hunt. "It's seen as a party atmosphere, sending people out as inexperienced hunters blasting away at animals. The ones they kill are one thing, the ones they injure are another." He also doubted the effectiveness of a 24-hour hunt, which did more to incite cruelty than control the pest. You can commit any atrocity you like to animals in the name of hunting, and you fall outside the legislation, which is crazy, because wild animals feel pain just as much as domestic ones," he said. Year round, farmers are attempting to rid the species at costs to themselves of almost $50,000 each year. Attempting to reduce numbers by means hiring people to shoot them, poison them and trapping, Instant death is not priority, and suffering is probable.
Organized by the Alexandra Lions Club, the annual hunt has been responsible for culling over 200,000 rabbits from Central Otago since its initiation in 1991. Hunters including the inexperienced, come from all over New Zealand. Men, women and older children all sporting guns. Teams assemble after the hunt for a hot lunch, live music, awards and prizes....and to swap the days stories of their kills.
Since being introduced to New Zealand's delicate ecosystems, bunnies have been able to reproduce with little threat by their natural predators, to the detriment of a host of native wildlife whose habitats have been overcome by the needs of humans. The violent celebration shows the need for a more humane and reasonable solution to a problem, that humans have yet again created.Catch, sterilize and release programs, for example, could solve the bunny problem, as in the past with various species.
When we humans stop imposing on the worlds natural balance in our ecosystems, these problems will cease to be an issue. Until then, we need to proceed with responsible actions that hold a shred of compassion to the affected wildlife and seek solutions to restore the balance that mother nature intended, without simply slaughtering the numbers of creatures we have played a big role in creating.
Visit us on FB and Help create A Compassionate World For The Animals
As a concerned citizen of worldwide animal rights and welfare I write to you on behalf of the wildlife of New Zealand and supporters from around the world who share our plea. We know New Zealand to be a a civilized and privileged country, a country that holds values to be proud of. For the lives of your bunnies, for the well being of your entire country and its people, we ask you to please stop the annual charitable event known as the Great East Bunny Hunt.
The Easter Bunny Hunt is an annual massacre of one of the most beautiful and peaceful animals on the planet, in fact they were here long before us and have as much right to live in peace as we all do. Eco systems and destruction of habitat are affected mainly by humans and it is our responsibility to do what we can to better the situations we create with the most compassion and integrity possible, to better this world for all of its inhabitants; for generations to come.
New Zealand has worked hard to build relationships with the world and a reputation for the people that you truly are. The hunt misrepresents the true NZ. The hunt and culling methods are cruel and leaves most feeling devastated, destructive and ashamed. Knowing that you have your countries best intentions in check, we ask for you to respectfully end the hunt and spend the allocated money towards a catch, sterilization and release program. This would ultimately be a suitable alternative to the over population problem currently over coming the affected areas and would be a humane end to the means of the problem.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and am optimistic to implementing the end of the Great Easter Bunny Hunt will undoubtedly bring positive results for NZ and it's wildlife.
[Your name]
By signing, you accept Care2's Terms of Service.
You can unsub at any time here.
Having problems signing this? Let us know.