200 Rabbits Seized

downonthefarm · Jul 28, 2011

I saw this posted on another group and thought I'd pass it on. If the conditions are truly deplorable as they stated, then the rabbits certainly needed to be confiscated. However, keeping the rabbits in hot plastic carriers certainly won't help. This type of situation makes me very nervous about selling rabbits out of our home. We take very good care of our rabbits, but all it would take is someone who disagrees with our rabbit raising methods and you'd have animal control knocking on your door. We don't allow anyone in our barn, but I wonder if it would be better to meet somewhere instead.

http://www.9news.com/news/article/20923 ... conditions

Janine

cedarrun · Jul 28, 2011

We strictly do not welcome anyone to our rabbitry unless they are another breeder that we have known personally. All other interested people must meet us in a nearby town or at a show. I have read so many stories and I have put to much into my herd to loose anything to theft or worse.

akane · Jul 28, 2011

I don't think I've heard of anyone who's lost their animals over an individuals complaint of their farm without deserving it. I have heard of plenty of people who had animal control show up at their door over various animals only to see everyone had food, water, and shelter, and they left to never bother them again. In most cases even if they see something wrong they'll just give you a warning that you need to fix certain things in a given amount of time. It's only when the situation is severe and animals are dying that they actually take them away on the spot. Who knows they may have warned this person before about the lack of water and dying animals in the past already. Animal control has been called 4 times on the people next to us about tying horses to trees with no water and shutting them up in stalls they built that have no ventilation and they still haven't had any animals taken from them. They just give them a warning, all the horses suddenly appear in the tiny pasture with hay and water buckets for about a week, and then they lock/tie them up again and someone else calls to repeat the process.

ilovehome · Jul 28, 2011

With shows that focus on animal hoarding and so many states passing new anti-puppy mill laws, it concerns me that these raids and seizures have become so popular. There are very few times when the animals are in such danger that they need to be seized prior to a hearing in court. I've seen three on the news here in the past couple of months.

Robin · Jul 28, 2011

It bothers me that they called her a hoarder. 200 rabbits is not that many in the grand scheme of things, and you know that a fair amount of that number were probably kits.

Akane is right though, it does take pretty bad conditions for them to actually take your animals.

downonthefarm · Jul 28, 2011

Robin":1t3sfvc2 said:
It bothers me that they called her a hoarder.

This really bothered me too.

akane · Jul 28, 2011

10 makes you a hoarder if you can't take care of them, keep their cages clean, fill their water, etc...

SatinsRule · Jul 28, 2011

ilovehome":w7r882ra said:
With shows that focus on animal hoarding and so many states passing new anti-puppy mill laws, it concerns me that these raids and seizures have become so popular. There are very few times when the animals are in such danger that they need to be seized prior to a hearing in court. I've seen three on the news here in the past couple of months.

And the way many of the laws are being written, animal control can seize and destroy your animals without your having ever appeared in court.

Think about that for a minute. You're raising good rabbits with solid bloodlines, then get a sudden knock on the door, they seize and kill your rabbits, only to appear in court and the DA's office drop the charges for lack of efficient evidence or some technicality. What's wrong with that picture?

HendricksHearth · Jul 29, 2011

I don't know the circumstances surrounding the case, but it does sound like the breeder was in over their head. I can understand the rabbits not having pellets if they are fed only what they can clean up per feeding, etc, but I can't understand all those rabbits not having water and/or AC having to remove some bodies of dead rabbits from the cages. I can't speak for anyone else, but if rabbits were dying or dead where they were housed then that is an indicator of a major problem. Also if it were 200 NZW for meat or something, I could honestly see that not being an enormous number for a breeding operation.. but 200 angoras blows my mind (or even 100 for that matter). I had my hands full with ~10 of them- we are talking grooming every day. How one or two people could keep 200 in various stages of coat is beyond me, let alone a show team. I hope they provide more facts about the case at some point so we can get a more objective picture of how this breeder operated and how AC just raided her shed when she wasn't even home. Clearly there is more to this than we know- I agree that there is the distinct possibility of multiple complaints prior to this.

JMHO,

Lauren

ladysown · Jul 29, 2011

from discussions about this on the meatrabbits board the animal control people were pushed by animal rights people to seize these animals.

from how it sounds They did a few things illegally and are basically railroading the lady. She has a lawyer and will be fighting back. The dead animals came out of her freezer NOT out of cages. The temperature was below what CO state laws says requires intervention. AND the animals were in good shape (as per volunteer statements). Pictures apparently were taken to prove that the rabbits were NOT sitting in poop.

Frosted Rabbits · Jul 29, 2011

SatinsRule":3v3vdpgf said:
And the way many of the laws are being written, animal control can seize and destroy your animals without your having ever appeared in court.

Think about that for a minute. You're raising good rabbits with solid bloodlines, then get a sudden knock on the door, they seize and kill your rabbits, only to appear in court and the DA's office drop the charges for lack of efficient evidence or some technicality. What's wrong with that picture?

I'll tell you exactly what is wrong.. extremists are taking control of the government and of the smallest details of the lives of the general public. We've got the WRONG people in our government offices, we permit 'lobbying' without making sure all facets are represented.

Basically, we have an out of control government...

ilovehome · Jul 29, 2011

It also bothers me that she has not even had her first day in court, but the shelter is thanking "all the media". Course, they called them. That just makes me sick. They should not be able use it as a fund raiser like they do. They changed this flyer--it did have a statement about the rabbits being available for adoption soon.

http://www.foothillsanimalshelter.org/w ... tion1.pdfI

I guess I have an aversion to spotlighting people or animal suffering for financial gain. Is it really about the animals or them getting to be heroes?

ladysown · Jul 29, 2011

http://www.foothillsanimalshelter.org/w ... ation1.pdf i think this is the flyer you mean?

curlysue · Jul 29, 2011

I read in another group her neighbors say she takes good care of her rabbits.animal rights groups are out of control.they want animals too have better care than people.They dont want stacking cages or rabbits on wire.My sister had animal control come out three times cause someone called them.they said her rabbits were ok.Im sure they would say my bunnies are in tiny cages even though mine are bigger than is required by USDA.

Frosted Rabbits · Jul 29, 2011

I certainly hope that whatever pictures were taken, shows that nothing negative was going on-- taking dead rabbits out of a freezer? hmm, intended for animal food? Or processed for human consumption? If the HOuse Rabbit Society was involved-- you can bet harvesting the animals for food would be considered a no-no.

5dognightfarm · Jul 29, 2011

This article disgusts me. As in, the folks doing the "rescuing" disgust me.

Robin · Jul 29, 2011

Well, rumors spread faster than the flu, so who knows what was really going on in there. If it is decided by the court that her rabbits need to be dispersed, how many do you think will actually find homes? clearly these were not "pets", won't be litterbox trained, won't be used to the sights, sounds, and smells of indoor living. I bet a bunch are put down for simply a lack of space and interest.

I'd like to hear what they find as cause of death for those dead rabbits... if they even bother to do a necropsy.

MaggieJ · Jul 29, 2011

Rabbits in the freezer are not against the law. Animal rights activists don't have a leg to stand on there.

Robin · Jul 29, 2011

From foothills animal rescues flier about the rabbits:

Our efforts to care for these rabbits would not be possible
without the help of the following:
Foothills Animal Shelter volunteers, House Rabbit Society
staff and volunteers, Jeffco Fairgrounds, Jeffco Evacuation
Team, Jeffco Animal Control, area veterinarians, Denver
Municipal Animal Shelter, all media, PetSmart Charities and
our friends at 32nd & Youngfield and 52nd & Wadsworth,
Purina, Murdoch’s and Golden Mills.

Hmmm... I smell a rat.

tailwagging · Jul 29, 2011

Dose anyone know if she really needed a license to breed and sell rabbits?
and it was 84 degrees inside the shed which from what I remember is under what a USDA rabbirty would need to be to cool.

"An evaporative cooling unit, known as a swamp cooler, appeared to be running on the side of the shed.
"

so she was doing something.

I hope she wins.

200 Rabbits Seized

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