Iowa's ‘rabbit scrambles’ are Inhumane

Every year for over a decade, the Muscatine County Fair holds a rabbit scramble where organizers release young rabbits in a fenced arena and small children are cheered on as they chase the terrified rabbits. This summer the event was July 19.

Rabbits are fragile prey animals. They hate to be chased and picked up because it feels as if they are being hunted. They will instinctively kick and flail to get away, and if not supported properly, they can break their backs in the process. In short, it’s petrifying to the rabbit – the chase and the catch. The catch means being grabbed tightly by the ears, scruff, or abdomen. Frightened rabbits kick, bite, and scratch out of fear which means there is a lot of pain going around. Children have no understanding of how animals as delicate as rabbits should be handled. The organizers, as responsible adults, are accountable for deliberately causing suffering, terror, and pain to the rabbits used in this event.

This year as in past years at the Muscatine County Fair, the caught rabbits are given to the children as prizes. There is no follow-through to ensure that families are prepared for the responsibility of the rabbit. Or that, even a week later, the rabbits are being safely homed. (The latter is a standard practice in Iowa’s licensed animal shelters and rescues.) In general, rabbits are terrible pets for children because rabbits dislike being held. They communicate with subtle changes in body language and hide illnesses so well that by the time they are obviously sick it is usually too late. Rabbits also require specialized care; many in the veterinary field consider them exotics, some vets do not treat them, and care can be very expensive. This boils down to that free prize may not be as cheap as families assume.

Currently there is a huge overpopulation of domestic rabbits in Iowa. Shelters and rescues that do take rabbits are inundated. Iowa’s primary rabbit rescue, A Home for EveryBunny, currently has over 80 rabbits in its care and 44 rabbits on a waiting list for an open foster spot. In the past year alone, this rescue been asked to take in more than 236 rabbits. The relinquishing of rabbits is due to people not realizing that they are not easy pets, to not getting rabbits fixed, and to the mistaken idea of thinking rabbits are good starter pets for children.

In the end, The Muscatine County Fair considered none of these facts as it needlessly perpetuated cruelty to animals this summer. It’s time to stop.

Kathleen Janz of Ainsworth Is a former rabbit owner and current volunteer for various animal shelters and rescues, including a Home for Everybunny.