Letter to the Ministry of Environment

The Arrowsmith Agricultural Association recently sent a letter to the Ministry of Environment office in Nanaimo, regarding the UVIC rabbits that were moved to a shelter in Coombs. Our primary concerns are good agricultural and animal husbandry practises.

Farmers in our region and across Vancouver Island work hard to provide healthy food for our communities, and are challenged to do so on many fronts. Invasive animal species are just one challenge.

Two examples are:

Bullfrogs:
- http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/
- http://www.bullfrogcontrol.com/

Rabbits:
- http://www.comoxvalleynaturalist.bc.ca/
- http://www.rabbitadvocacy.com/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/Rabbits_in_Australia

Letter to the Ministry

5 November 2010

Don Cadden, Regional Manager
Ministry of Environment
2080 A Labieux Road
Nanaimo V9T 6J9

Dear Mr. Cadden,

The Arrowsmith Agricultural Association would like to express its concerns about the current handling of the UVIC rabbits being housed at the World Parrot Refuge, located a short distance east of our 10-acre fairgrounds in Coombs.

Our organization's prime mandate is to operate our annual agricultural fair, held in August to showcase local agriculture. Our fair is the first in the cycle of fall fairs that showcase 4-H clubs and activities from around Vancouver Island. Throughout the year we host 4-H and other community events at the fairgrounds. For years we have been dealing with feral rabbits on our property, and our volunteers already spend a great deal of time repairing the damage the rabbits create, filling in holes to ensure the safety of our exhibitors, their animals and fairground visitors. At the fair this past August, a young rider was thrown from their horse when it was spooked by a rabbit.

Within a few weeks of the arrival of the UVIC rabbits in Coombs, we started seeing an influx of completely different rabbits, joining our existing rabbits as they munch and dig their way through our property. It is clear that these rabbits were identified as a pest and a nuisance on the campus at UVIC, destroying the grounds and creating hazards for people. We question how taking a Schedule C listed pest, specifically rabbits which are not in any way native to Vancouver Island, and relocating them to Coombs, into the heart of agricultural land, was ever considered to be an appropriate solution. It seems that an urban problem was simply dumped into a rural area.

We are concerned that we and local farmers have been left to deal with someone else's problem. Barbara Smith, a long standing member of the local agricultural community and a member of our board, when acting within her rights to remove the invasive UVIC rabbits from her hay fields, using a Ministry of Enviroment licensed trapper, has been vilified both locally and online. Other local farmers are at an increased risk of crop and property damage with this boost in the local rabbit population.

We are also concerned about the poor example of animal husbandry demonstrated by this entire process. We look forward to your reply, and to some assurance that this matter will be reconsidered soon, with a more appropriate solution found for UVIC’s bunny problem.

Sincerely
Doreen Patterson - (President)
Donna Furneaux - (Treasurer )

cc: Vancouver Island Agricultural Fair Boards, Farmers' Institutes and media