The metro plans to leave only 50 sterilised rabbits homed in separate enclosures.
Metro spokesperson Themba Gadebe said the many rabbits in the park present various challenges, such as lack of control over the population growth, which leads to inbreeding and a decline in intrinsic immunity, resulting in the outbreak of disease and high parasite loads.
“While the practice of keeping free-roaming rabbits at the Bunny Park is an inherited and accepted management practice, it has, however, become an increasing concern to animal rights organisations in recent years, especially in relation to inbreeding.
“We have decided that from a zoological point of view, this is no longer the best practice,” Gadebe said.
He said the metro’s policy on the keeping of livestock provides for the disposal of excess livestock through a number of ways, including selling the excess animals and donation of animals.
“Already, 750 rabbits have been sterilised at a cost of R300 000 and sent to new homes. Despite this costly exercise, an estimated 2 000 rabbits remain in the park and it would not be financially viable to attempt to sterilise them all,” said Gadebe.
“Having rabbits in the enclosure will also help the metro’s plans to plant pastures without rabbits eating them. The overpopulation has caused severe damage to the land and decimated the park’s flora.”
The metro is in the process of upgrading the park at a cost of R7-million in the 2015/16 and 2017/18 financial years.
“Currently the metro has dredged all the dams in the park, done a lot of internal fencing and installed some of the irrigation.
“The next phase includes planting of pastures, expanding the irrigation system and upgrading the animal shelters,” Gadebe explained.
