pas de vente de lapins vivants pour Pâques... (Vancouver)

[Animal 0]

Petcetera to stop selling bunnies before Easter
Fiona Anderson
Vancouver Sun


Wednesday, March 28, 2007



CREDIT: Steve Bosch, Vancouver Sun
Nancy Wheaton, manager of Petcetera store at Rupert and
Grandview, with a cute bunny. The chain is going to stop selling rabbits because
so many people abandon them.

CREDIT: Steve Bosch, Vancouver Sun
Petcetera's decision to stop selling rabbits is 'really,
really good news' to the people at the Vancouver Humane Society.

One of British Columbia's biggest pet stores is celebrating Easter by
phasing out the sale of rabbits, which sell like hot cross buns at this time of
year but often end up without a bed at the inn by Christmas.

Vancouver-based Petcetera said it would no longer sell rabbits in its 11
Lower Mainland stores because of concerns raised by the British Columbia Society
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that there were too many rabbits in
shelters, Petcetera's vice-president Richard Kaga said in an interview.

So starting next week, Petcetera will sell off its rabbit inventory in the
Lower Mainland and start finding homes for abandoned rabbits through its
in-store adoption centres.

Rabbits will still be sold in Petcetera's other 34 stores across Canada
where no concerns about abandoned rabbits have been raised, Kaga said.

Petcetera's decision to stop selling rabbits was welcome news to Olga
Betts, president of Vancouver Rabbit Rescue & Advocacy which has about 45
abandoned rabbits in its care, many in foster homes.

People think bunnies are cute presents so they buy one, Betts said.

"And they don't have any clue how to look after it and then they're bored
with it after a few months and they throw it out in the park," Betts said.

And rabbits breed every month starting at the age of five months, so a few
rabbits can turn into thousands very quickly, she said.

"Impulse buying of baby rabbits in pet stores causes huge problems for the
rabbits and the community," Betts said.

So Petcetera's decision is a "real breakthrough," she said.

"We're hoping other pet stores will follow [Petcetera's] lead so they can
be a solution rather than a problem," Betts added.

Debra Probert, executive director of the Vancouver Humane Society called
Petcetera's decision "really, really good news."

People don't understand that rabbits need a lot of attention, Probert
said.

"They're very social. They're very intelligent. They need companionship
and intelligent stimulation," Probert said.

"It's cruel that people buy them and just put them in a cage outside or a
cage in the garage and just ignore them," she said.

"So we're really pleased [Petcetera has] decided not to sell them."

Since it opened its first store in Vancouver in 1997, Petcetera has
provided satellite adoption centres for cats and dogs in each of its stores.

"There is an overabundance of dogs and cats in particular that can't find
homes and if they can't find homes over time they're put down by groups like the
BCSPCA because they have no choice," Kaga said.

Kaga believes Petcetera's decision not to sell cats or dogs, and now
rabbits, is not only socially responsible but also good business.

"We felt that by not getting into [selling cats and dogs] in the long run
we'd probably be better off," Kaga said. "Because our customers would understand
that we are a responsible pet retailer and that would go a long way to gain the
kind of confidence that all retailers want to gain from a loyal customer."


The Vancouver Sun 2007