Abandoned bunnies create population boom in Lower Mainland<\/p>\n
Published 11:45 am Wednesday, June 24, 2026<\/p>\n
Lower Mainland residents who think they\u2019re seeing a lot more rabbits than usual this summer are probably right, advocates said.<\/p>\n
Sorelle Saidman, founder and president of the Rabbitats Rescue Society, which operates two micro-sanctuaries in Langley, has been warning the rabbit population, much of it consisting of former pets that have been set loose, is growing out of control.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were saying that for the European rabbits, the point of no return was going to be 2025,\u201d Saidman observed. \u201cIf we didn\u2019t control the European populations, it was going to be almost impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Abandoned and escaped European and Eastern Cottontail rabbits are both classified as invasive species that can cause significant environmental and property damage.<\/p>\n
While an exact estimate of their numbers is difficult to calculate, colonies as large as 2,000 have been discovered in some Lower Mainland communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery 10 years, the rabbit populations, European rabbit populations, really will explode,\u201d Saidman told the Langley Advance Times. \u201cThey just seem to go into overdrive every decade. It usually takes four years before anybody actually notices and reports on it and tries to do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lesley Fox, executive director of The Fur-Bearers, blames a lack of regulations around breeding and the widespread selling of unsterilized rabbits, and a lack of education for pet owners.<\/p>\n
Fur-Bearers, with the City of Saanich, has been pressing the provincial government for more rabbit <\/a>regulation<\/a>, a proposal that was adopted by the Union of B.C. Municipalities last year.<\/p>\n \u201cThe province needs to first regulate and crack down on breeders,\u201d Fox said.<\/p>\n \u201cSecond, end rabbit sales through pet stores and online platforms, and make it mandatory that anybody who wants a rabbit should be working through a reputable rescue group like the SPCA. Rabbits should be spayed and neutered before they\u2019re adopted out.\u201d<\/p>\n Fox said the provincial reaction has been disappointing.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a very discouraging response in that the province just simply defers any responsibility to municipalities.\u201d<\/p>\n Most of the rabbits seen in front and back yards and gardens are domestic rabbits, not native to B.C.<\/p>\n \u201cI think oftentimes they\u2019re marketed as, you know, sort of a starter pet or a children\u2019s pet. And then they end up in a hutch outside for the rest of their lives,\u201d Fox said.<\/p>\n \u201cOr sometimes, and what we\u2019re experiencing, is they\u2019re simply dumped. And people turn their pet loose, whether it\u2019s in a park or at a shopping mall, to survive on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n