A sleepy Washington neighborhood has been invaded by dozens of “extremely hungry” bunnies who are destroying their homes and eating their plants – but local authorities won’t help them.
What started as two to three bunnies has grown to as many as 75 bunnies in Spokane’s Hillyard neighborhood.
And while residents agree that the bunnies are “very sweet and adorable,” they say the fluffy animals are also “very destructive,” Ray Krueger said. KXLY.
“I’ve seen so many people’s lawns completely destroyed by this,” he told the outlet.
Another resident, Gary Dennis, said the bunnies “eat a lot” and destroy gardens.
“The neighbor is trying to garden in the back and they like to eat her garden,” he told the outlet.
What started as two to three bunnies has grown to as many as 75 bunnies in Spokane’s Hillyard neighborhood. And while residents find the bunnies “very sweet and adorable,” they say the fluffy animals are also “very destructive.”
Resident Gary Dennis said the bunnies “eat a lot” and destroy gardens. “The neighbor is trying to garden in the back and he likes to eat her garden,” he said
The lore surrounding the adorable animals is that the original bunnies were given as Easter presents before being abandoned in the East Queen Avenue area about seven or eight years ago, according to The Spokane Review.
According to The Review, they have since multiplied, taking over a six-block radius.
“We almost need a rabbit crossing sign at this point,” Lea Boston, who lives on East Queen Avenue with her roommate Lennox Richardson, told The Review.
Some neighbors love the fluffy bunnies that wander around the neighborhood and leave food for them to enjoy, but others are simply fed up with the bunny colony and rely on help from the local government.
“Something has to be done,” said a hopping, crazy Hillyard resident, Hope Walker, who has lived in the neighborhood since February 2023. “This is definitely a problem.”
Walker told The Review that the bunnies destroyed her lavender and boxwood trees worth at least $250 and dug large holes in her garden.
“They’re eating the roots of grass and plants, you see, and they’re extremely hungry right now,” she told the outlet.
One resident wrote a letter to Mayor Lisa Brown (pictured) asking for help, but says local authorities are not coming to their aid
The lore surrounding the cute animals is that the original bunnies were given as Easter presents before being abandoned in the East Queen Avenue area about seven or eight years ago. Since then, they have multiplied and taken over a six-block radius
Walker has even gone so far as to ask Mayor Lisa Brown for help last month, but so far no help has arrived.
The bunnies have even become a local attraction, with fans flooding the quiet neighborhood with nets trying to scoop up the bunnies and take them home as pets. Walker has had to ask people to leave her property.
“It’s like visiting a zoo and it’s not your neighborhood,” Dennis told The Review. “It’s annoying for the people who live there.”
The division in the neighborhood goes so far as to argue about whether or not to feed the rabbits, and since no one claims ownership of the animals, no one can be fined.
Neighbors have gone to Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Services (SCRAPS) and the city’s Code Enforcement Department, as well as Councilman Jonathan Bingle, but they claim nothing satisfactory has come of it, Walker told The Review.
Code Enforcement said they couldn’t help because there is no known owner. And SCRAPS simply recommended contacting a rabbit rescue, Walker said.
Neighbors try to change city ordinance so authorities can get the rabbit problem under control (Photo: Spokane)
“I mean, why can’t they come out en masse and catch these little buggers?” she asked The Review.
SCRAPS director Jesse Ferrari said it is beyond their control and they have no jurisdiction, according to The Review.
“The contracts and the statues need to be updated,” he told the newspaper. “If that’s a need and desire that the community sees.”
Dennis said he worked with Bingle to help change the city ordinance.
But for now, neighbors like Bryan Caudill — who has lived in the neighborhood for 15 years — are happy the bunnies are there.
“I have grandchildren and they love them,” he told The Review. “And there are a lot of people who do, like next door, she loves them. They leave food for them. They all leave food for them.”
Boston and Richardson also love the small animals and want them to stay close by permanently.
They even laughed when they said they came home one day to find “at least 36” in their front yard, they recalled in The Review.
They believe the herbivorous, tourist-attracting animals make their neighborhood special.
“They are an integral, absolutely integral part of the community, about four blocks in each direction,” Richardson said.