Feral rabbits have been the bane of the University of Victoria for years, but now the problem is moving off campus.
No one knows when the first rabbit appeared on campus, but an estimated 1,500 of them currently call it home.
The university has come under pressure to cull the animals by angry neighbours but how that might be accomplished is fuelling a raging debate.
Proponents of the doomsday approach have taken a shine to something called the Rodenator.
The device, according to its U.S. manufacturer, “delivers a precisely measured mixture of propane and oxygen into the tunnel or burrow of invasive pests. This mixture is then detonated by the operator, causing an instantaneous underground shock wave of concussive force that eliminates the pests and in some (species specific) cases collapses some of the existing tunnel structure thus preventing immediate reinfestation.”
Not surprisingly, animal rights advocates are not wild about that option, and university officials have said they plan to try non-lethal approaches first.
Local veterinarian Nick Shaw has offered to perform vasectomies on the rabbits, but he says even that won’t solve all of the bunny problems…
CBC
April 19th, 2009 at 8:14AM
Recipe for rabbit stew starts: First catch the rabbit.
Same problem for the vet’s solution.
April 20th, 2009 at 7:11AM
Once the gypsy dogs have taken care of the chickens in Key West, they can move to Australia. Or, is it the case that like every other kind of wildlife in Australia, the bunnies are venomous?
I had no idea that fuel-air explosive technology had progressed so far. If only Bill Murray had known about this in Caddyshack.