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Not a Pretty Picture |
Every Easter, many unthinking/uncaring photographers use baby bunnies as Easter props. What happens to them afterwards runs the gamut from release in the wild (where they don't stand a chance) to sale as snake food (no chance there either). The luckier ones end up in a shelter...
We'd like to encourage our readers to contact local photography studios and politely urge them not to use live bunnies in Easter portraits. A domestic rabbit is a 10-year commitment, not a disposable prop.
The following is a first-hand account from one of our members about the fate of some photo studio bunnies:
My in-laws are photographers. Every year for the past 3 years they go to the pet store and purchase 2-3 young rabbits -- usually about 4-6 weeks old -- way too young to be away from mom. Anyway, they then advertise "pictures with the real Easter bunnies" and send them out to clients. These poor rabbits are kept in a box for the next 4 weeks, in the storage area of a photography studio, where they are used as props for photos. While used as props, they are held in place (sometimes forcibly), placed into "cute" poses, and generally made to do things that rabbits do not necessarily want to do -- especially babies. After Easter has come and gone and the cuteness of a baby bunny is over, they then realize that they have to deal with the now obsolete props. They have given 2 of them away in prior years but within a few months the new owners soon called to say that they didn't want the rabbit anymore -- too much maintenance and too much poop. Or they weren't as cuddly as they had hoped. As a devoted rabbit lover (have 2 of my own) I know that rabbits do indeed require time, attention, and special care. They are curious animals who love to explore new territory (such as electric cords and other items that aren't good for them). I treat both bunnies as if they were 3 year old kids -- unaware of danger yet excited to explore the world -- a dangerous and sometimes deadly combination. As for my in-laws -- they currently have 3 rabbits from prior Easters -- and they have just obtained 2 new ones for this year's Easter abuse. It makes me ill to think they continue to do this even though they have perfectly good rabbits at home! I just wanted to sound off to someone who 1) loves rabbits as much as I do and 2) isn't related to me!
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Not a Pretty Picture |
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