With its nose and whiskers twitching, a caramel-colored baby rabbit perched upon a large slab of asphalt and quickly observed its Woodland Park surroundings before fleeing beneath rocks, hiding from an approaching human.
"Bunnies!" squealed a young boy in a yellow rain slicker. "Did you see the baby bunny?"
Located just south of Green Lake, Woodland Park is a lush nature park, filled with evergreens and thick cedars and carpeted with manicured lawns.
Picnic tables are scattered across its expanse, and on nicer days, it is common to see people jogging across the wooded trails.
The park also happens to be what city officials call a "dumping ground" for domestic rabbits, the reason for the park's overpopulation of the shy critters.
Rabbits are popular spring pets. Frequently adopted in March and April for Easter, the animal's quiet demeanor and cuddly appearance make it appear as the perfect pet.
Once the novelty of the new pet wears off, however, many people simply release their rabbits - illegally - into what they believe is the animal's natural habitat.
"Urban legend has it that people dropped a few domesticated rabbits off at the park, and the population just exploded," said Dewey Potter, communications manager for Seattle Parks and Recreation.
"We've brought them in for our amusement, and then toss them out when we're bored," said Virginia Dawson, animal-care supervisor at the Seattle Animal Shelter, of the releasing of rabbits at the park.
The legend's story is justified. At what is commonly referred to as "rabbit rock," a piling of broken asphalt and boulders stacked against a hill, bunnies of all sizes and colors scamper in and out of rock crevices to feed on wilted lettuce, chopped carrots and shredded leeks left by park visitors.
It is not uncommon to see more than 10 rabbits at any given time hopping around the rocks or grazing on grass across the park.
The total number of rabbits living at the park is unknown to the parks department, however.
"My theory is that if you see one whole bunch together, you could probably multiply that by eight or 10 for an approximate number in that area of the park, Dawson said.
According to Potter, Woodland Park and Discovery Park are the most popular dumping locations for rabbits. While the rabbits do not pose any problems to the parks, Potter said there is significant concern for the welfare of the animals.
"These are not wild woodland animals," Potter said. "Take them to a shelter, not to a park."
While a park, with its many trees and grassy hills, may seem to some to be the perfect habitat for rabbits, Potter and Dawson argue the opposite. Both say that the tame rabbits are frequently hit by cars, eaten by predators, are susceptible to cold winters and prolonged periods of rain and depend on humans for their food
The Seattle Animal Shelter, located in the Interbay neighborhood between Queen Anne and Magnolia, frequently gives rabbits to what they hope are good homes and educates people about caring for the docile, yet fragile, animals. In a typical week, one to two rabbits are adopted, and there are usually a few in foster care and at the shelter.
In an effort to prevent overpopulation, the shelter spays and neuters all animals and microchips them for identification.
The shelter also warns against releasing animals into the wild.
"I think a lot of people don't know what they are getting themselves into when they adopt a rabbit," Dawson said. When cared for correctly, she said, "they can make wonderful pets."
According to Dawson, rabbits make great house pets. The sociable animals are often litterbox-trained and get along well with other animals, such as cats and dogs. They like to forage and chew, but shouldn't spend too much time in a cage, so a house must be bunny-proofed.
Too frequently, Dawson said, rabbits are rescued from homes that kept the animals caged up in the backyard.
"To have them sit in a wire cage all summer and winter is just disgusting," she said. "They are easily forgotten."
While they are good home pets, rabbits, like most animals, have special needs and must be cared for daily. Though they look cuddly, most rabbits do not like to be grabbed or picked up and have very fragile bone structures.
Because of this, Dawson is hesitant to adopt a rabbit into a home where young children will be unsupervised around it.
"You don't leave a newborn alone with a 4-year-old," she said. "Why would you leave a tiny bunny with a 4-year-old? It's so easy to hurt them."
Dawson's main concern is that the rabbits go to a permanent home that will care for and respect the animal as a part of the family.
"Anytime somebody takes on something that's living, they need to take care of it for the rest of their lives," she said.
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