COLUMN: Fuzzy bunnies no match for inattentive dog owner

Complaints about dogs have often been seen in the pages of this paper.

Off-leash dogs, out-of-control dogs, horse-chasing dogs and barking dogs among them.

Ones stemming from behaviour exhibited within the confines of a bona fide off-leash park have been less common – particularly those rooted in the behaviour of such parks’ two-legged visitors.

Allow me to help fill that gap. (For those of you with sensitive stomachs who happen to be eating right now, I would recommend setting your plate aside for a spell.)

It was a brilliant Labour Day Monday, and the off-leash area at Blackie Spit was far from crowded. There were just enough canine visitors to satisfy the four-legged group’s seemingly insatiable need to drool, raise their legs and sniff bums, although unfortunately not just those of their own species.

I don’t recall the time of day we were there, though it was likely the afternoon. I also don’t recall if the owner at the root of my beef hailed his pets by name or whistle. Irrelevant, really.

I do, however, still recall the bone-crunching sound as his dogs snacked, one by one, on about five tiny bunnies they pulled from a nest inside a fenced-off portion of the park. Can’t quite lose the image, either, of the defenseless, and incredibly cute, creatures as they twitched between chews (excuse me while I take a bite of my bagel...).

Now, I know instinct comes into play here. Dogs are carnivores (though mine also eats poop on occasion – what’s with that, by the way?), and bunnies are most definitely meat.

Don’t get me wrong – vegan I ain’t. I’ll take a medium-rare steak over baked lentils any day.

And I know from experience, if not choice, that rabbit is not entirely bad-tasting. Kind of like chicken, actually, a fact discovered during a ‘guess who we’re eating?’ dinner from my childhood – but that’s a trauma for another day.

Back to instinct...

I don’t blame the dogs.

They smelled something yummy, and went for it.

It’s not like they saw the orange fence and, thought, ‘man, am I gonna get it if I go in there.’ (Or perhaps I’m underestimating them?)

Nope, that pair simply took advantage of an irresistibly delicious opportunity.

As the scene played out, I stopped my young son from attempting a rescue operation. Who knows how the dogs would have reacted to someone messing with their munchies?

Funny enough, though eventually not funny at all, we initially thought the dogs – one looked like a chocolate lab; the other was a slightly larger, blond dog – were in a bit of distress, after spotting them circling inside the fenced-off area. They seemed to be looking for a way out.

Throughout it all, we scanned the park for the dogs’ owner.

We asked others if they knew who was responsible for them, hoping we could spare a bunny or two the same fate. So much for that.

It wasn’t until we were headed out – irritated and nauseated – that we saw him. He was an older man, standing by the entrance to the dog park, who had obviously decided there was no need for him to accompany his pets inside.

From where he stood, he had no idea what his dogs were up to, nor did he care.

A fine example of a responsible pet owner? I don’t think so.

With pet owners like that, I’m almost proud to admit my dog eats poop.

Tracy Holmes is a Peace Arch News reporter.

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