Invasive Lionhead Rabbits Take Over Florida Community, Rescue - Neuter - Rehome Efforts Underway

A campaign to save, neuter, and rehome invasive lionhead rabbits is now underway in a town in Florida because, as the group's leader said, the species is unlike other invasives in the state.

Invasive Lionhead Rabbits in Florida

Alicia Griggs, a real estate agent, is leading efforts to gather the $20,000 to $40,000 that a rescue organization would need to catch, neuter, immunize, house, and ultimately release the 60 to 100 invasive lionhead rabbits that are now residing in Jenada Isles, an 81-home subdivision in Wilton Manors.

They are the next generation of a group of parent individuals that a backyard breeder unlawfully released when she left two years ago.

Because the rabbits needed to be saved, Griggs claimed that he tried to contact the city but was unsuccessful.

From Invasive Species to Exotic Pets

Capturing, rehabilitating, and finding homes for them is not a simple procedure, according to Monica Mitchell from East Coast Rabbit Rescue.

When potential owners learn how much work the animals need, many turn them down and few veterinarians treat rabbits, to which, Griggs concurred.

People do not realize that they are exotic pets or how complicated they are, according to Griggs. Throwing any table leftovers at them will not be enough because they have a complex digestive system and must adhere to a unique diet.

Rescue Instead of Exterminate

Even though the city commission agreed in April to do precisely that after obtaining an estimate of $8,000 from a trapping company, Wilton Manors is allowing Griggs along with her supporters some time to gather money and move the rabbits rather than slaughter them.

After some locals complained that lionheads were digging holes, gnawing on outside wiring, and leaving droppings on sidewalks and driveways, the vote was held.

Additionally, city commissioners were concerned that if the invasive rabbits walked onto busy streets, they may spread to nearby towns and cities and cause traffic problems, WFAA reported.

Lionhead Rabbits vs. Florida Environment

Lionheads do not thrive in Florida's environment. Their life outdoors is unpleasant, violent, and abbreviated rather than the seven to nine years they live when properly housed.

In Florida's hot summers, the lionheads' thick coats cause them to overheat, and their lack of fear makes them easy prey for predators.

Grass is not a healthy food for the exotic species to eat. They require owners since their sicknesses are untreated, according to WFTV9.

The American Rabbit Breeders Association's executive director, Eric Stewart, claimed that domesticated exotic rabbits released into the wild are not able to survive on their own.

The breeder who illegally released them should be put on trial; this is a course of action the city has not taken.

Only because lionheads reproduce as rabbits do, with females giving birth to litters of two to six young every month beginning when they are around three months old, does the Wilton Manors colony continue to exist and expand.

Different Jenada Isles locals are responding to the situation. Some people enjoy being surrounded by rabbits, while others find it annoying, News4JAX reported.