Easter Bunny Is Passé; Rabbit Rescuers Call for More Authentic, Passionate Christian Symbol of Easter

Rabbit rescuer says its time to be more passionate about Easter and choose a more authentic Christian symbol of Easter instead of a live rabbit. Patti Henningsen talks to rabbits and they say they'd rather be cared for by adults.

(PRWEB) March 18, 2004 --As Easter 2004 approaches, this April 11th, Christians find themselves feeling more passionate and concerned about being more 'authentic in their faith. Normally Easter is a bad day for rabbits as millions of people looking for a fun way to celebrate the Christian holiday with the kids make the misguided decision of getting the kids a live 'Easter Bunny.

Why is that a mistake? Well," says Patti Henningsen, founder of Sparkling Hearts Rabbit Rescue of Maryland, rabbits dont really like kids." Henningsen knows what the rabbits think because she asked them--shes a professional animal communicator as well as rabbit rescuer. Rabbits are not attracted to hyper children and do not like being picked up. They prefer adults as caretakers. And rabbit behavior is also a very subtle thing, they communicate visually with very subtle body language such as twitching ears, wagging noses and these things are not usually perceptible to youngsters. About the time a rabbit is aggravated to the point of biting or kicking, then a child might notice and child and lagomorph can both sustain injury."

Henningsen founded Sparkling Hearts Rabbit Rescue in Western Maryland in 2002 to help deal with overflow from rabbit rescues. She elaborates There is not just one rabbit rescue in our area, there are a number of them now and even they have to turn away the tide of unwanted animals in the usual nightmare after Easter. Were all competing for the same adopters to adopt our rabbits who weve taken from the shelters and THEN theres all the rabbits in the shelters! There are so many rabbit rescues in our area now because of this growing problem. Theres the House Rabbit Society, Friends of Rabbits, Bunny Magic, Solomons Isle Rabbit Rescue, Bunny Lu, and Sparkling Hearts. Thats six rabbit rescues for one metropolitan area. Theres too many rabbits being abandoned."

The Nightmare After Easter
Parents who think it might be fun to teach kids about animals dont realize these cute bunnies can live sixteen years or even longer! Henningsen, who has an animal communication client who owns a sixteen year old rabbit says, My client has a sixteen year old rabbit and knows someone with an eighteen year old rabbit. Thats a long time for a child to have to commit to an animal during many major life changes." Not only that but Henningsen says, the rabbits really enjoy adult company so much more." So the parents dont realize the little furball they put in that Easter basket is not only a long lived mammal but also destructive and not really very cuddly at all. And then the little furball who came home for Easter Sunday ends up in an animal shelter waiting for a lethal injection.

So what are parents to do? Henningsen suggests Easter is a Christian holiday. Its about celebrating the resurrection of the Christ. It has nothing to with rabbits. The rabbit as a symbol is actually a pagan symbol. There are other symbols of the miracle of Easter that will not result in thousands and thousands of euthanized rabbits at animal shelters in the nightmare after Easter." According to the book, Stories Rabbits Tell by Susan Davis and Margo DeMello, released last year, which examines the cultural history of the rabbit, Easter as a springtime holiday originated as a pagan feast for pre-Christian Europeans to celebrate the Spring Equinox. Even then the hare or rabbit was associated with this celebration and was an attribute of the Teutonic moon goddess Otsara as well as the Anglo Saxon moon goddess Eostre.

So what is a more authentic Christian symbol that parents can share with their children? Henningsen says The traditional symbol of the resurrection is a rainbow. Its beautiful and artistic. Buy the kids a paint set and tell them about the rainbow bridge which is where Christ went after he rose again, he went over the rainbow bridge. Then maybe if enough people do that instead of buying a little life they know nothing about, thousands and thousands of rabbits wont have to go over the rainbow bridge themselves when theyre euthanized just because they stopped being cute little babies and grew up to be an adult animal. I cant imagine that Jesus Christ would have wanted this senseless, sad onslaught of discarded lives to be associated with his ultimate sacrifice. I cant imagine that anyone else would think that Hed have wanted that either."

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Patti Henningsen is a rabbit rescuer and founder of Sparkling Hearts Rabbit Rescue. She is also a professional animal communicator based in the mid-Atlantic area. She can be reached for comment at 301-745-3962 or by email at rabbits@myactv.net. Sparkling Hearts Rabbit Rescues website is http//www.SparklingHearts.org [Sparkling Hearts and her animal communication website is AnimalTranslator.com