Website demands cash to save bunny from pot

ANIMAL rights activists are often derided as ‘bunny-huggers’ — well-meaning but foolish people — but one canny website operator in the US may have proved that there is something in this term.

Outraged pet lovers have threatened an American website where the owner has said he will kill and eat his pet rabbit Toby unless he is given $50,000 (€38,000) by June 30 and may well have handed over large sums of money.

The owner of savetoby.com, which includes pictures of the wheat-coloured pet, claims so far that he has made thousands of dollars.

"I am going to take Toby to a butcher to have him slaughter this cute bunny. I will then prepare Toby for a midsummer feast," he said.

"I have several recipes under consideration, which can be seen, with some pretty graphic images, under the recipe section.

"I don't want to eat Toby, he is my friend, and he has always been the most loving, adorable pet. However, God as my witness, I will devour this little guy unless I receive $50,000 into my account from donations or purchase of merchandise."

Some of the leading papers in the US have seriously debated whether or not the threat is a genuine one.

As of March 10, the site operator said he had made $18,462.12 (€13,867.27) in donations and from selling Toby merchandise including T-shirts, mugs, caps, fridge magnets and thongs.

Although there is no way of checking whether or not this figure is genuine, the publicity the site has garnered should be good for a few bucks.

In an interview with the Washington Post, site operator James (not his real name) claimed he had received "hundreds" of death threats. When asked if he would carry out his threat to eat the rabbit he said: "There's no doubt about it."

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has urged news organisations to ignore the site, while online payment service PayPal took the threats sufficiently seriously to disconnect the site's account.

However, anyone giving money in the hope of saving a cute animal from the pot may have wasted their money.

Urban myths website snoops.com reports that the site carried a disclaimer saying the bunny death threat is a joke, a claim denied by the site's operators which read: "Note: this is a joke: please only donate to buy gear or help support savetoby.com."

James however, told the Washington Post he knew nothing about the disclaimer.

Snoops also reported that an earlier spoof website Save Bernd! had threatened to send another rabbit, Bernd, to the dinner table. That site carried a clear disclaimer that it was a joke.

That has not stopped some animal lovers from taking the site at face value. One angry response threatened to have the site owners arrested for extortion.

However, James and his business partner insist they are not breaking the law.

In any case, rabbits have been accepted fare for centuries and the site helpfully provides rabbit recipes from around the world.