PUYALLUP, Wash. — A Pierce County court decided Tuesday that Jennifer Lowe will be able to take a few of her rabbits home, after hundreds of the animals were taken from her shelter, Binky Bunny-Tales Rescue, in February.
The Pierce County Sheriff's Department said Animal Control began investigating Lowe's rescue after receiving a complaint about the care of the animals.
But Shelby Theriault, a veterinary technician who volunteers at the shelter, says Lowe always made sure to provide the necessary care for her animals whenever they needed it.
“I’ve never come into any concern being on the property of the rescue with any care needs,” she said. “She’s always met everything they needed.”
However, in court, Judge Lloyd Oaks decided if Lowe continued, her operation could become too big to handle.
“You could quickly be overcome, and that is because I know you have a soft heart and you want to help, and I commend you for that,” Oaks said. “But in this circumstance, something’s got to give.”
The court order will allow Lowe to reclaim eleven rabbits because they’re her personal pets. But she’ll only be allowed to take them home if they’re fixed and don’t require any medical treatment. Any new rabbits brought to Lowe’s property must be removed within 72 hours.
The court order also says Animal Control will conduct three unannounced visits to Lowe’s property over the next three months. If Lowe violates any of the terms in her court order, she’ll be brought to court to explain why.
Theriault says the stipulations of the court order still allow room for the group to explore other options for rabbit rescues while restructuring the organization.
“It sounds like maybe we can continue foster-based for now, where they're not in her physical care on the property,” Theriault said. “It also sounds like the judge would like [Lowe] to take a bit of a break and re-evaluate how the Rescue had become overcrowded and see how she wants to proceed in the future.”
Theriault says the court’s decision is bittersweet, but she’s thankful that the shelter can still operate in some capacity because she enjoys this work.
“It obviously puts a stop to a lot of things, and it takes a lot of time away from what we normally do,” she said. “These battles come into play, and so we just got to take them as they come, and do what we can with them. They’re frustrating for sure, but we’re grateful for what the judge has allowed for us today.”