Video of a California hero rescuing a rabbit from a wildfire rocketed around social media this week. The unidentified man is seen panicking after he first spots the creature darting into the flames. A few moments later, the rabbit struggled forth again. The man picked her up and led her away to safety.
So why are nature groups furious?
The hippie thought that he was saving an animal’s life. In fact, he was probably doing the opposite. Wild animals shouldn’t be torn from their environment. The rabbit might have been a nursing mother that needed to go back to her babies. She might have been searching for her burrow, which would have provided protection from the flames.
“If you encounter a wild animal in our neighborhood, leave it alone,” California Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Peter Tira said.
“Fire or no fire, just let the animals be… Fire is something animals have to deal with constantly.”
Animal activists are concerned about the animal’s future. The rabbit that the man “saved” might have trouble reintegrating into the wild. Yet it’s lived away from humans for too long to become a pet.
Removing a terrified animal from a raging fire makes for an amazing video, but that’s all. The poor creature would be better off if it were left alone.
“Frequently, we have seen cotton rats run across the line of fire, apparently finding a weak spot in it, and return to the smoking burn without injury,” Researcher E.V. Komarek wrote in a 1969 paper.
(Source: New York Post)