Rabbit killers say they are sorry
Tuesday 15th November 2011, 11:30AM GMT.
Christian, left, and Jim Bob contacted the Guernsey Press to apologise to the public and GSPCA after filming themselves battering a rabbit to death on the cliffs and posting the video online. (1198601)
TWO men have been arrested in connection with an incident that saw a rabbit battered to death.
Inspector Trevor Coleman confirmed yesterday that two men aged 26 and 24 were questioned and released on police bail, pending further investigation.
A video posted on the internet showed the men, named as Jim Bob and Christian, hitting the animal with a spade and laughing at it twitching afterwards. Throughout the incident on the cliffs, the pair exchanged banter, laughing to the camera and then crying out when the rabbit started moving rapidly again.
They said the animal had myxomatosis and needed to be put out of its misery. But animal welfare charity the GSPCA deplored the act, calling it despicable.
The 26-year-old, who would only give his name as Christian for fear of retribution, yesterday contacted the Guernsey Press to apologise for any ‘upset the incident had caused the charity and members of the public’.
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Firstly, thank God these evil, sick minded callous individuals have as a result of their stupidty posting the video of their sick antics online, have been brought to justice. These two men, deserve retribution on a tremendous scale for the twisted, despicable act they comitted at random for the mere warped pleasure they clearly gained why video it otherwise?! I hope these two wicked “men” are punished harshly and accordingly. I concur wholeheartedly with the comments of the GSPCA the act was indeed, depsicable and morally rephrehensible on a tremednous scale. The pathtetic attempt to try and justify their evil deed is also to be blunt, laughable and perhaps indicitive of a guilty conscience. All I say is job well done, glad these nasty human beings have got what they so rightly deserve.
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Oh well thats ok then. Scared of retribution even though they deserve it. Cowards.
People like this are sick in the head. Good job they hadn’t found a baby, lone child or anyone walking by themselves on the cliff path for that matter. They probably would have met the same fate. These sickos just wanted to beat something to death and I doubt they cared what it was. People like this have no place in modern society. No doubt the parents will be whining to the press “they didn’t mean it they are only young….blah blah whine”.
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SS – Some people might think you are going over the top there mentioning that they might attack a child etc. But what people must realise is that animal torture can lead to other things. Look at famous murderers of the past they started by torturing small animals. These kinds of people are sick in the head! They need help.
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Firstly I am glad these young men have apologised for this incident. I can only believe they are telling the truth about the rabbit having Myxi as any healthy rabbit would not stand still long enough to be hit with a spade.
Secondly I would ask like to ask the GSPCA what a peson should do if it comes across a Myxi rabbit. I see so many of these rabbits each year, and lot of them have got blood seeping out of their long since blind eyes and out of their noses and are in an incredibly bad way. I personally wouldn’t be able to pick one up to take it to the Shelter so would the GSPCA want people to call them so that they can send somebody to pick them up and then take them to the vet to be euthanased at the expense of the GSPCA? It would be good to know what procedure they would like to see for dealing with these extremely unfortunate victims of what was originally a man-made virus.
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I had a myxie rabbit in my garden a couple of years ago – I called the GSPCA and they collected it within 20 minutes.
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How would they like it if someone went up to them and hit them over the head with a spade??
They say the rabbit was sick this may of been the case but it’s not for them to kill it and not like they did. Sick luck them up throw away the key….
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Although not condoning the way these guys did the job or displayed it on the net I can understand why they killed it. Sarah if you have seen a rabbit with myxi you would understand yourself why anyone would want to put the poor animal out of its misery it is a horrendous decease. What these guys did was not wrong it was the way they did that was the problem.
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I won’t show my face and I’m not going to give my name and I only saying sorry because I’ve been caught
Gutless and pointless; if your that sorry post a video apology using your real names.
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As if what they did wasn’t bad enough, this apology (and their pathetic attempt somehow to justify what they did) borders on the contemptible. They knew that their names would get out one way or another so were just trying to pre-empt matters and cover their own cowardly hides.
I’m glad that the little scumbags have been caught and I hope that the full force of the law comes down on them VERY hard. I just wish that this was an isolated case, as cruelty to animals seems to be happening more often than ever these days.
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How could they be so cruel heartless scum the cowards have only said sorry cos they have been caught.Well i hope they come down on them hard Whether this poor rabbit had myxi or not it did not deserve this cruelty.To video it and laugh they are the lowest of the low.
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the lads are obviously sorry and ashamed of making a video, that in my opinion was wrong but to kill a WILD rabbit with that awful disease was an act of kindness,nothing else.
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….just one little niggling question bothers me…why were they on the cliff walks carrying a spade? They must have had some foresight as to what it was going to be used for…and not to make the path walks tidy I would suggest!
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Worrying thought indeed. What would have happened had they met someone walking on their own. As i said earlier it seems they just wanted to beat something to death.
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what happens if they hadnt have been reported! they could have gone and killed another animal! it could have been from a cat to another animal, they are just sick
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From what I picked up in the Guernsey Press, these guys were working on the cliffs, hence having the spades. Not justifying it, just answering a query.
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Story time.
My wife once found a scared little rabbit in the middle of the road when driving home one night. She bundled it up in a blanket and took it to the GSPCA. They told her it had Myxi and put it down.
Whilst my wife was traumatised thinking she’d saved the rabbit, when in fact she had escorted it to its death. The point of my story is that the GSPCA will put the rabbit down humanely if you take it in. Well, they did for my wife anyway.
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“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals.”
~George Orwell, Animal Farm
As someone who is:
a) Local and;
b) More local than you
I think you’ll agree that is a great quote.
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1 rabbit killed with spade.
so what?
have a google around and see how animals are treated and then killed by their billions in the meat industry to provide you with a cheap lunch.
If you are an ‘animal lover’ and not a vegan you are a hypocrite.
Are we really suggesting that every myxomatosis case should be taken to a vet???? I could fill up the GSPCA with sick rabbits every time I went for a walk. The only thing they did wrong was to be naive and make a video.
P.S. Vic The full article implies they work for States Works so WERE on the cliff paths tidying them up…………….
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I think you’ll find the issue is with the way they went about their task (and filmed it for all to see), not the task itself.
I’ve personally put enough suffering rabbits out of their misery to know there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.
To those who have suggested not taking a rabbits life into your own hands, sit quietly in a field, watch a myxy rabbit run in circles because it can’t see. Wait for the crows to notice and then tell me whether or not it would have been more humane to put the rabbit out of its misery when you had the chance.
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I dont believe they were working as why would you take a camera to work?! Even if it did have the illness they shouldnt have hit it 3 times should they?! they should have taken to the GSPCA so it could have been euthanised
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Vic
Could it be they were working for States Works Department ?
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Ok, they were daft, shouldn’t have done it, there are other ways to put rabbits out of their misery.
BUT…for all those castigating them for not revealing their identies. Local shooter rightly refers to the full force of the LAW.
Contrast that to the other posters who want them locked up and the key thrown away, or on the other thread, bring back flogging, hit them on the head with spades and all those other comments.
It is the apparent desire of some to distribute their own “justice” when the reality is that justice would not fit the crime that is leading the reluctance, I presume, to come forward.
On that point, and on that point only, I don’t blame them!!
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lovely post more local than you and eggy bread im no hypocrite yes im vegan but even if i wasnt, what these two ( braindead morons) did was totally out of order and i hoped they are sacked as who can say if they wont do it again whilst clearing cliff paths and yes i hope it goes to court . they should do more than just hang their heads in shame!
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Killing a rabbit with Myxi – okay.
Breaking it’s neck quickly with a spade – not ideal but practical.
Beating it with a spade – Cruel.
Filming the beating – Sick.
Posting the film on the internet – Perverted.
Hopefully the two will be convicted but even then the sentence will be light. The only true punishment for them would be to lose their jobs. States Works must dismiss them, to take any lesser action over such behaviour whilst at work for the States will send out the message that public employees can get away with what any other employer would deem gross misconduct.
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Very good comment, I agree with this in its entirety.
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I suspect everyone knows who these guys are – dosen’t take a genius to work it out really does it?
I suspect they will be having a good old laugh at us all debating this point; they have no need to feel sorry about anything – cos the sad truth is, these sort of people don’t have any feelings for anything anyway.
I am wondering who the first person who demands “bring back the birch” will be? I don’t happen to believe this would help, but interested to see where this debate goes.
For the record, I am a carnivore and proud. I wear leather shoes and drink white wine. I make a clear division in my mind between whacking a rabbit over the head for a bit of a laugh and say killing a pig to eat it.
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eggy bread, having been a veterinary nurse I can assure you, that you can take any and every mxyi rabbit you come accross either to the vet or to the GSPCA who will take to the vet (as did Animal Aid when they were running). As it is a wild animal you will not be charged for the euthinasia.
Can I also point out that it was not the only thing they did wrong to video it. The method in which they carried out the deed was not humane. There lies the problem. I have no issue with people dispatching animals humanely, but only if they have the skill. These two however appear to have been out for a bit of “sport”. There is no excuse for it. On a island this size with 7 vet practices and the Animal shelter we are hardly far away from somewhere that would do the need if we do not have the skill.
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sarnia expat
“I make a clear division in my mind between whacking a rabbit over the head for a bit of a laugh and say killing a pig to eat it.”
Well here’s how that pig gets into your sausage roll. Looks exactly the same to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGpJzBE28sI
(it’s a Sky News report BTW not some pro-veggie shock propaganda)
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Eggy Bread – we shall just have to agree to disagree about the rights or wrongs of eating/despatching animals in general.
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As others have said the rabbit must have been in a bad way for them to get anywhere near it. It’s clear that some of the people on here have never seen the state of a rabbit with myxi in the advanced stages. It’s not pleasant and there is no cure.
Am I the only person who thinks that smacking such a poor animal with a spade before it knows anything is happening is a whole lot MORE humane than grabbing the thing, putting it in a box/bag, walking back to your car, driving it to the vet, getting it handled by yet more people, before shoving a needle into it and filling it full of deadly chemicals?
This is a wild animal remember, not a pet, it would be in a total panic from the moment you captured it to the moment the vet killed it off.
Or would you rather they left it to wonder around blind, oblivious to day or night, bleeding out internally, before finally being pecked to death by crows when it is finally too weak to resist?
If I ever get in that state I hope someone gives be a hefty clump round the bonce so I pass in an instant, and they can even film it and put it on the internet if they want, no skin of my nose, I’ll be dead!
Of course, what these two muppets did wrong was filming it and putting it on the internet, but that’s not illegal, just stupid.
Stop being so self righteous and get yourself out in the fields or the cliffs and see just how many rabbits there are out there that are in a similar state. This is from someone who has dispatched his fair share of the poor buggers, though I prefer an air rifle to a spade.
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…to the two posters who kindly pointed out that they were working for Sates Works Dept; and therefore had every reason for carrying a spade, I thank you…being a bit of an ex pat I only get the truncated web site version of news…so States Works dept; workers on a lunch break perhaps, use States utensils to scatter the brains of a rabbit all over the place…there must be someone in authority, within that department, considering an action, or even a reaction, to their employees behaviour whilst on paid duty?
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I’m not sure if I read it,heard it on TV or radio or possibly even dreamt it but I’m sure one of them claimed that they had instructions to despatch any mxyi rabbits they came across during their States employment on the cliff paths
That will be interesting if they are taken to Court… unless the charge is one of simply being stupid
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I actually watched the video of these 2 thugs and im sorry,if you saw the way they were laughing and joking when they hit the rabbit then you would be appauled.The first 2 times they hit it,it didnt die.It was the 3rd hit that killed it.Some people may say im not all there to watch something like this but let me tell you i felt sick to the stomach and it also made me cry.They say they are sorry but is it because they were caught.I really hope they get what they deserve.They even posted the link on facebook but because so many people complained they took it off.I know who they are and i would love to name and shame them.If they get away with it then i will name and shame them.
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Ok. First of all let me just say, I think it was a stupid thing to film what they did. At the the end of the day they were putting a sick rabbit out of it’s missery. people shoot healthy ones for a sport for gods sake. They killed a WILD rabbit and in case none of you peaple knew, by law, you are aloud to kill wild rabbits and however you do it is intirely up to you. There is nothing illigal about what they did. I think you all need to lighten up a bit
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Even if the rabbit did have the illness the kindest thing to do is to take it to the GSPCA or to the vets! not hit it 3 times with a shovel! I saw the first few minutes of the video and in it the rabbit is eating and cleaning itself! it may have only been a baby! these two people are just sick in the head! i know one of them and i would also gladly give out his name! they deserve to be punished for the way they killed the poor innocent rabbit!
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Rabbits (healthy and not-so-healthy) get shot at, killed and maimed every day. Is there a dividing line between sport and cruelty?
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i bet 90% of the people on here leaving comments havnt even seen the video, and just go with what they here from rumors and what they read in the press. what about the people that shoot rabbits for a sport dont get me wrong i have shot rabbits but what happens if they just get injured and get away is that animal cruelty or is that allowed, as i dont see everyone going mad about that. The only thing i can see these two men have done is posted it on the internet. And to fred i have also seen this video and i think you will find the rabbit dies on the first blow to the head. I am not trying to stick up for these men posting it on the internet was wrong and childish, but i think everyone is going way over the top about this. hitting a rabbit with a spade to put it out of its misery is not going to lead to them hitting a child with a spade as some suggest. there are far more things in the world to be worrying about than some one killing a rabbit. And also fred it did state rabbit killing so why watch it, if it made you cry you need to carry a box of tissues with you everywere you go as there is far far worse things that go on in this world. just think no one batters an eye lid about how the states controle the duck and chicken population over here to me thats far worse.
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its not about oh people shoot rabbits for sport, its the fact that these two men fully knew what they were doing and decided that they would beat up a rabbit, because in their eyes had myxi. However it does not give them the right to get great laughter and excitement from doing this.
damn sicko’s
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spot on james hunting season is october to febuary clubing or breaking a wild rabbits neck happens every saturday morning though o
ut the season
when ferrets are used these rabbits are caught in nets and despatched likewise not illegal but sport that goes back hundreds of years putting fresh wild un contaminated meat on the table white wine garlic and tomato casserole beautiful no seriously to get near enough to catch or shoot a healthy rabbit takes skill although there are plenty so called self accomplished shooters who mame more than they kill and cant hit a and barn door and never will again not illegal this rabbit was sick and dispatched out of its misery but albeit in a sick way sorry boys
guilty but not illegal i suspect high profile
case should raise money and awareness of the gspca but not from this cooky and definitly not to put down myxy rabbits with the needle
ps is culling healthy semi tame ducks early morning with bread and a sycle humane NO
ENOUGH SAID
definitly sick
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What is a 26 year old doing on cliff paths killing rabbits? He obviously has some serious problems, they absolutely disgust me, they wouldn’t have been sorry if they hadn’t been caught, they’d be doing it again, grow up and get a life, sad, pathetic individuals.
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Go fred, name and shame! Why shouldn’t they be named and shamed…big bad boys killing rabbits they should be able to take what’s coming to them!
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I once saw a man bashing a fish.
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Where did it happen? Can you name the plaice?
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I’d be interested to know from those expressing such indignation here how they rationalise between the apparent unacceptableness of killing a diseased rabbit and the acceptableness of killing a healthy mosquito, wasp or spider.
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it is more about the method of killing, the fact that it was not quick and painless, and the fact that they were obviously treating it as “a laugh”
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These little cowards apologizing is a joke.They know that their names will become public knowledge and are just trying to protect themselves.
I know that the GSPCA will collect and transport any myxi rabbits to the vets to be humanly euthanized..
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So the name of one of them is ‘Christian’ ??? Hmmm!…If they were MY employees, their situation would be about to change!
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Bored psycos, the island is full of them. Terrifying. Cruelty to animals is never ever acceptable.
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