Name: Ryan Miller
Occupation: security guard, rabbit enthusiast
Why he’s in the news:
You’ve seen a lot of dog parks, but have you ever heard of a rabbit park? Ryan Miller’s mission is to establish a rabbit park in Burnaby, close to Metrotown. The Vancouver resident has four rabbits, all sterilized, and he travels everywhere with them in a pet carrier that looks like a baby stroller. Miller likes to take them to parks to roam around, but with the danger of dogs, he would prefer a fenced area – hence the rabbit park idea.
Q&A:
Can you introduce your bunnies?
I have four rabbits total. The two I have here are Honey Bear and Miss America. They’re a pair of Holland lops. And at my sister’s place right now, I have another Holland lop named Skippy, also known as The Shark, and Pixie, who is a Lion Head, who was rescued from Richmond Auto Mall.
Why is the rabbit nicknamed “Shark”?
Because of the sound he makes when he chases after Pixie and female rabbits in general. He sounds like Jaws, with that little humming noise he makes, and just his colouring, just his demeanour. Sometimes, the way he looks at the other rabbits, he looks like he’s going to attack them like a shark, but all he wants to do is smother them with kisses.
You have your two rabbits out here, grazing on the lawn outside the library. Are you ever worried they might run off?
No, not these two. I would never bring them out here if there were any chance. I know they are very calm, I know them very well. I don’t want to say I tamed them. Because they are both rescues, they had anxieties and stuff, and we’ve gotten through that. They’re totally fine to come out here and play and not be spooked and not run away.
And do you take them with you everywhere? I see you have this repurposed baby carriage with some grass inside.
Yes, I take them everywhere I can. SkyTrain is good for that. Indoor places are somewhat limited, but we’re getting through that.
What are they like as pets?
They are a lot like cats. They have personalities of their own. You kind of have to work with that as well. So they’re not necessarily going to be this sweet little bunny rabbit looking to cuddle. You can teach them stuff, to not chew things. … They will learn to do that and also to use a litter box. They’re very curious. They like to get into all kinds of bags and whatever you’ve got. They become very close to the person for sure. These two trust me so much, they’re actually not afraid to be out in the city in a buggy.
I understand you’re interested in establishing an outdoor rabbit park. Can you tell me a little bit about how that would work?
That idea came about from this combination of taking them out to the parks – or trying to - and getting chased out by dogs and things. I keep running into other people who see the rabbits, and some of them have rabbits themselves, and are trying to figure out what they can do with them to enjoy them more and to just take them out and have them socialize. That’s how we got the idea to have this rabbit park, an enclosed park, where rabbit owners can take them down and the rabbits can socialize with each other and interact and everybody can be in a closed area, we know this is our space, and there’s grass for them to chew, bushes and things to climb on and to dig.
(Reporter notices something moving inside Miller’s sweatshirt.)
Tell me about this other little guy you’ve got crawling around. He’s actually disappeared into your shirt.
It’s actually a girl. I have a pair of rats. They’re both albino, one is also hairless, and they have kind of run into the deep end of my sleeve. That means they don’t really want to be bothered right now. The hood fell down. That’s where they were.
Is that a French fry in there (on your neck)?
Yes, that was their snack from earlier.
(Laughter) And what are their names?
Amy and Pinkie.
Right. Most people get dogs or cats. What drew you to rabbits?
It was actually my ex-wife, who … introduced me to rabbits. We weren’t allowed to have dogs in the townhouse where we lived. So we tried to think of something else we could have instead… She decided to go with a rabbit. And I just fell in love with them. They are so beautiful and so sweet.
And is that actually a baby carriage or a pet carriage?
It’s a pet carriage. It’s specifically made for dogs, but I haven’t seen anybody else with this thing in town. People think it’s such a great idea.
Anything else you want to say about your rabbits?
I just want to raise awareness that there’s a rabbit overpopulation in the Lower Mainland. People are debating what should be done about it. And I definitely want to say the idea of extermination or culling the population is not the way to go. Especially when it comes to rabbits. They just multiply again so fast. I’d like to find a peaceful solution to this rabbit situation.
