The prefecture of Ille-et-Vilaine ordered an investigation following the complaint of the L214 association denouncing “mistreatment” in the exploitation of rabbits by the president of this sector. Teams from the Departmental Directorate for the Protection of Populations (DDPP) “who went to the site, are writing a report whose conclusions will be made available to the prosecution when it deems it useful”, specified the prefecture.
The association for the defense of animals L214 filed a complaint on Wednesday with the public prosecutor of Rennes “for the offense of ill-treatment” due to “lack of care for sick or injured rabbits, unsuitable facilities causing suffering and violent handling” and for “crime of abandonment” concerning injured animals “left dying”.
L214 calls for the emergency closure of the operation
The complaint targets a farm located in Domalain (Ille-et-Vilaine) “as a legal person” as well as its manager, Frédéric Blot, president of the National Federation of Rabbit Producer Groups (Fenalap), and the health veterinarian of breeding. The Rennes prosecutor’s office confirmed on Thursday that it had received a first version of this complaint without the video, which should follow. “Upon receipt of all the elements, the prosecution will direct this complaint”, indicates the public prosecutor Philippe Astruc.
Footage that L214 says it shot in late May in Domalain, and made public on Wednesday evening, shows rabbits with skin lesions and infected wounds on their ears, legs and eyes. Other images, often difficult, show dead baby rabbits decomposing or dying, one with its hind legs stuck in a cage. The association calls for the emergency closure of the operation, which is supposed to set itself up “as an example” and “show the future of the sector”.