Shooters targeting a burgeoning rabbit problem on the southern outskirts of Hastings are being asked to get their shots away early to avoid endangering horses and their riders at Hastings Riding for the Disabled Centre.
Centre manager Ruth Holmes doesn't want people to stop shooting the rabbits, because they doneed to be eliminated, but she wants shooters to give it a miss between 9am and 1pm, when the horses and riders are doing their thing.
She said it was rare for shots to be fired in the area during the day but two shots at about 10.30am on Wednesday caused one pony to turn and almost throw its young rider, who had to be dismounted, as did another young rider.
The rabbit population around the 2-hectare Murdoch Rd East property is ever-increasing, having become too much for resident cat Monte, which nevertheless still gets its share.
