Animal News

Dallas Easter peeps, please don't buy rabbits, chicks, and ducklings

Most critters purchased during Easter end up at shelters.

Courtesy photo

Easter is looming and the SPCA of Texas is here to remind us that buying baby rabbits, ducklings, and chicks is not a good idea. Don't do it.

SPCA marketing & communications VP Maura Davies says that, unfortunately, most of those bought during the Easter holiday end up getting dumped at shelters.

"Although the idea of furry, fuzzy, fluff balls hopping through the fresh, spring grass may seem appealing, rabbits, chicks, and ducklings are not 'low-maintenance' pets and are not the best choice for small children, who like pets they can hold and snuggle with," Davies says.

Consider this:

The average lifespan for a rabbit is 7-10 years
The average chicken or duck lives to be about 8-12 years old. In some cases, chickens can live to be up to 25 years old.
These animals are neither passive and cuddly. They are ground-loving creatures who feel frightened and insecure when held or restrained.
They are fragile. Their legs and spine can easily break if dropped or handled roughly.

Rabbits require as much or even more care as a dog or cat, Davies says.

"They need to live indoors as part of the family, they need their hutches cleaned daily, and they should be spayed or neutered," she says.

Chickens and ducks also require specialized diets, habitats, and care.

To end the cycle of Easter rabbits, chicks, and ducklings getting dumped a month after Easter, Davies suggests buying a chocolate bunny or a stuffed animal instead.

Also, and it feels like this is obvious but don't feed Easter candy to your pets. Chocolate can be fatal.

"To adopt a pet is to bring home joy," Davies says. "It is also important to remember that pet ownership is a commitment for the lifetime of the pet and that it is important that the entire family make the decision to commit to caring for that pet."

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Unhappy holidays

Porch pirates pilfer nearly $2B worth of Texas packages, study shows

Porch Pirate Person in Glasses Steals Packages

Getty Images

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’Tis the season for porch pirates. If past trends are an indicator, the Grinch will swipe close to $2 billion worth of packages delivered to Texas households this year, with many of those thefts happening ahead of the holiday season.

An analysis of FBI and survey data by ecommerce marketing company Omnisend shows porch pirates stole more than $1.8 billion worth of packages from Texans’ porches last year. Porch pirates hit nearly one-third of the state’s households in 2024, according to the analysis.

Omnisend’s analysis reveals these statistics about porch piracy in Texas:

30.1 million residential package thefts in 2024.
An average household loss of $169 per year.
An annual average of 2.9 package thefts per household.

“Most stolen items are cheap on their own, but add them up, and retailers and consumers are facing an enormous bill,” says Omnisend.

Another data analysis, this one from The Action Network sports betting platform, unwraps different figures regarding porch piracy in Texas.

The platform’s 2025 Porch Pirate Index ranks Texas as the state with the highest volume of residential thefts, based on 2023-24 FBI data.

Researchers at The Action Network uncovered 26,293 reports of personal property thefts at Texas residences during that period. The network’s survey data indicates 5 percent of Texas residents had a package stolen in the three months before the pre-holiday survey.

The Porch Pirate Index calculates a 25.8 percent risk of a Texas household being victimized by porch pirates, putting it in the No. 5 spot among states with the highest risk of porch piracy.

The Action Network included online-search volume for terms like “package stolen” and “porch pirates.” Sustained spikes in these searches suggest that “people are actively looking for guidance after something has happened. Search trends serve as an early warning system, revealing emerging-risk areas well before annual crime statistics are released,” the network says.

Tips to avoid being a victim
So, how do you prevent porch pirates from snatching packages that end up on your porch? Omnisend, The Action Network and Amazon offer these eight tips:

Closely monitor deliveries and quickly retrieve packages.
Schedule deliveries for times when you’ll be home.
Use delivery lockers or in-store pickup when possible.
Ask delivery services to hide packages in out-of-sight spots outside your home.
Install a visible doorbell camera or security camera.
Coordinate deliveries with neighbors or building managers if you’ll be away from your home when packages are supposed to arrive.
Request that delivery services hold your packages if you can’t be home when they’re scheduled to come.
Illuminate the path to your doorstep and keep porch lights on.

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