Stacey Solomon's BBC show Sort Your Life Out has been met with a slew of complaints following an episode featuring rabbits.
The Loose Women panellist, who recently welcomed fifth child Belle, has been met with over 1,500 complaints after animal charities criticised the treatment of rabbits on her show. The programme follows Stacey, 33, as she travels around the UK with her team to revamp cluttered homes and homeowners choose which personal belongings they want to keep and/or get rid of.
Stacey and her team are seen in the episode sorting through a family's clutter and packing possessions into boxes as they tackled around 2,137 toys, 452 books and 61 mugs. The dad had ADHD and struggled to let go of his collection of 13 guitars and 1,274 tools, but it was the treatment of the rabbits that got viewers up in arms.
During the episode, the former X Factor star suggested moving the rabbits to the garden so there would be more space in the conservatory. However, after the team unveiled the rabbits' outdoor hutch, viewers took to social media in a fury to express their rage at the ‘completely unsuitable hutch’.
One person posted on Twitter that they were enjoying the episode until the rabbits were ‘kicked into the garden’.
"That hutch is too small for anything other than a bolt hole! There’s enough bad rabbit rearing without this encouragement," another wrote.
"Was very disappointed to see rabbits moved from a lovely indoor run to an unsuitable tiny hutch on Stacey Solomon's show last night, they also moved the cats litter box without consideration for the cat. I think they need an animal welfare advisor!" they added.
Another person wrote: "Love love @StaceySolomon but so disappointed that Sort Your Life Out has shown rabbits being moved from a nice spacious indoor run to a cramped outdoor hutch, hutches are absolutely not enough."
The Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals took to Twitter with a statement: "So disappointed you did not research the needs of rabbits before you rehoused them in a hutch that was totally unsuitable. You need to make some sort of a statement or revisit the family and address this situation please!"
The BBC addressed complaints, explaining that the rabbits lived outside and "acclimatised" to the garden.
"The family's pet rabbits usually live outside and were only living indoors for a short period of time after being neutered," the BBC's statement read. "They are therefore acclimatised to living in the garden.
"The rabbits have full access to a wide, enclosed garden to roam around in, with the hutch being a place to come and go as they please during the day, as well as a safe and secure space for them to sleep in at night."
Sort Your Life Out season 2 premiered on January 24 on BBC One and is available to watch on iPlayer.
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