Her stolen bunny seemed to be gone for good. Aurora’s return was no magic trick

Aurora the rabbit is back.

The ruby-eyed white New Zealand mix showed up Tuesday in owner Darcy Sherman’s yard. A group of kids reportedly grabbed the bunny from outside Sherman’s Albany Street home.

Sherman, owner of Tri-Cities Washington Rabbit Advocates, said she is still in a bit of shock.

She came home from running errands Tuesday and found Aurora safely returned.

“Someone must have sneaked by and tossed her back into one of the enclosures and closed it back up,” she told the Herald. “She still had a little bit of pink marker in her ear that I colored there when she was a baby, so it’s her.”

Sherman said she made it her mission 3 1/2 years ago to help pet rabbits that were dumped by their former owners. Aurora was one of eight born to a rescue found in Zintel Canyon.

She said she lets the rabbits play outside sometimes when she’s at work.

Neighbors reported seeing a group of middle school kids loitering around her home Sept. 19. One of the boys grabbed the rabbit, threw in into a bag and they all ran off, witnesses said.

Sherman turned to Kennewick police and Facebook for help to find the missing bunny.

Her initial post was shared 629 times and gathered more than 90 comments. She also put up posters asking for the return of the rabbit.

Sherman told the Herald that she’s installing a security camera and a new fenced area for the rabbits.

As for the would-be thieves, Sherman told the Herald that she’d be happy to talk with them about adopting one of her bunnies.

“Just no more stealing,” she said. “It looks like they wanted a pet and went about it the wrong way.”

This story was originally published October 3, 2018 at 4:06 PM.