Report: Teacher Kills, Dissects Rabbit in Front of Class. Twice.

An Austrian middle school teacher is under fire after allegedly killing and dissecting two rabbits in front of his students.

The teacher in Horn, Lower Austria breeds his own rabbits, and brought two of them to school on June 29. He then reportedly surprised a class full of students at the Gymnasium Horn school by killing one of the rabbits with a captive bolt stun gun, and then dissecting it. The next day, the teacher is said to have done the same thing in front of a different classroom full of students.

The Local Austria reports that some students attempted to purchase the rabbits from the teacher in order to save their lives, but the teacher rebuffed, stating that he planned to eat the rabbits after dissecting them.

News trickled to parents, who complained to the school board, which said it is investigating the incident. The teacher now faces suspension and a disciplinary hearing. A local veterinarian told reporters that “to do something like this at a secondary school is really inappropriate.” A schools inspector told the media that the teacher was known for an unusual teaching style, but may have taken his approach too far in this case.

The teacher has disputed some of the details, stating that there were no students present when the rabbits were killed, but school director Michael Ableidinger has said that the teacher will not be teaching any students for the rest of the summer term.

Some commenters have noted that a captive bolt gun is considered an acceptable form of animal euthanasia according to AVMA guidelines.