Anna Delvey Responds to Backlash After Rabbits She Used in Photo Shoot Are Dumped in N.Y.C. Park

Anna Delvey is speaking out after two rabbits from her recent photo shoot were found abandoned in a New York City park.

The photoshoot, taken by photographer Jasper Soloff, showed Delvey holding two rabbits on bright pink leashes in the streets of NYC. She shared the pictures on Instagram.

Soon after, vegan influencer and blogger Terry Chao recognized the animals. She said they were the same rabbits she rescued from Brooklyn’s Prospect Park earlier that week. Chao had seen a Facebook post about a lost rabbit, and with the help of two neighbors, caught one rabbit. Three days later, they found the second.

According to The New York Times, hairstylist Christian Batty contacted Chao before the shoot to ask if he could use her rabbit. Chao shared a screenshot of the message, but it’s unclear who was in charge of getting the animals for the shoot.

Online commenters quickly suspected that the abandoned rabbits were the same ones from Delvey’s photoshoot.

Batty later posted an apology on Instagram and Facebook, admitting he released the rabbits in the park. “It was wrong, cruel, and inexcusable, and I take full responsibility,” he wrote. Batty explained he was 19, had no experience caring for animals, and thought releasing them was the “best option” because he believed there were already rabbits in that area. He also said Delvey and Soloff did not know about his actions.

Delvey posted her own statement on Instagram. She said she was “appalled” and would never again work with animals without knowing where they came from and how they would get home. “I do not eat meat, and I would never condone these actions,” she wrote.

Chao later posted that she was relieved the rabbits were safe but wanted people to remember that pets are a privilege, not a right. “Animals are not props,” she wrote. “They deserve to live as much as anyone else.”