More than 1,000 rabbits are making life difficult for gardeners in the Alberta town of Canmore, as well as posing a puzzle over who's responsible for controlling them.

Sheer numbers have transformed what used to be pets into pests, says André Gareau, a town councillor in the community located 90 kilometres west of Calgary.

"About 20 years ago, someone in town released maybe a dozen rabbits, and surprisingly, they survived," he said.

"They survived the winters, even if it's 40 below. Now you can see them all over town."

The rabbits are particularly annoying in the spring, when gardeners are trying to establish new plots of flowers and vegetables.

Attacks on vegetation aren't the only reasons to worry about rabbits gone wild, though.

Biologist Gilbert Proulx said domestic rabbits could carry diseases into the wild rabbit population, and vice versa.

"It is best to separate – and keep separate – domestic and wild stocks so we don't end up with really ugly results," he said.

Town, province point fingers at each other

Just who is responsible for controlling the rabbits has become a major question.

"Our mandate is to deal with wildlife and these are not considered wildlife," said Jon Jorgenson of Alberta Fish and Wildlife.

"They are domestic animals that have gone wild in the town here and my understanding is that domestic animals are [under] the jurisdiction of the Town of Canmore.

The town does not agree with that assessment, however.

Its position is that since the rabbits have been in the wild for two decades, the province should have to deal with them.

In the absence of any government action, some Canmore residents have begun to trap the rabbits and release them out of town.

It's not a permanent solution, though. Wildlife officials say most of them find their way back eventually, in search of easy pickings in local gardens.