Twelve rabbits, including six newborns, have been found dumped in a sealed box on a grass verge at the side of an Auckland road.
The SPCA is appealing for information from the public about the incident.
The animals were found in Glen Eden on Sunday at the intersection of Captain Scott Road and Atkinson Road in a blank cardboard box.
The box was sealed with tape and had the word 'sisters' written on the side of it.
The animals had no food, water or air holes to breath in the sweltering Auckland heat at the weekend.
Temperatures were nearing 30 degrees in some parts of the city, but luckily all of the rabbits survived, SPCA officials said. It's not known how long they were in the box for.
"These rabbits could easily have succumbed to the elements or suffocated to death," officials with SPCA's Auckland branch said in a Facebook post .
A member of the public took the animals to an SPCA centre where they said the adult rabbits were distressed, anxious and timid, while the babies, who were less than a week old, were "extremely vulnerable".
Anyone with information is asked to call the SPCA Auckland Centre on 09 256 7300. All information will be treated as confidential.
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