It’s not political correctness, it’s realizing that the old cartoon is pretty brutal. And nothing’s biting the dust, the old cartoon will still be out there. And the remake from the late 90s which also mellowed things out a bit.
You have a point. The original cartoon was not necessarily meant for children.
It wasn’t brutal- kids back then were watching Wild Kingdom lions and hyenas and such, and going hunting after school; the cartoon version of Watership Down was nothing in comparison. This was when animals were your property and not “fur babies.”