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Getting Rid of Rabbits
Old 07-27-2020, 09:37 AM   #1
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Getting Rid of Rabbits

Our neighborhood borders a wooded area and we are being overrun by rabbits. What is disturbing me is that they feed on the grass in my fenced in backyard and leave behind so many dropping that our dog loves to eat. This is certainly not good or healthy for him, so need to try some things. Not sure whether trapping or repellant would be best. Anyone have any experience with this?
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Old 07-27-2020, 09:46 AM   #2
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If you come up with some magic please let the rest of us know!! Usually it's a matter of making your offerings less attractive than the neighbor's. I've had good luck with this product from Home Depot. You can make your own mixture too but since it contains ingredients such as putrified eggs I tend to let the factory do it. This stuff smells when applied and the odor lingers for those who have good olfactory equipment. Best to apply early in the year so the rabbits/deer get the idea from the outset. I have heard Irish Spring soap, human hair, blood meal can work but haven't had much luck with any of these. Best of luck.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Liquid-F...09-2/205844053
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:05 AM   #3
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I've shot a few rabbits with my woodchuck gun, a .22 air rifle. I think the more common .177 caliber air rifles would be entirely adequate.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:08 AM   #4
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heard there is a rabbit virus that may sweep through the wild bunny population:

https://now.tufts.edu/articles/deadl...rus-spreads-us
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:12 AM   #5
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I've shot a few rabbits with my woodchuck gun, a .22 air rifle. I think the more common .177 caliber air rifles would be entirely adequate.
I was going to mention this option too. With the way things are going might not be a bad idea to brush up on your marksmanship. And organic, free-range, grass fed rabbit is pretty good. And one gets tons of good luck to boot!
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:14 AM   #6
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We also have a rabbit problem even though we have a fenced yard. Vegetable garden has chicken wire buried underground 6". Young trees have corrugated drain pipe around them in the winter. What I have found works best is to release the dog every time I see a rabbit. Our fenced yard is rabbit free and the dog loves the exercise. Can't say the same for the surrounding neighbors. Just like moles and every other critter, you can't kill them all. I would just try to make your yard the very last resort for them to hang out in. Works pretty good for me.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:30 AM   #7
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I was going to mention this option too. With the way things are going might not be a bad idea to brush up on your marksmanship. And organic, free-range, grass fed rabbit is pretty good. And one gets tons of good luck to boot!
Perhaps we need to merge this with the chest freezer organization thread.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:34 AM   #8
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Get some cats? When they were younger my wife's two cats were the scourge of the local rabbit (and squirrel and rat and lizard and bird) population. As they've gotten older they tend to lie around on their fat kitty asses watching the rabbits eat our plants, so go with younger cats for best pest control.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:40 AM   #9
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Just like moles and every other critter, you can't kill them all. I would just try to make your yard the very last resort for them to hang out in.
Very true. I see the occasional rabbit hopping around in my backyard munching my weeds, and it doesn't really bother me at all. They seem to ignore basically everything in my veggie garden that I care about. Despite their reputation as prolific breeders, I never see more than about 1-3 different animals per year, and their numbers aren't increasing. We do have our fair share of hawks and birds of prey, so I suspect nature is keeping everything pretty well balanced that way.

As to the question of how best to "get rid" of them, I'd suggest installing low (2') wire fencing around the entire backyard, and making sure there aren't any entry/escape holes. Trapping, shooting, or chasing them off only solves the problem for a short while (a few days, maybe) and requires constant, year-after-year vigilance, whereas a good rabbit-proof fence is much more of a "set it and forget it" solution.
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:05 AM   #10
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I wish we had rabbits, we used to have rabbits, groundhogs, feral cats, possum, and squirrels.

Instead we now have an apex predator: Coyotes, they leave larger droppings and are a danger at night when taking out the garbage, since you never know if they are around.
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:14 AM   #11
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We have coyotes right in town. Some people still let their cats outside. We call them coyote cookies. People post on Nextdoor for lost cats and the main advice is to keep them inside.
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:32 AM   #12
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We just let the dogs loose and they chase them. Still hop around at night, but you rarely see them during the day. There is still some poop, but not that much since they generally stay out of the back yard. The front yard where we cannot let dogs loose the rabbits are so dumb you could probably hunt them by throwing your shoe.
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:35 AM   #13
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:37 AM   #14
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:46 AM   #15
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Our wild bobcats really did a number on our rabbit population. We hardly see rabbits anymore. The neighbors aren't sure that was a great trade.
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Old 07-27-2020, 12:15 PM   #16
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We have coyotes right in town. Some people still let their cats outside. We call them coyote cookies. People post on Nextdoor for lost cats and the main advice is to keep them inside.
We also have coyotes, bobcats and foxes, plus we have an indoor only cat due to the other predators. However, the rabbits are so prolific these other predators don't come around enough as we are in a zero lot line community that probably keeps them away.

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We just let the dogs loose and they chase them. Still hop around at night, but you rarely see them during the day. There is still some poop, but not that much since they generally stay out of the back yard. The front yard where we cannot let dogs loose the rabbits are so dumb you could probably hunt them by throwing your shoe.
Sure, my dog loves to chase them, but we don't leave him out all night and its usually late night when they start to munch.

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Our wild bobcats really did a number on our rabbit population. We hardly see rabbits anymore. The neighbors aren't sure that was a great trade.
At least we don't have feral hogs.
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Old 07-27-2020, 12:18 PM   #17
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Then get a pellet gun and make rabbit stew.
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Old 07-27-2020, 12:31 PM   #18
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This is certainly not good or healthy for him, so need to try some things.
I'd like to back this discussion up a bit. How you you "know" this. It's gross, true. But is it documented to be harmful? Who knows, maybe the dog's microbiome will be improved by the with inoculation with "bunny biome".

DW's solution to bunnies eating her dahlias is "I'm not going to plant those anymore". I set up a camera. Not quite "red handed", but close:
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Old 07-27-2020, 12:36 PM   #19
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I'd like to back this discussion up a bit. How you you "know" this. It's gross, true. But is it documented to be harmful? Who knows, maybe the dog's microbiome will be improved by the with inoculation with "bunny biome".

DW's solution to bunnies eating her dahlias is "I'm not going to plant those anymore". I set up a camera. Not quite "red handed", but close:
They are pretty frequent carriers of tapeworms. No thanks.
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Old 07-27-2020, 12:49 PM   #20
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They are pretty frequent carriers of tapeworms. No thanks.
My friends cat caught and ate a rabbit. $400 vet bill to get rid of the tapeworm.
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Agree. Sometime it's best to get an expert involved.
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