Rabbit Removal

The number one way to keep rabbits out of your yard is to exclude them from your yard. Exclusion just means that you keep them out of your yard by building a fence or patching up their burrow holes. Building a fence around your entire property is not cheap whether you go with a wire mesh fence or with a wooden picket fence. The only thing that you must do is make sure that it is buried at least 1 ½ feet underground as they can burrow underneath of it. Another option is to put up a fence only around your garden or around the areas that they like to dig.

Keep your yard groomed. Rabbits don’t like to feel vulnerable so if you cut your grass really short and trim your bushes back they won’t have anywhere to hide. This is not guaranteed to work but it will discourage them from coming around.

Another effective way to keep rabbits out of your yard is to have their natural predators in your yard. For example, you can keep your dog or cat outside, you can encourage predators like owls and hawks to come to your property by building nests or you can even release non-venomous snakes in your yard. Rabbits can sense when there is a predator nearby and won’t come around.

There are a variety of predator scent repellents that you can try to use, but keep in mind that they don’t work very well. They wear off really quickly and the rabbits may be able to tell the difference between real and faux predator urine. You can also try to put spicy substances like Tabasco and cayenne pepper on the plants that you do not want them to eat. However, only put them on the plants that you are not eating otherwise you will get a spicy surprise as well!

Trapping rabbits is also an option, but you need to check with your state’s regulations as it is illegal to trap animals in some states. You can buy traps at any hardware or garden store or rent one from a local humane society office, but you must wash it to get the human scent off of it. You should probably disguise it with some leaves, bush trimmings or vines as well as rabbits are very cautious creatures. Bait the trap with some carrots, strawberries, etc. to lure them in and make sure that you check the traps every day. Once you have caught the rabbits you must relocate them at least 10 miles from your home so they do not come back. Make sure to wear gloves while handling the rabbit because they will scratch and bite you if given the chance.

How To Get Rid of Rabbit - Tips and steps for getting rid of rabbits.

Rabbits that are kept as pets should not be confused for the rabbits that you see hoping around outside just because they look similar. Rabbits can be best described as short, fuzzy creatures that have a cotton ball tail, big floppy ears and large feet. While all of these features make them cute, they also serve a purpose. Rabbits are largely prey animals so they need to be very diligent if they are to survive. Their large ears and eyes give them superb hearing and vision and their large feet and hind quarters give them the power to outrun their predators.

Rabbit Information

Biology
Rabbits are small mammals found in many parts around the globe and have 50 different species in their family. A male rabbit is called a buck and a female rabbit is a doe. Baby rabbits are referred to as kits or kittens. Rabbits are nocturnal animals; coming out of their burrows once the sun has set and returning just around sunrise. They like to eat grass and herbaceous plants. They sometimes consume woody plants as well. Rabbits usually weigh four to 13 pounds with a female rabbit slightly heavier than the male. They have really light weight bones which constitute to only eight percent of their total body weight. The teeth of rabbits grow continuously throughout their entire lifetime. However, the growth is not noticeable because of the regular grinding of their teeth as they eat and gnaw on their food and other substances. Rabbits can actually see behind their heads; however, there is a small blind spot on the front side of their heads where they can see nothing at all in that range. Rabbits have an excellent sense of smell and hearing. Their ears are large and are sensitive to minute sounds. Their two ears can move independent of each other to aid them in detecting danger and other predators in the area. Rabbits are quick and will run away towards the safety of their burrows immediately if they sense danger in the area. Their running speed can be as high as 24 miles per hour and they can jump to a vertical height of three feet.

Habitat
Rabbits live in the burrows they build in many areas such as in the woods, forests, meadows, grasslands, wetlands and deserts. They usually live in groups and take care of each other. More than 50 percent of the total rabbit population in the world is in North America. North American’s moderate climate is perfect for the rabbits’ survival. The burrows are made by the female rabbits or does and are interconnected by small tunnels. The openings of the burrows are small to help prevent other animals and predators from being able to enter their homes. There are different areas for rest and raising babies in the tunnels. This combination of burrows and tunnels are termed ‘warrens’. Rabbit burrows are found in areas that have a lot of open space as having the space and ability to run is an essential element in their life.

Life Cycle
A rabbit in captivity or as a pet can live for about ten years; however, they do not have such a long life expectancy when living in the wild. Rabbits reproduce very fast and one doe can produce 800 children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren in one season. The breeding season starts in February and lasts until October. The gestation period is around 30 days and they give birth to four to 12 kittens at a time. A buck gets ready for breeding when it is seven months old and a doe will be ready at six months of age. After mating, the ovulation will begin in approximately ten hours. The does make burrows after mating and line it with pieces of their own fur. Kits are blind at the time of birth and do not have fur on their body. They open their eyes after about ten days and start eating on their own after 14 days. The kits are nursed a few minutes at a time once or twice a day.

Diseases Rabbits Carry
Rabbits are carriers of a bacterium that causes rabbit fever to humans. Rabbit fever is also known as Tularemia and results in pneumonia, sudden fever, pain in the muscles and joints and difficulty in breathing. Although not common, death can be a result of rabbit fever if the illness becomes too severe.

Rabbit Nuisance
Rabbits cause a lot of trouble as they destroy the gardens and vegetation completely. They will chew off almost every plant or vegetable grown in the area and cause millions of dollars of damage due to the destruction of crops. The long tunnels and borrows made by them can damage the structure of building if they are built/dug near the base of the building.