I love those little bunnies. Everytime I go out and weed in my flower beds there is one sitting munching and looking up at me. I have been talking to them since they were in the nest so I think that they recognize my voice and only scamper off if I make a sudden move which scares them. BUT.... they are beginning to have ferocious appetites and nibblig on flowers that I didn't think that rabbits would like - today one was eating on my spiderwoart and watching me watch it, without a care in the world. I guess that I will have to go out and put pots around a few of those tender plants that I want them to leave alone! But, I still love to watch them because they are so small and cute.

Oh my, I have 3 pairs of "flower shears!" At least now that I know what they like to eat, I can protect the plants that the little rascals haven't gotten to yet. Next spring I will also protect those plants as they start coming up. Tonight I watched the "kids" try to venture from one side of the yard to the other. They would come out a couple of feet and then hop back to their security under the daylilies. They did this multiple times until they got brave enough and made it all the way across the yard. I didn't know that they had made it but found them on the other side when I was watering my plants. Boy, did they scoot out from under the water hose in a hurry!

They do a nice job of 'pruning' don't they?? *grin*

I protect young plants with chicken wire cages, until the plants are large enough to handle some bunny munching. It worked well on serviceberry, spicebush, and others. I do let them have some tulips, and other tasty treats.

Fur kids make nice grandkids. ;-)

I'm new here at Gardenweb, and just wanted to say that I really enjoyed your bunnytales!! Thanks for sharing! I could just picture those little cute furballs hopping across your lawn and peeking out at you. How sweet! :)

Heather

Haven't been able to check in due to other busy matters, But boy oh boy, am I glad to see the new Rabbit Grandma stories. The first thread I come searching for!!

darby, my rehabbed cottontails or the two (socially grateful beelers) that wintered in our safe haven brush piles became very tuned-into my voice.
Same with Beeler J's mom, Hutch Beeler, until she relinquished our territory for the neighbor's nicer yard w/cover, unchemicalized lawn, and spilt bird seed. BLR J and Nacho stay alert & wary but recognize my human voice. Maybe your scootlebugs are learning to do the same. Good protective instinct.

Vegetation trimmers? Pruners? :-) At the vet office yesterday Dr. W was explaining how little cottontails like to trim his tulips and young trees also. I just smiled. CSG or I will have to tell him about the chicken wire and rabbit netting. I forgot to ask Dr. W if he maintains any weeds they love to eat? I put 3-4 petunias in a pot by the garden gazebo and was delighted to see the wild herbivores enjoyed the tasty pink flowers.

One of my domestic fosters succumbed yesterday in surgery. Using CSG's donated cranberry viburnum babes, I will plant a memorial garden in the spot where we buried him.

Please keep sharing,

FCF, sorry to hear about the loss of your foster bunny - it is so sad to hear of anything so small and defenseless dying. A co-worker told me that she had a black domestic bunny around her area that had mated with a wild bunny and the wild bunny had a litter of black and brown babies but she abandoned them in the nest soon after birth. I was told too late and they had died in the nest or I would have asked if there was a place that they could have been taken for care. If anyone knows of a place in Louisville, Ky. that takes care of baby bunnies or what I could have done, please let me know although I hope that I won't have to use that information in the future.
Now on a lighter note - The "Scootlebugs", aka baby bunnies, have decided that they like my red verbina and have given it a summer haircut. Since it is a sprawling plant, I will have to be pretty creative in figuring out a way to save what little they left behind! They have yet to bother my purple verbena but hope that they are partial to red and will leave it alone as it is my favorite. I guess that I will have to go out this weekend and buy some more plants to feed my little darlings. lol! Tonight when I was out watering my flowers, the "kids" were only a scoot awhead of me and one turned and sat quivering and looked up at me with those little brown eyes and I had to reassure it that I wouldn't hurt it and then I turned around and watered the other way. They are just too cute and really make my day begine with a smile.

Everyone is hungry this morning! All 3 Scooterbugs, aka, baby bunnies are out in the yard nibbling on grass, weeds and clover, but, thankfully not my flowers! Last evening when I threw bread out for the birds, one of them discovered it and was nibbling on that also. I hope that they will llke the bread like the bunny we had last summer did. Big brother/sister from "batch" one is still hanging around also, bunnysitting, I guess after mom weaned these little ones. How long will it be before they grow? They are still so little. Saw mom next door again last night so she may have another group of babies hopping around before the summer is over - oh,my poor flowers!

This morning I must have looked like a wild woman out in my yard! Why, you ask? When I got up and I let the dogs out for their morning constitutional, I looked out over the yard and there rummaging through my daylilies was a big, white cat! Now, the daylily area is bunnyland and I shot out there like the true grandbunny I am to protect my little ones. I clapped my hands, hollered at that cat and ran after it. The poor thing didn't know where to go or what to do since my 2 dogs had gotten to the only exit point that it could see. When they also started wondering what I was hollering about, it gave the cat an edge and it quickly climbed the fence and hightailed across the alley - never, I hope, to be seen again! When I was going through the daylilies myself, I saw the movement of daylilies and then knew that at least 2 of the 3 were OK but I worried about them all day. I didn't get home until later in the afternoon so went out and called for them and sat on my swing and waited. Slowly they appeared - 1, 2, 3 - they were all safe and I was so relieved. Now, would you call me a wild woman?!?

I'd call you a hero.

That cat will be back. Be on the lookout.

Your scootlebug GrandmaBunny stories have helped me cope with the loss of my Beep-a-Lou foster boy. It's been rough... Thank you for your heartfelt concern and condolences.

Please keep adding pages as time allows. And rest assured that white cat will be around to sniff out baby cottontails any chance it can get. Have you got some prickly brushy fortress spots where a killer prowler can't get into? This morning a vagrant orange cat was trolling thru our back yard. ##@%**!

My wildlife rehab teacher said the sperm of a wild one will not unite/or fertilize the egg of a domestic. I forget what the biological lingo is for all this. Cottontails and domestics cannot produce offspring. Is this 100% true?? (dunno.) The agouti coloring of certain domestic rabbits may confuse individuals into thinking they are wild brethren. The kennel mgr. at the humane society said she once observed some white dutch-mix facial markings on a cottontail and wondered if domestics and wild rabbits could mate?
We haven't seen our two backyard rabbits, Nacho and BLR J, recently. dearly hoping they are still with us. Neighbor across the street was saying how the rabbit and 13-liner population is diminished this year.

A hero is right! I'll check in every few days,

My daughter's bunny has the agouti coloring, along with the white around the neck and face from her Dutch Mama. But she has the size of her French Lop Papa (oops!!)

Agouti coloring, by-the-way, is when the hair shaft has three colors on it. To see this, blow (gently) on the coat, and three distinct circles of color can be seen. (Well, you won't be able to do this on a wild bunny ;-) I believe it is gray at the base, brown on the mid-section of the hair shaft, and light at the tip. I'll have to go and blow on Cherry to see for sure ;-) Our U.S. native cottontails have this coloring. But is also one of the color varieties in the domestic rabbit breeds, which are descendents of rabbits native to Spain, and probably other European nations, but I don't remember what book I read about where domestic bunnies started out. (Probably Stories Rabbits Tell.)

The domestic bunnies are a social creature, living in group warrens, whereas our native cottontails are solitary creatures. (But, I certainly do see the Cotton-tail young-uns playing together.) The social nature of the domestics is what makes them so well suited to being pets- they are very happy to live 'in commune' with us humans in our 'warrens.' And its also why pet bunnies do best in close contact with other bunnies(spayed/neutered, and bonded, preferably) and humans, not out back alone in a hutch.

I wonder about the possibility of the US cottontails and European domestics to interbreed. Any one know for sure?

Today I walked the length of my flower beds several times calling for the bunny babies but to no avail until later in the afternoon when I was finally able to catch a glimpse of one. That cat may have been back this morning because I found a small resin bench with 2 resin birds on it that had been upset - maybe in a cat, bunny chase?!? When my neigbor and I talked over the fence, he had seen 2 of them so now I know that at least 2 are safe.They were not out tonight as usual, grazing in the clover but chose rather to stay safe amongst the daylilies. I wasn't out in the yard much this evening so they may not have felt that it was safe to venture out. Tomorrow I hope to spend more time in the yard and hope that they will be out again. I will continue to watch for that cat - hopefully between myself and the dogs, we put a scare into it and it won't be back!

I am new to this forum but i need some advice. Two days ago i was sitting outside in my front yard and i noticed a rabbit on my front lawn near the side walk. she was plucking fur from her belly and she looked like she was making a nest. when she went away, i walked over to see what she had been doing. it turns out that i found a nest of baby bunnies, which really freaked me out at first because i wasn't expecting it. Well, I quickly covered them up and left them alone. Today, when i woke up, I looked out my window and saw my cat by the bunny nest. He had unfortunately gotten one of the babies, and killed it:( . There are still more babies in the nest but now I am extremely worried about them. I am keeping my cats inside now until I know for sure that the babies are ok, but on top of the cats I have had to scare off crows and i noticed a few hawks circling the area. Does anyone know what I can do?? The nest is so close to the street, and i am afraid that the mother wont come back to feed them because they are located in such an exposed area. Please someone write back and let me know what I can do to help them survive. Thank you

I rehabbed eastern cottontails for two years before my hands got disabled (from picking weeds/dandelion greens for 3 hrs. a day). Those babes have a slim chance UNLESS you keep the d*mn predators away. Keep your cats inside for the entire year, next year, and the next 18 years beyond. If you care about baby rabbits and letting wildlife have a habitat to grow up in - without introduced UNnatural predators - you'll keep your cats indoors. Cats will gobble down, tease, torment and mutilate baby bunnies. By instinct, they're jungle hunters. Have seen many cases of cat-bite, cat-caught baby rabbits. Just returned from humane society and the outdoor cat problem is a real dilemna.

Yeah, if mom just set up that nest and gave birth, those 1 to 2-day old buns won't have a prayer. Crows and hawks will tear those babies apart. Last week a predator-caught or garden-equipment injured 3-day old cottontail came into shelter; I suggested they euthanize poor little one due to the gouge in it's hindquarters. Rarely can rehabbers save unfurred, eyes-closed infants. Humans need to get them to rehabbers when they've been nursed and taken care of by Mom Cottontail for at least 6-7 days.

Good lord, those babies are in desparate need of Mom. Once the crows and hawks have spied a nest, those babies won't have a chance in the open air environment.

Contact your local rehabilitator. I'll find the other thread that discusses new found nest advice.

Thank you for responding, you have no idea how worried I am about the little ones. I have been watching the nest all day today and the cats will remain inside for as long as they need to be. I contacted the environmental center nearby but they didnt give me much advice. It is so unfortunate that the nest is in such a wide open location. I bought chicken wire to put around the nest, but im not sure if that will do more harm than good. i just want to see these babies survive.. any help i can get is greatly appreciated.

Naturelover, check my post from Monday, May 9th, near the top of this thread. Lotsa good input on this thread from concerned folks who desire to give the innocent prey babies a chance. Mom needs enough room to sneak in underneath a turned-over clothesbasket w/rock weight on top, or anything you can fashion to deter hawks and crows from swooping down to take a baby bunny. Create a natural gardenny-like decorative setting. Gotta step stool? Place some gardening pots around it... with just enough room for mom to sneak in. Got some old low slung benches. Near the road is an extra challenging position. :\ (Raccoons may come around at night to devour the nest of helpless infants. Not what you wanted to hear either, i'm afraid). Keep the grass tall around the nest. Mom will be able to smell them if they're still alive and they'll silently communicate in rabbit whispers. They need at least a week or 10 days. Create some formidable cover they can scamper to once they've got leg mobility.

At 13 days Hutch Beeler, who gave birth in our front yard, told her six babies to dash like racecars for the brush pile/arborvitae cove fortress approx. 12-15 ft. away. They could barely leap. My hubby and I watched as each babe made the attempt. Momma will do what she can (as long as she survives), plus she doesn't want to attract predators to her infants either. A little human help will be gratefully appreciated!! Good luck. Keep us posted. I'll be thinking of you and them... my hugs to you for trying.

Naturelover - just some words of encouragement since I have also recently been through the stress of watching and "caring for baby bunnies. Thanks to the encouraging words from all the fellow bunny lovers on this site I now have 3 healthy bunnies running around my yard - or so I think I do. As of tonight, I have only seen one that still comes around when I am in the yard talking. FCF had some wonderful ideas on ways to protect the little ones from predators. I put chicken wire over and around "my nest" except for one side which was protected by taller plants and that is where mom entered and left. Over the wire I put the weeds that I had pulled so that no one or nothing could see the nest. Don't be surprised (I was told) if you don't see mom around because her milk is very rich and she only needs to feed the babies 2-3 times a day. Watch for her at dusk - she may be in a neighbor's yard watching over the little ones. Good luck - I was surprised at how fast they grew and were able to leave the nest although they will then still need to have a place in brush or flowers to hide. Please keep us all posted.

Good news!! Today around 4 I put chicken wire around and over the bunny nest. I cut a hole in the side big enough for the mom to get into and hoped that she would return to feed the babies. Sure enough around 6 pm i saw her by the nest! she hopped around the outside of the wire for a while then decided to attempt to enter inside.. she made it through where she fed her babies! it was so great to watch and i am so glad she came back for them given the environment the nest is in.. tomorrow I think i am going to secure the chicken wire, and put a few flower pots around it so the nest is hidden.. thank you for the help, i really appreciate it since i have been a nervous wreck the past few days.. I don't like to see anyone or anything hurt.. especially cute little bunnies! i'll keep updating with the news, and please if you have any more advice i'd love to hear it.

Yay!! Good to hear.

I think that I am finally ready to "let go" of my baby bunnies. I was worried when I only kept seeing 2 of them in the yard when we had started out with 3. But, late this afternoon as I drove up the alley and was about 2 houses down, the 3rd little fellow was nibbling grass on the side of the alley and scampered out of the way of the car. He has decided to move on to "greener pastures". The one that I feel was the runt of the litter is still my baby. It doesn't appear to be afraid of me at all as I can be standing right over it and talking to it without it running away. In fact, I had to scold it tonight when I saw it bite off some of my coreopsis plant right before my eyes and just it just looked up at me as if to say "this tastes rather good". The little rascal! This one is still smaller than its siblings and I am glad that it is staying in the yard although being a little destructive to my plants. Glad that I can give a good report on their progress. BTW - mother bunny still is being seen on the other side of the yard next door so I am still waiting for her litter to come hopping over in to my yard.

naturelover, let us know how mom and babes are doing when you get a minute. Hope the chicken wire afforded the little ones some extra protection.

Darby, I'm starting to let go a wee bit (too) in watching over the 2 or 3 rabbits in our yard. I've gotten so busy w/education events, bunny dates at the shelter and caring for my foster crew, I'm trusting the cottontails in our yard won't mind (that gol'darn pesty) Momma Human giving them a bit more space. Blr J came up to sniff my sock this past weekend. Boy, I was glowing w/pride. Baby beeler and resident toadie are seen hopping alongside the house. I got so excited last week about toadie, I grabbed the digital and snapped 6 pictures. Baby beeler (about 6 wks. old?) scooted thru some black drain pipe underneath our deck last week. Sunday nite his/her head just cleared the tall grass in back by the deck, as she nibbled plain ole grass and looked very content. Those twin gray peaks of ears were comical to see. Glad you didn't mow the lawn too short, DH. Keeping the faith that Nacho Beeler (dad), Beeler J (mom) and Baby Beeler will hang around and seek haven in the protective brush piles and pallets. They can help themselves to anything in the yard!

A fellow humane society friend has an envious patch of lush purple clover. Yesterday I put a few clover flowers and stems in the garden gazebo, along with newly sprouted blackberry leaves. [Garden gazebo, a/k/a Beeler Family's winter cottage.] Always a fantastic feeling to see it's gone in the morning. Or see lone baby beeler run into the gazebo lattice panel sides when he spots the "humans."

Darby, CSG, naturelover, Heather, and all you nutty rabbit-loving wildlife friends; take care of your yard babies and adults as best you can. Pictures and stories always cheer my heart and inspire. Hug them from a far.

Stay protected,

It will be a restless night for me tonight as I wait for the wee hours of the morning so that I can go out to see if my baby bunnies are in the yard. Tonight when DH and I were eating supper out on the deck, we saw mommy bunny leaping franticly across the neighbors yard - the biggest bunny leaps I had ever seen! There strolling after her was the big black cat that I had seen before and I know that she was leading it away from her nest. It followed her out to the alley and that is where I took over. When I got to the alley gate the cat was running and at first I thought it was because I was chasing it and clapping my hands BUT as it ran further away I THINK that it may have been chasing one of my babies. My eyesight is not good for distances but I thought that I saw a small white tail running ahead of it. Now I am hoping that baby bunny is either safe in my backyard tomorrow morning or that it is safe in another yard - of course my hope is the first and that I will see it in the morning. I will let everyone know what tomorrow brings.

Whewwww....I did do a lot of hugging from afar this morning! Went out on the deck early (rabbit time) and Mommy bunny is still on guard. I am sure that she is uneasy and in fear that the cat may be back. She may stay close to the nest now that she has seen him around, especially since I think that her babies should now be old enough to leave the nest and she may be wanting to help them make the move. Also saw "baby bunny" (aka-the runt) and its older sibling which I call "Junior".They were outside the fence, in the neighbors yard and venturing across the alley - but, that's OK, at least they are safe. I cut down a lot of the flowering clover heads last night when I mowed so either they haven't returned yet or they are looking for "greener pastures". The last few days "baby bunny" has been spending his nights in the flower bed where he was born and I am wondering if he is claiming his "bed" back - it should still be snug with the fur that mommy lined it with. Today holds more adventures on the bunny trail as they keep hopping.

Had to hop (pun) right back on line to let my bunny friends know that my smart mommy bunny has already helped her little ones make their move in to my back yard. I was sitting on the deck and there was a new "scottlebug" moving along my flower bed - a little later I observed him scooting back and forth among my daylilies and when I went a little closer saw the little one nibbling on a spent daylily that I had pinched off this morning. Learned from my other bunnies that they like the flowers of the daylilies after they fall to the ground - as long as they leave those on the scales alone, we will be fine! I am hoping that there will be more sightings of the "scootlebugs" as my back yard has once again turned in to a bunny nursery. With so many flowers to hide under, I think that it is a safe place for the little ones as they grow and again.....I will share.

Darby, after your June 15th posting I wanted to add ... *@% those outdoor pets turned killers. $@#. Or the humans who don't give a darn where they wander or what they kill.

I'll be hugging them from a far right with you.

Will keep checking in to see how your scootles are.

What a grand day - Spent time out in the yard and was so pleased to see my bunnies there. As I sat in the swing, Junior came quite close as he was eating - this surprised me as he is usually not as brave as Baby bunny who doesn't even scamper off until my dog is quite close to it. I think that it senses that she is blind and can't see it nor will chase the little bunnies. Also saw the new babies as they scooted back and forth amongst the day lilies. They aren't very brave yet and don't come out in the yard very often - I think mainly in the evenings once it gets dark and quiet. Saw several of my favorite plants that were snipped off today so had to do some scolding as I put pots around them. Sliced a carrot up and threw out in the yard - the bunnies didn't touch it when I just broke the carrot in pieces, wonder if they will touch it once it is cut in slices? Maybe too much human scent on it. More to come.

Tonight my husband and I walked to the back of our property where a box elder had blown down, and saw a domestic black cat with collar run from the thick weed patches and undergrowth. People don't give a d*mn where their pets or animals roam. Makes me despise those kinds of pet owners.
Cats will kill and take their toll on baby bunnies and wildlife.

~ hugging your scootlebugs from WI,

humane society volunteer FCF

Another great day - spent lots of time outside enjoying the bunnies - oh, and the beautiful weather and my flower beds. Observed mama bunny back again - in the same area where she had her last batch of babies so I am wondering if she has done it again. When Junior got too close to her, she chased him all over the yard, round and round in circles. It was comical to see and I wonder if again she is protecting a new nest of babies. My favorite, "Baby Bunny" is still a friendly little creature - not afraid to be around people. One of the "Scootlebugs" is just as friendly as he is and appears to like being around me - probably since I talk to it. I sliced up another carrot today so will be curious to see if it is gone tomorrow. Going to WISC tomorrow for a week so hope all my baby bunnies do fine without Granbunny around to look after them.

Granbunny, my resident wild rabbit never did touch a carrot, but waited for his apple wedge every day. Not tart apple, that was completely ignored...but sweet apple slices were greatly appreciated :) I had to shop especially for bunny, preferring tart apples for myself.

Finally saw a baby bunny in my yard!! He is living in the sideyard, under the neighbor's privet hedges. With this dry weather, I need to make sure I keep the pans of water out for the critters, especially the little 'beelers.'

What a sweet thread. :)

MorZ8: fuji, gala, mac', or delicious apples would be gobbled up by my baby cottontail patients. Apple stories bring a smile.

Guys, I'm in cottontail-lonesome land. Major withdrawals. We hardly see them anymore. Please keep my lonely heart goin' and let me know you've got some by you. Thankyou CSG. [[hug]] That's awesome a baby beeler is gracing your yard. p.s. Can you send pictures???

Maybe our special few will return...

My husband mowed near a baby bunny nest and two bunnies jumped out. One remained inside. They are full of fur, eyes are opened, they are warm. The white diamond on their heads: two have no sign and one has a little remaining. What should I do. We put them in our yard in a large basket. Covered them with the original nesting material and are trying to keep them warm. Should I put them back in their nest? What should I do?

Put them back in the nest and cover it with the original material. The mother will not visit them in a basket, but raccoons might!

Ok my dad found 5 babby rabbits and the mom was gone. He had aciddently destroyed the den they where in at his work place, so him, his boss, and a friend took some home. So i have two babby bunnies and im not sure if puppy milk suppliment is good for them D: i need help with the bunnies. They have there eyes open and about 4 to 5 inches in lenght when streached. An can i feed them solid food? plz help me

My Mom raised a few when we were kids. It is tough, not many (if any) will survive. I am sorry, but that is true. I doubt that puppy formula will do it. If they have their eyes open, they might be close to fledged. Rabbits don't stay with their young very long. I am not a rehabber, however, so I can't help you much at all (if any).

chelsea16,

Please contact a wildlife rehabber. Maybe the rehabber will even take the rabbits (which I realize you might not be happy about since I'm sure the bunnies are adorable, but this is probably best for them), or at least should have information about how you can best take care of the rabbits.

I hope it all goes well. I'm giving you a link I took off this site's Bird Watching Forum's FAQ page to help you find a rehabber to call.

Here is a link that might be useful: How To Locate a Wildlife Rehabilitator

I had a nest of baby bunnies in my front yard, near the street & beside our driveway. We discovered it a few days ago while raking. We saw the mama come to feed them the next night, and last night, she came and they all popped out of the nest and hopped across the street while she took off in another direction. The nest was empty all day, but the mama was back at the nest tonight. Is she looking for the babies? Should they have come back?

Hello all. Thanks for this thread. I found a brand new bunny nest today. I know it just appeared today as I was in that area of the yard yesterday. As much as I hate their parents for munching my tulips, I hope the babies make it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Photos of nest

I need some advise concerning a baby bunny. The baby is an orphan (mom killed by cat and it is unknown where the cat lives). The baby about 4 inches, seems to have full coat, ears stand up, and has a white diamond patch on his head. I currently have him in a large shoe box with lots of grass. He seems to be sleeping peacefully and buries himself under the grass. If I return him where I found him the cat could get him? I tried talking to the wild life expert but they were not very helpful. It does seem to have a small sore on his side where the cat could of bit him. I am not sure if he needs solid food or puppy milk. I live in a rural area and there is not the option for an emergency vet at this hour. Any advise is GREATLY appreciated!!!!!

I believe a rabbit is building her nest in one of my flower beds.

I don't have a problem with that, but the bed will have to be watered once a week. Is this going to be a problem for her and the babies? I'm hoping she picked a drier spot (I use a soaker hose).

Any thoughts?

As to the original question about whether the mother would return. I can only offer this incident. in mid-may I was working in the back yard. My neighbor was mowing inside a chain link fence in their back yard. He stopped his mower and called me over then showed me a rabbit nest built into a depression with 4 small bunnies, they had fur and looked to be the same size as some I have seen in the yard. The mower had pulled all the covering off of then and they all crouched unmoving on a layer of loose fur. we both commented on the fact that none of them had been sucked up into the mower. In the end, he covered them with a little of the fur sucked off the top of their nest and left them alone. The next day he checked. The mother had obviously been back as the nest was repaired and more loose fur was in place.

Hi All....I am up at 1:45 am, reading this thread and any others I can find. We found our babies 5 day ago, and everything has been great. Well...tonight it started to rain pretty hard and I am trying to figure out what to do. I went out and checked on the nest, just visually, and felt the ground around it and it does not seem to be too saturated or flooded, but of course I am still frantic and worried my babies are going to drown. I would just pluck them out but it is the middle of the night and I am afraid mama will come soon and if her babies are gone she won't come back. I am trying to thing fast about what I can put over the area. I just may go upstairs and tear down my plastic shower curtain from the guest room and place our patio table over the nest and drape the shower curtain. The rain is not a downpour, but very steady. I noticed that mama made the nest deeper and packed more dead grass on top. I wish I knew for sure what to do.....I will not get any sleep tonight .....I could always just stand over the nest with my umbrella.

Yesterday while cutting the grass I managed to suck the fur and grass covering off a baby rabbit nest. I could not believe they survived the ordeal but there they were. Right in the middle of the yard! How my Pug did not find them I'll never know. What was I to do? I ran to the shed and grabbed a basket, placed an old T shirt in the bottom and carefully placed the bunnies in it. At first I thought there were four but soon discovered there were six! I recovered as much fur and nesting materials as possible and covered the babes in the basket. I brought them in the house and proceeded to do some research on line. My wife and I held the little cuties for a while and then put them to rest in the laundry room. We debated hand feeding but decided to put them back in the nest at dusk and see if the Mom returned. I watched that nest up until 10:00PM. From my Son's bedroom window I could see the nest which was not more than 10' away. Mama did not show up so I went to bed. I woke up at 3:00AM. When I looked out the window and shined my flashlight on the nest area I could not find it! I assumed she had moved it. Just to make sure I went outside and to my surprise Mom had recovered the nest so well I had a hard time finding it. My son also told me that during the night he had heard some low "Dove like" sounds outside the window. After reading up on the subject we can only assume it was Mom calling the babes. When my wife and I held the babies they also made a tiny grunting sound.
The little buggers are so cute! It truly is the Easter Season!
I've included a photo of our new family members!!

This post was edited by Geoff123 on Tue, Apr 22, 14 at 10:15

This photo shows the nest as Mom left it last night. When I returned the babies to the nest I covered them with mostly fur. Mama rabbit was not satisfied with my job and used grass to hide the nest even more.

Question :) mama baby put a nest in my planter. Ironically it is where my carrots are growing. I am worried about two things:

Them drowning - i know it puddles when I used to water - havent watered since I saw her make the nest.

The babies not being able to get down and or back up- it is roughly 18" high. I will post pics later this morning.

I dont know how old or how many. The nest was made on Monday. I poked around Saturday and heard them cry a little. I was trying to move the bird mesh a little more so momma and babies dont get caught.

Pics below. It really doesn't look like she came back last night or this morning - but hard to tell. I added some string a few minutes ago.

I know mother rabbits leave their babies alone more than we'd expect. If the mother comes back soon I'd think the babies are okay but you're better off checking with somebody who knows. The bird-watching forum used to have a link to rehabilitators but I couldn't find it. This is from a Google search and says it lists them by state. A phone call should be fine I think.

find a wildlife rehabilitator by state

Good luck and thanks for caring.

My dog found a baby rabbit in the corner of my back patio. He chased it and the poor little rabbit was crying. I am not sure if the dog bit him, but the rabbit ran around the corner of the house and went into the rain spouting. I need to get him out, but he won't come. I know he is in there as each time I hit the gutter, he moves and makes a scratching sound. I would like to put him back in his nest before his mother comes tonight. Any ideas?

A day or so after my husband mowed the lawn he pointed out a bare spot in the middle of the back yard. He said it wasn't there when he mowed. So I decided to take a closer look. I poked around with a twig and was frightened by movement and what appeared to me to be the head of a small snake. On closer look I thought it was a rodent and immediately wanted it out of there. Poking some more, I counted 3. So I put on gloves, removed them and the nesting material under a tree in an unsold lot adjacent to our unfenced backyard.

I then went on the internet to see what I could find out. Baby bunnies...don't remove the nest....yada, yada. Now I panicked thinking Mom would abandon them. One did not appear very alert...almost comatose. Frightened or in danger? Periodically I looked out to see if Mom was there and she showed up over the nest. Back to the internet for more research.T wo days now and I only saw her that once. The babies were about 3-4 inches long, ears back, eyes closed and plump bellies.

At 6:30a yesterday I checked to see if they were there and breathing and arranged some twigs over the nest so I could see if the nest was disturbed later as proof Mom returned. Late that afternoon/early evening it became a gully washer with thunder and lightning and I feared their nest would be flooded. The best I could do was put a folding canvas camp chair over the nest. An hour or more later I looked out and it was blown over. Dashed out and flipped it over so it formed more of a tent over the nest and then worried I was too late. 4:00a this morning I went out with a flashlight and changed the chair a bit to make it maybe a little easier for Mom. I was shocked to see the babies (only 2) huddled on top of the nest completely exposed. I fear the comatose one didn't make it.

Now I'm checking every few minutes to see if Mom is there with them. It's not raining right now but threatening. I don't know if they are out of the nest because it's flooded or the sibling died and Mom got them out. It's 74 outside and I worry I'd they are warm enough. It's thundering and lightening again, but not raining. They looked healthy, but not quite as frisky as they were the day I moved them briefly.

What's the danger to them now? They look much bigger than they were when I first found them. I recall seeing the Mom sitting in the lawn a day or two before my husband pointed out the bare spot. I'm guessing they are maybe 5-7 days old now. Seems she put them in the worst possible location, right in clear sight.

Could she be ready to move their nest elsewhere? Maybe I shouldn't worry about them as this is probably very common in nature. It's just the first time I've witnessed it!