The bunny in my backyard.

[djeseru]

For about a week now, a young rabbit has been hanging around in my back yard - there WERE open fields on two sides of me until street construction crews came in about two months ago with various and sundry extra-large equipment. He has eaten all the edible weeds out of the back and likes the birdseed I put out but I don't think this is enough for it. The other concern I have is shelter, maybe some place where the neighborhood cats and dogs won't be harrassing it. Would any kind person here have any suggestions or perhaps some links that could help me possibly help this bunny? I really appreciate it. :)

[commander bunnypants]

1. Dont really know.

call a vet for some assistance.

Some type of wooden box

CB

[Arugula Latte]

2. Is it a wild rabbit or a domestic rabbit that has been dumped?

Can you tell?

We had a little black (obviously dumped domestic) bunny show up in our yard last summer. I was worried about him getting eaten by coyotes (even though we live in the city we have coyotes). We caught him and have given him a large pen indoors. He is such a sweet bunny! We have three indoor kitties and they are fine with him and leave him alone for the most part. One is his friend and one bops him on the head if he comes too close. The other is afraid of the bunny (!).

Anyway, domestic rabbits, at any rate, need timothy hay, which you can find at pet supply shops in small bags. (I'm not sure about wild bunnies.) My bunny doesn't like to eat the hay pellets they include in rabbit food, though. They also eat grains like corn and oats and fresh veggies and fruits (mine likes bananas -- go figure).

The shelter part is hard, though, because if you're not going to keep it permanently in a pen/hutch type of situation, it seems like anything a bunny could get into a cat could get into as well.

[Arugula Latte]

3. Here is a link for info. on domestic bunnies:

http://www.rabbitrescue.ca/rroldsite/rabbitinfo.htm

[djeseru]

5. This one is wild.

He seems very young but it's only him. The first time I saw him, I thought he just accidentally got caught in the yard, so I walked outside and he barreled out of there using a gap under the fence. A couple of days later, I saw him napping in the back. So, this morning, there he was again, goofing off with a pause now and again to clean himself. I left some raw spinach out and when I came back later this afternoon, it was gone.

This is my first bunny experience so I really appreciate your post and the link! I did pick up a small bag of timothy hay for him...I guess I'll just be patient and see where it goes from here.

[warrens]

8. Rabbits build dens with multiple exits

My ex-neighbor had a rather cranky rabbit that would get chased into its burrow by cats and dogs. While they were digging away at the entrance, the rabbit would emerge from one of the exits and sit there snickering at the boneheads.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

4. My sister is a rehaber...

who specializes in wild and domestic rabbitts. I'll get her on this thread to help you when she comes home tonight. :hi:

[djeseru]

6. Any words of wisdom will be of great help!

He's been a fun one to watch.

[Beaverhausen]

10. Pictures?

if you can! :hi:

[Book Lover]

7. The HRS is a great first stop online

http://www.rabbit.org is the national org. These folks don't seem to be affiliated with the HRS, but try 'em anyway:

http://www.rabbitresource.org / --- in Austin
http://ntrs.org/index.html ---Based in Garland, they cover north Texas
http://www.bunnybuddies.org / --- Houston coverage

Thank you for caring about this little bunny. :hop:

[GOPisEvil]

9. Punt!

:kick:

[bertha katzenengel]

11. You could borrow a humane trap from your local humane society...

and find bunny a big hutch to live in. :shrug:

Or, you could make him a shelter and train him to use it by putting good food in it.

Bless you for caring for the critter.

[AlienGirl]

12. Here's my thread about baby wild animals:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=243x16486

If the bunny is fully-furred and has its eyes open, and is actually a wild rabbit, the best thing to do will be just to leave him alone. Wild rabbits leave the nest while they're still physically small in size, and they are quite adept at finding enough to eat. If you want to give your bunny friend some extra incentive to keep coming back, you could give him apples--rabbits love apples--and put out a bowl of rabbit food for him. Chances are, though, if he's a wild rabbit, he's already doing well at finding food and shelter by himself!

Tucker