Raising Wild Rabbits

[countrybunnyholly]

Hey, we normally find baby wild rabbits in our yard. We dont take them unless it is necessary for their survival. Then we release them when they areall better.I was wondering, how difficult are they to keep? I know some of you have cottontails as pets and I was just looking for a second opinion.

-Kate

 

[BlueGiants]

Ihave to mention that it is illegal in most states to "harbor" a wild rabbit (Eastern Cottontail) unless you are a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Just don't get caught with one. The fines are pretty stiff (especially in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania).

 

[countrybunnyholly]

I know, but If some are being hunted about 100 yds away, personally, id rather be safe...

 

[ra7751]

Asa licensed rehabber...I can assure you the penalties are quite stiff for harboring wildlife. And generally most cottontails do not make good pets. We have had some thru here that seemed almost domestic....but for the most part when they reach about four weeks old, they become very difficult to handle. Most of the wildlife will go thru what we call a "wild out" and become wild on their own....squirrels are quite good at that and can inflict a painful bite. With cottontails, they tend to freak out when they are handled and that usually results in a broken back. Wild rabbits also carry some zoonosis that domestic rabbits don't have...and that means the illness can be caught by humans.

If you are interested in working cottontails, I would suggest you contact your wildlife commision and see what it takes to become a rehabber. It is difficult and expensive. You lose a lot of animals....and those that are healthy must be released as they should be. It's sad when we release them...but we know they have taken their rightful place in the world.

And if you find them in your yard...make sure they need to be rescued.They might be outplaying and mom is nearby....remember mom only comes to them about once a day. And if they need to be rescued, contact a licensed rehabber. Most people no matter how well intentioned improperly feed wildlife. There are too many stories out there about using goat's milk or kitten milk replacer or even stuff such as heavy cream or Karo syrup. Cottontails have a very challenging fight to make it even with mother's milk. I feed our cottontails what is generally considered to be one of the best formulas available and it's still a struggle. While it may appear they are healthy....an improper diet early in life will result in a condition known as Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). That is devastating. We see it quite often in squirrels when those well intentioned people fed them incorrectly (opossums are also prone to this).

We have a saying...."Keep the wild in your heart...not in your home".

Randy

 

[countrybunnyholly]

Thanks for your help!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

They aren't good for pets. Wild animals are always wild.

 

[BlueCamasRabbitry]

Exactly, BBB.

Another saying is "You cantake the animal out of the wild, but you can't take the wild out of the animal." Or maybe it's the other way around? I just know it's something like that, hehe.

Emily

 

[trailsend]

ra7751 wrote:

We have a saying...."Keep the wild in your heart...not in your home".

Everything Randy said is right on, but I especially liked this

It's definately good to try and help wildlife but they don't always need our help. And like everyone said it is Illegal. But it's sad if people are hunting them close by, I know that's hard to take. We go through that every year. we own 700 acres and fight every year to keep people off. and Bo is right when she says wild animal are always wild.

 

[Hazel-Mom]

Oh yes, Hazel is VERY wild. Very wildly licking and kissing us mostly. :biggrin2:


Bo B Bunny wrote:

They aren't good for pets. Wild animals are always wild.

 

[Bo B Bunny]

How come I knew you'd chime in??? LOL!

Hazel doesn't know she is a wild bunny!!!

Clover THINKS she's wilder than she is.... and she thinks she's a bad-arse.

She's the only one who hasn't bitten any of us LOL!

Still, it's not something I recommend - too many problems can come up.

 

[Hazel-Mom]

Heheh :biggrin2:.
Yes, you're right, Hazel doesn't know. Probably because she was only just leaving the nest when she was found (the siblings were still together).
And same here, Hazel doesn't bite, but our English Spot bunny sure does. She got me again yesterday, the little stinker .

But yes, Hazel is an exceptional bunny, I'm sure it doesn't always work out that way.

 

[Bo B Bunny]

Most the time they don't even live, but yeah.... exceptional!

 

[MsBinky]

I couldn't keep them.

I was lucky/unlucky enough to have two brought to me but they didn't survive due to guy issues that Randy talks about when speaking of cottontails. They just wouldn't shake those wild instincts and it'd be pretty sad for them I think...

Is hazel truly a cottontail? :shock:Lol. I know about Clover but I didn't think Hazel was a wild bun. LOL

 

[Hazel-Mom]

Well, as far as we know she is, a Western Cottontail, though not sure exactly what kind (there are 4 species that occur in the Central Valley, 8 total in California). She was found with 4 other babies beside a road. The others ran but she couldn't, she had a crushed leg.
Our vet agrees that she likely is a wild one . We weren't sure, at first we thought maybe she was a Netherland Dwarf. Well we didn't really know anything about rabbits then, we had to look uo everything on the web and in books. Al things considered, it's probably a miracle she survived at all.
But she was already eating grass and herbs at 3 weeks old, a domestic one would probably not have survived that.
She does look just like the wild ones around here, though she is a lot bigger. I guess they just never get to grow that big, or survive as long as she has (she's just over 5 years old).

 

[MsBinky]

Wow :biggrin2:That's pretty awesome :biggrin2:Lucky you! Well, I feel bad about her leg, but glad she is safe andhappy :biggrin2:

 

[Bo B Bunny]

You know, in the wild they probably have to really work to live and the heat and all keeps them smaller.

Clover was pretty little and still is, until she stretches out and she's real thin and long. Well, not as thin as she used to be LOL! she's a piggy.

I love Clover dearly and I'm truly blessed to have her - but had her leg been ok, I'd have released her. I think the reason she stayed as wild as she did is we didn't handle her a lot so that she wouldn't be imprinted. Then we realized her leg was bad and there was no way I was sending her out to be coyote or hawk food.

Wild animals are tough but not that tough!

She had an abscess that ran the length of that leg and we didn't know until it broke open when it healed..... again.... I am amazed she lived.

 

[ra7751]

Just a couple of facts about cottontails....hares and jackrabbits are a bit different. I feed my cottontails Spring Mix as soon they start to nibble on solid food...usually just after their eyes open about 10 days old or so. They are pretty much fully weaned by 21 days....and it is a violent wean. Most rehabbers lose them at that point as the gut converts quickly from a baby gut to an adult gut. I have seen cottontails happily eating and five minutes later be on their side and be dead within minutes. Cottontails rarely reach their second birthday in the wild. The difference in cottontails and domestics are two genes. Cottontails are also quite intelligent. We had one particular one that learned to ring a bell when he wanted food. They are also excellent swimmers. In fact, there is a sub-species of cottontails known as marsh rabbits that can submerge under water for quite some time to escape a predator. If you look in our blog....you will see Marcia....a marsh rabbit. She was thought to be a domestic rabbit at the wildlife center. She had been hit by a car....broken femur and head injuries. We just couldn't fix that leg. But for the time she was here....she acted domestic for the most part. Cottontails also do not burrow. And they are not really as socialable as domestics. But they can still put on an interesting show at breeding time (which is nearly all the time)....and they can do some huge binkys.

Randy

 

[Bo B Bunny]

LOL! Clover rings her bell when she's hungry and wants something.

She also does this clicky thing with her teeth. I think she thought she was "typing" cause of my typing LOL! If I clicky my teeth and wait - she'll do hers. She looks right at me as if in conversation!

She doesn't burrow but she can get under a blankie faster than any human I know!

She's not real social outside of her cage but if she's inside she will sit by the door and listen to you, take treats, and sometimes we can even pet her.

binkies? OMG! She flies into this spasm in the air with her legs all going 90mph! and I kid you not - she's climbed the wall! LOL!

 

[JadeIcing]

Have you ever seen Backyard Habitat on Animal Planet? Is it possible to make your backyard into a safe habitat for them?

 

[tamsin]

Just curious, what do you use to raise them? For handrearing in the UK we'd use kitten replacer or goats milk, with either pet or wild (european) rabbits. Just interested to know if you've found something better or it's just different as it's a different species.

I have a handreared wild rabbit who lives as a house rabbit. Beaviour wise he's the same as a domestic (though very high energy) he's extremely tame - more so than a lot of pets I've met. He is a european wild rabbit though, so the same species as domestic rabbits, not a Cottontail.