I was putting out pine straw on Sun and found a nest of baby rabbits....SO cute! But I am afraid that my cat may have eaten the mother. I have no way of knowing - but the cat has killed several recently :evil:. I covered them back up (did not touch anything with my hands, so no scent should have been left). So my question is, what to do? Is there a rabbit rescue that would take them in? :cry:
I am a rabbit rehabber! LOL Lay a few pieces of string back and forth over the nest.... if mom goes in you will notice the string moved. Depending on the age of the babies, mom may only come every 12 hours or so. How big are they? Are they possibly big enough to live on their own? I release them at 200 grams, so that is about the size of a small grapefruit? If no mom and they are smaller than that then they need to be hand raised until old enough to release.
LOL, my dd suggested laying some sticks over the nest - so we'll do the string. I think they're pretty small, all I saw was their heads and it looked about the size of a pecan - didn't see much else as I tried not too disturb them too much. The only reason I knew there was anything there was I heard them crying as I standing there! I didn't know what it was so I started brushing back the ground cover with a stick and then I saw the fur/nest - still didn't know what it was till I saw their little heads/ears....I'd love to hold them.:lol: I'd sleep much better if you'd just come get them as I fear my cat really will get them when they start coming out of the nest. :cry:
Little one is asleep, but if you want to deliver them to Clayton, come on.... but mom may come back! LOL
ok. when I went to put the string out - it seemed like maybe the pinestraw had been pushed down - so maybe the mom has returned! But I will check tomorrow. Thanks for your help!
IF ljk doesn't want them, I'll take 'em! I've got a rabbit, racoon, birds etc .. that I feed (don't tell DH :lol: ) The back of the house is all woods and the rabbits would be in their natrual habitit. (i'll still fee them and LOVE them to pieces) :hurray: just let me know
I am fine not taking them if you have all the supplies you need HG.... if they are that little, they need bottle feeding etc... If mom wasn't kitty food, she will come back, but if not let us know what you decide BandM.
This morning I went out to check the string - and there was a bunny nearby :hurray: so hopefully it was the mama (didn't go any closer, so not sure if the string was moved or not). Now, if I can just keep my cat away from them.....:cry: I'll keep ya posted.
Watch the raccoon before you know it he will be all up on your storm door if he knows that is where his food is coming from... they're funny creatures..
My mom had a friend, and they used to feed Twinkies and other scraps to the raccoons that frequented their back porch. One day, the husband woke up when he heard the screen door open, and the raccoon was letting himself into the house! There was no more feeding the wildlife on the back deck after that! :mrgreen:
I use to have two of them, and they're highly intelligent and would rather not have to look hard for their food. They would climb on the screen door looking in the house wanting in or food. LOL
A good friend of mine in TN had one as a pet, it lived in the house. (she never meant to have it as a pet, but someone cut down the tree it was in and the mother was killed) It was so tiny, it was a miracle it lived and then he was too tame to release. She said it was like having a perpetual 2 year old. She was devastated when he died of cancer at about 10 years old. He was a very spoiled raccoon, she'd had a cage constructed in their basement that took up half the room to make him a habitat. She'd take him outside for walks and exercise just like a dog. He'd even play and wrestle with her Springer spaniel. However, they don't make good pets, he actually bit her on the face once and nearly got her eye. She always said she wishes he could have been let loose to live like any other raccoon.
I have seen the rabbit (assuming its the mama) around the area a few times since, so, hoping all is well. I'd like to check the nest, but don't want to keep disturbing it. And so far, haven't seen the cat over that way at all. But I do worry about when they get old enough to come out...:cry:
We have rabbits all over the place here, and my cat caught a little one awhile back. Thankfully she didn't hurt it at all, just brought it to me and released it right into my hands. It was big enough to just let it go. I took it to the spot where we always see them, clapped my hands and it took off like a little shot!
awww! Unfortunately - by the time our cat brings them to the porch and 'calls us to come see', they're usually already dead or too injured to survive. :cry:
