Bunny Problems How to dispose of them?

[Owly055]

having problems with rabbit depredations on my hops. Thus far I've "relocated" two, but there's lots of them, and it promises to be a slow process. I'm reluctant to shoot them due to too much glass around. I'm baiting my trap with some really nice mixed salad greens at the entrance and a piece of apple on the bait pan. I'm relocating them to a friend's shop where the dogs have a heyday chasing them around...... gives the dog something to do ;-) 2 miles away, they aren't likely to find their way back. They get plenty of exercise over there.
Dog and cats have problems actually catching and killing rabbits as there are many things to hide under, and they are really quick. Thinking about 22 birdshot, but my 22 rifle is far too valuable to use that way (Belgian Browning). I do have a "disposable" 22 semi auto pistol I've used with birdshot on deer......... It get's their attention!! But I don't think it has the accuracy to do the job on rabbits. Thinking about antifreeze......... I could put some where the neighbor's dogs can't get to it, and there are no cats around anymore.

After they destroyed my Magnum and Northern Brewer hops, my patience is exhausted.

Suggestions?


H.W.

 

[mmb]

A fence. Bury half the chicken wire in the ground and you'll not have bunny issues again.

 

[masonsjax]

Don't do the antifreeze thing, that is cruel and unusual punishment. Rabbit is pretty tasty, I'd fill the freezer if it were me.

 

[h-bar]

Shooting/killing them won't help, unfortunately. They just breed too quickly! There is an endless supply of rabbits.

What worked for our garden was a chicken wire fence. You have to have part of the fence buried about a foot underground or else they'll dig. Make sure the fence is about three feet high above ground to prevent them from jumping over. Hope that helps!

Edit: didn't see mmb's post until after I replied. That's pretty much it.

 

[h-bar]

Don't do the antifreeze thing, that is cruel and unusual punishment. Rabbit is pretty tasty, I'd fill the freezer if it were me.

Agreed, crock pot rabbit is pretty tasty.

 

[rodwha]

Rabbit is tasty, and I'd use a pellet rifle were it me, but the fence is likely the better option.

 

[mmb]

No problem with shooting them, if they are in season, of course, but you'll never shoot every rabbit. Done properly, a fence will keep them out.

 

[evanmars]

http://www.simplelifeandhome.com/2012/04/04/natural-deer-and-rabbit-repellant/
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/homemade-rabbit-repellent.html
http://repellex.com/shop/deer-and-rabbit.html

 

[beavers]

I'm also having rabbit trouble, but only with a single individual. Little bastard is eating my balloon flowers! Unfortunately the wife won't let me put up an ugly fence around all the delicate flowers.

I'd use a pellet rifle were it me, but the fence is likely the better option.

I borrowed a BB gun from a neighbor, but only managed to make him look like he cut himself shaving. Would pellets in the same gun have any stronger effect?

 

[GVH_Dan]

+1 on the pellet rifle. Don't cheap out, get at least a mid range one as far as speed and it will stop them without making to much noise.

Then implement this Hasenpfeffer (Rabbit Stew)

Like other said, that won't get rid of them all. What finally took care of my rabbit problems was last winter's "Polar Vortex" The coyote's were hungry and came way into town. Not a single tulip was lost to a rabbit this year...though mid July now and this year's hatch is starting to hop around.

Honestly, I'm surprised they went after the hops. Other than the very freshest sprouts, they usually will eat just about anything else. Maybe if you planted a "food plot" elsewhere to lure them away. Look for tulips, alfalfa and other things that would pop up at the same time as the hop shoots to lure the rabbits away.

 

[flars]

I had an 18' x 18' garden with a 5' chicken wire fence around it to keep cottontails and white tails out. When I enlarged the garden 18' x 60' to add grapes and asparagus the deer began jumping the fence. I added two strands of electrified wire making the fence 8' tall. Problem was solved.

I used landscaping staple to hold the chicken wire to the ground. Eventually the chicken wire became well anchored by the grass mat around the garden. The cotton tails weren't smart enough to dig.

My wife won't let me eat anything that lives in or around the yard. Including deer unless it is a buck. The bucks have rubbed to death to many ornamentals.

 

[mmb]

I borrowed a BB gun from a neighbor, but only managed to make him look like he cut himself shaving. Would pellets in the same gun have any stronger effect?

Depends on the FPS of the airgun. A lung/heart shot will take them out but they'll most likely run off before they expire. A hunting pellet and a head shot are your best option but placement is key. Aim between the eyes or, for a side profile shot, between the eye and the base of the ear. Otherwise, you'll just grievously wound them and they'll run off to die.

 

[charliehorse]

I've had good luck using dried blood sprinkled around the garden. You can get this stuff at your local garden store. When I lived on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, I would literally rabbit hunt in the field next to the garden and using this we never had anything nibble the lettuce or anything else. I would joke that it was like a magic rabbit force field.

 

[rodwha]

Hair clippings have been used at my great uncle's garden to keep deer away. Not sure if it would work on rabbits or not.

 

[mmb]

Hair clippings have been used at my great uncle's garden to keep deer away. Not sure if it would work on rabbits or not.

If you clipped enough hares you wouldn't have a bunny problem.

 

[rodwha]

:beard:

 

[rodwha]

SWMBO just told me that people plant Marigolds around their gardens to keep rabbits out. Try Googling that.

 

[stru]

Our cats have brought us six or seven rabbits this year alone. Two were alive, so I relocated them. Funny thing is, they've never touched one of my hop plants. The blueberry bushes are another matter... They haven't touched those since I sprayed them with Liquid Fence. Your local greenhouse should carry it.

You have to do what you have to do to protect your crops, but you may as well eat what you kill. My vote is for the pellet gun.

 

[rodwha]

If you decide to eat rabbit refrain from smoking them with mesquite wood! It was horrible!

 

[gestyr]

Go to a hunting supply store and get a bottle of fox urine. It will drive away the bunnies.

 

[ObsidianJester]

I have had great success with the liquid/granular animal repellent. The stuff smells and is made of putrid eggs. Lucky for us the hop cones are usually high enough up that you can hammer the plants to the height of rabbits and even deer in many cases. The bad part is one good rain storm is likely to wash away the liquid form of it, granular forms may take a couple good rain storms then they too are gone.

I've not messed with fences, marigolds, hair clippings but I have used dried blood. It does help to about the same degree as the granular liquid fence.

There is a lot of good advice here listed, if it was me I would use liquid fence, combined with some basic fence work to repel the rabbits and combine that with another deterrent, like a pellet gun. I'm not one to advocate a lot of bait crops other than in specific situations, like hoping the rabbits may eat the crops because they are the only other things green at the time. The problem with that idea is that it is similar to the wild, the more forage there is for the rabbits the more you will have, period. I'm dealing with a battle against the squirrels on my land right now after they have consumed an entire mulberry tree of its fruits because there are so many of them. They have gotten past the point of liquid fence on what they like so it is now the pellet gun approach.

If it was me in your situation I would liquid fence, physical fence it and shoot any rabbits you see. You won't get them all but the remaining ones will generally move of to easier forage.

 

[rodwha]

Wish I was your neighbor and could help you rid yourself of tree rats. I have a .50 cal muzzleloader that old timers claim they use to "bark" them with. Sounds crazy using such a large caliber for such a tiny critter, but I have to try it I suppose. Old people know things they say...

 

[BrewWNC]

I'm thinking a few "Keep Out" signs might work. The US government uses the same method to keep "unwanted persons" from entering the US illegally so it's got to work.

If the signs do not work, do the fence idea. The US does that too so another great idea.

I'm sure the other idea could work. You can even feed them on the other side of the garden if you want. Maybe they will munch up your free food on the other side of the yard and ignore your delicious hops. I hear rabbits get full quickly and there's only ever one or two rabbits.

However, if you kill them (with say guns or chemicals-preferable the former) you can at least work towards stopping the problem completly and not just pleasing them with food and building them obstackle course they will figure out eventually instead of just trying to attempt to keep them.

I'm not how that happened. I should be on the drunken rambling page.

 

[Takuie]

My gramps used a bar of soap nailed to top of a 2 x 2. Used strong soap bats like dial, life bouy, etc. the scent kept all critters (except moles) out of his gardens. Bout once a week to 2 weeks he would replace the soap bars.

 

[HumulusHead]

My gramps used a bar of soap nailed to top of a 2 x 2. Used strong soap bats like dial, life bouy, etc. the scent kept all critters (except moles) out of his gardens. Bout once a week to 2 weeks he would replace the soap bars.

Possibly bars of soap in a sock would work too


Sent from myPhone

 

[ChelisHubby]

Pellet gun would be my choice, buy a decent one. Rabbit are tasty and very low fat.

 

[Braufessor]

Pellet gun would be my choice, buy a decent one. Rabbit are tasty and very low fat.

Yep - this is my choice. We have a lot of rabbits around. I have fenced our garden. But, they still get after our young trees - probably have cost us $500+ over the years on trees and bushes eating the bark off.

Never had one touch any hops though - guess they are always busy eating our trees

Nothing like a full moon and a fresh snow. I have shot 4-5 in 10 minutes from a bedroom window in our house.

The liquid fence/fox urine may help too. But, fewer rabbits helps for sure. And, they are tasty if you shoot them between december and march (if it is cold). Summer rabbit...... not so much.

 

[EdMerican]

I have a seriously cheap harbor freight $20 pellet rifle with a $10 harbor freight scope on top. As long as I feed it decent quality ammo it shoots as straight as any Sheridan ive shot. One pump spring loader shoots 750fps. I have a squirrel problem in my garden. It is lessening by the day. Pellets definitely have more mass and a much better shock transfer. I like the dome top as a reasonably good balance between accuracy and lethality. The flat nose wad cutters have the best impact but get very inaccurate at a distance. The pointed ones are very accurate but penetrate too well. They have been making some polymer tipped pellets lately that should be similar to the hornady TAP line as far as pellets go. .17 hmr poly tip makes a sh*tty mess of a groundhog at 100 yards

 

[beavers]

Rabbit is pretty tasty, I'd fill the freezer if it were me.

Agreed, crock pot rabbit is pretty tasty.

Rabbit is tasty, and I'd use a pellet rifle were it me, but the fence is likely the better option.

Then implement this Hasenpfeffer (Rabbit Stew)

Pellet gun would be my choice, buy a decent one. Rabbit are tasty and very low fat.

And, they are tasty if you shoot them between december and march (if it is cold). Summer rabbit...... not so much.

...aaaaand now I have to try rabbit.

 

[roastquake]

FWIW, the rabbits out here have no regard for a chickenwire fence, they find the weak spot and power right through it. The dog keeps them out most of the time

 

[j1n]

im pretty sure a cat can catch those rabbits. My old neighbors cat used to kill rabbits all the time. My sister tells me her cat kills a good number of them every year too.

 

[roastquake]

im pretty sure a cat can catch those rabbits. My old neighbors cat used to kill rabbits all the time. My sister tells me her cat kills a good number of them every year too.

As long as it's not a spoiled inside cat, mine can't kill a thing. All my rodent work is done by my rat terrier, but any predator left outside will deter all but the bravest of rabbits

 

[Homercidal]

My opinion is that if you can shoot a .22 where you live, you should choose that over a pellet gun. My reasoning is that any pellet that can quickly take out a rabbit is going to do pretty much the same damage to surrounding items. If you use hollow point rounds, they are more lethal and less likely to cause much damage coming out. I would certainly choose to shoot rabbits over repellent methods only because I used to hunt rabbits when I was young and they are TASTY!

Clean Head shot is best. A hollow point .22 will very nearly instantly kill a rabbit hit near the center of the head, as described previously. And a good chest shot will drop them quickly, but relatively slowly to a good head shot.

Mom used to just roll them in flour and fry them, but I bet there are some very good roasting recipes, and of course rabbit stew is on par or better than chicken stew. And they are REALLY easy to field dress and clean. Tons easier than chickens or squirrels.

Ok, I'm hungry now.

If you decide a pellet gun is the way you want to go, get the round point lead pellets. They impact pretty hard and flatten out, causing more damage. A BB will slip in doign very little damage. BBs are pretty much for target practice only. And make sure you get a gun that you can shoot accurately and will get not get past 900 FPS. At that speed and higher accuracy is lost as the pellet starts to roam from approaching the sound barrier. You don't need the extra speed for damage anyway.

Also, if you are the only one hunting, you are not likely to resolve the whole problem, but if you make this a regular activity you can thin the herd down. A rabbit population can actually outgrown it's food supply. They breed quickly.

One time when I was hunting with my dad's 12 Gauge over/under I had the rabbit circle back until it was sitting just behind a poplar tree about 15 feet in front of me. Because of my gloves I had my finger in front of both triggers, not between them as it felt to me. I touched off both barrels and promptly sat on my butt in the snow (used to a .410 plus the unexpected double barrel kick). Blew that rabbits head clean off. Only one ear was hanging by a piece of skin. Red spray of blood in the snow behind it was the only sign of the head.

Oh well, at least I didn't have to twist it's head off when I went to clean it.

 

[Owly055]

I'm also having rabbit trouble, but only with a single individual. Little bastard is eating my balloon flowers! Unfortunately the wife won't let me put up an ugly fence around all the delicate flowers.



I borrowed a BB gun from a neighbor, but only managed to make him look like he cut himself shaving. Would pellets in the same gun have any stronger effect?

I used to have a Sheridan pellet rifle.........at the time it was the most powerful pellet rifle you could buy readily. I had to pay the vet bill when I shot a neighbor's dog with it....... put the pellet 1.5" deep in the hip. It was worth the price!! Next time I used a 22, and there was no vet bill! The carcass vanished before they saw it. Nobody in the neighborhood said anything, but several knew I'd shot the dog, and one commented "you shot the wrong *****"!

Pellets are far more powerful than BBs, and the Sheridan at 10 pumps will put paid to the account of any rabbit or other small animal.

H.W.

 

[Owly055]

I have "relocated" 4 rabbits so far..... they seem to be stupid enough to walk right into my live trap. I've been thinking about using Conibear traps. At just over $50 for a 6 pack, the conibear is deadly, and perfect for an animal like a rabbit that bolts into and out of holes. As it is I will continue to use the live trap as long as they keep walking into it. The relocated rabbits go to the area around the local ranch shop where the dogs run loose all day, and chase them. It keeps both dogs and rabbits healthy and entertained while the guys are working on haying equipment, and it's beyond "rabbit range".

This AM I found a skunk in my trap pacing back and forth trying to escape.... Waddya do? I was going to get my shotgun and shoot the skunk, when I thought better of it and got a tarp instead. Tarped the trap over, then submerged it in the irrigation ditch. No spray... they don't spray when covered, and the drowned skunk of course didn't spray either. Hope I don't catch any more. They are going to shut the water off in about a week and cut hay.

H.W.

 

[Owly055]

At $135 (Amazon), 1000 FPS spring piston, this looks like about what I want. Comes with a scope and a sort of silencer (of debatable value). My past experience with the Sheridan showed that in the very quiet environment where I live, the muzzle blast of a pellet rifle is audible. Don't know how much silencing this will do, but I'd rather nobody heard me, though shooting here is common. A friend a short distance down the street has a gravel backstop and shoots his 50 Barrett at targets on it from the bench rest in the front yard to the backstop in the back yard................. the blast is incredible!! Needless to say there are miles of hay fields behind him, and nothing but the Cayuse Hills in the distance.

A friend across the street pursued a skunk through my yard one night when I wasn't home, and demolished my deer scaring device............ A large garbage bag that inflated with a fan when a motion detector sensed something in my garden. One blast with a 12 gauge make short work of that bag! I didn't know what happened until several days later when he confessed. It scared more than just deer! ;-)

Guns are a way of life here, and have been for over a century..........But I prefer NOT to be heard or seen anyway. (Population 7)

H.W.

 

[cheezydemon3]

Why have snares gone out of fashion?

If you would like to eat some, snares are GOOD.



Possibly hot pepper spray would keep them off plants more passively.

I make a spray of ghost peppers and garlic to keep deer off of plants. It works if reapplied after each rain.

 

[mtyquinn]

I'm lucky enough to have some very large birds of prey that hang around my hops. No rabbits there any more.

 

[charliehorse]

I used to have a Sheridan pellet rifle.........at the time it was the most powerful pellet rifle you could buy readily. I had to pay the vet bill when I shot a neighbor's dog with it....... put the pellet 1.5" deep in the hip. It was worth the price!! Next time I used a 22, and there was no vet bill! The carcass vanished before they saw it. Nobody in the neighborhood said anything, but several knew I'd shot the dog, and one commented "you shot the wrong *****"!

When I was in high school, our neighbor had a dog that would room freely and get into our garbage and pull clothes off the line. Not only that, he was mean as Hell! So, I told the neighbor that he needed to keep his dog out of our yard. When he asked how he was supposed to do that, I told him that I had no idea, but I was sure that he could figure something out. about a month later, i was home by myself and the dog was getting into our trash so I shot the dog in the rear foot. the next day, Mr. Neighbor asked me if I shot his dog, complaining that it cost him more than $300 in vet bills (Mid 1980's). I told him that I shot A dog, but it couldn't have been his dog because we'd agreed that he'd keep HIS dog out of our yard. For some reason, nothing more was said.

 

[Homercidal]

Relocating is a waste of time. Much faster to stay home and eat rabbit.