Wednesday Vignette: Rabbits, rabbits everywhere

We've had our house for about 7 and a half years now.  Squirrels, raccoons, skunks, coyotes, lizards, and birds have been regular visitors all along.  But there have never been bunnies - until recently.  There were signs that something new was happening in the garden soon after the new year.  The sweet pea seedlings were eaten to the ground.  Repeatedly.  New plants disappeared overnight, with no sign of the digging characteristic of raccoons.  My blueberries vanished, just as they became ripe enough to enjoy.

I sighted my first bunny in March and chased it off.  It showed itself again a couple of weeks later.  My husband commented that, if there was one bunny, there were probably many bunnies.  Monday morning, I saw one bunny chasing another, which sealed that theory.

This week, they're ever-present.  I see them in the morning.

Sitting on the back patio

Scooting over to the patio on the south side of the house

I see them in the afternoon.

The flagstone path through the middle of the backyard is a bunny freeway

And I see them in the evening.  Don't they ever sleep?

Do they know they're hard to see as the light dims?

The cheeky creatures hop right by where I can see them from my home office.  They skip along the path outside the living room windows as we watch the evening news.  For awhile, I channeled Mr. McGregor and tried chasing them out of the garden, back down into the canyon but that's become an exercise in futility.  They move faster than I can, especially on uneven ground and, when they split up and go two different directions, all hope of directing them off the property is lost.  I suspect they've figured out I'm less of a threat than the coyotes that prowl the canyon.  For all I know they've set up a warm nest under the spa.

It's always something...Do you know of any good rabbit repellents?

For other Wednesday Vignettes, visit Anna at Flutter & Hum.


All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party