# Rabbit in the yard I'm not sure if it's wild or a domestic bunny



## Spring (May 22, 2008)

Hi

Mom kept seeing this wild bunny around our yard, finally got to take a look at him today. She said he was a weird colour, a bit darker. We thought it was because of the rain, but it hasn't rained today and he's still that colour.

I went out and approached him and he doesn't seem afraid of humans. I probably was walking 3-4 feet behind him, and he didn't seem to care. When I came back from getting my camera, he was chasing another wild bunny.

He seems to have the same body shape/colour as a wild bunny, but has this almost dabbled gray on his bum? Could it just be a wild bunny shedding? He is really really skinny, even from where I was I could see he seemed a bit on the thin side. I was also thinking maybe he had fur mites making his fur go all weird? Just his body language didn't seem quite 'wild' to me.

Any input? Just uploading some pics and a video right now :?.


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## Spring (May 22, 2008)

Video -





Pics -


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## AngelnSnuffy (May 22, 2008)

I kinda agree with you, Spring about the body language. It looks wild, but hmm. It could be moulting as well, which makes it look funny. I don't know, but we can get close to some of the wild ones here. 

One night, hubby was standing outside, right out the back door and 4 of them were just running around and going right by him, many times. He stood still til they were done with their playtime.


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## Bo B Bunny (May 23, 2008)

Could be a rabbit that was raised and released? sometimes they will be a bit less leary.

My mom has a racoon that comes to her door and taps for dinner.... and now her daughter does the same thing..... both are nursing babies.... we'll have a clan soon LOL!


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## juliew19673 (May 23, 2008)

Maybe the "molt" is giving he/she tummy problems and thus the skinness? Definetly looks like molting (as Baxter! has similiar fur issues - lol).. Can you put out fattier food/pellets for him/her? Or perhaps this is not advised in your region and that this bun has enough food to scrounge for.. Would hate to upset its natural diet.. Curious though isn't it? Please update as you "get word" from him/her.. Its a beauty and seems to know your not going to cause it harm..


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## cheryl (May 23, 2008)

Wow Leanne...you are so lucky to get wild bunnies close to your home like that

I loved watching the video of him/her.

Cheryl


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## Spring (May 23, 2008)

Yeah, it might be possible he's a released bunny? There's a wildlife centre a few kilometer's away, but I think they work with birds mostly. I'm going to go out tonight again to see if he's back, but I'm going to leave him be. Might just be him moulting with the warm weather.. there's definitely lots of food out there, lots of lush grass, blackberry bushes and plants, so no lack of food to eat!


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## Bo B Bunny (May 23, 2008)

Clover eats like a total pig and she's so skinny! it's weird.


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## JimD (May 23, 2008)

I'm casting my vote for wild bunnie.

Looks just like the mommy/daddy cottontail that frequents our backyard.
This is a pic from the internet, but looks quite like our backyard bunny.....






They'll let me walk right up to them and then dash away when I get a few feet away.

They make lots of babies that run around our yard, too.
They live under the shed nextdoor.

I'll see if I can get some good pics of them next time they're out and around.


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## gentle giants (May 23, 2008)

It looks wild to me too, really. It's quite possible that it is one that was raised by humans and released, that would explain why it lets you get close. Or it might be sick, sometimes if a wild animal is sick it won't be as afraid of people as it ought to be. I once found a wild mouse in my barn that was sick, and it let me pick it up without any struggle at all, and sat on my hand washing it's face and everything.


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## bunnytoes (May 23, 2008)

I vote wild bunny also. We have a lot around here and we can get very close. They are not afraid at all. I do put fruit and veggies out for them. One once even had her babies in my flower pot right next to where I feed them. We could pet the babies for months.


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## Bassetluv (May 24, 2008)

I would say that this is a wild rabbit, even though you can get quite close to it. To me it looks like an Eastern cottontail (the shape of the head/ears). Here's a pic of a wild cottontail...looks a fair bit like your little guy, if you compare the two photos:





*
Spring wrote: *


>




I do remember many years ago being at my dad's camp in the late spring, and the wild rabbits were running around everywhere (and driving my cat nutz). What fascinated me about one little guy though, was his curiosity...my (then) husband was out back chopping wood, and when I went to the back door to tell him that dinner was ready, there was this little rabbit sitting silently just a few feet from him, and watching as Bob worked the woodpile. You'd think that the sound of the axe hitting the wood, or even his swinging action, would have scared the rabbit, but it didn't seem to bother him at all. And during the week that we were there, that little guy showed up several times, curious to see just who we were...I guess since we were on his turf. btw, it was a riot watching the wild rabbits, as they flew about the woods like little turbo-rabbits, zooming and darting and setting land speed records. It was the midst of mating season I suspect, and the guys were 'feeling their oats'. Made for great entertainment every evening!

(edited to correct quote box problems)


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## edwinf8936 (May 26, 2008)

I have seen many a wild rabbit in my yard and have seen babies grow up and move on. from looking at the picture, I would bet this is a domestic. It looks to need a good brushing since it is molting. Some domestics are colored a lot like the wild ones, but the skin and posture and body shapetend to be domestic. A full grown wild rabbit is easy to tell from the domestics after you see s few. Wild rabbits are very lean. I just saw a wild one this morning in the flowers that was about three months old. Never saw the nest even though I look for them. If you see it frequently you should be able to befriend it. True wild ones do not befriend easily.



Ed


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## juliew19673 (May 26, 2008)

Wow how fascinating all of the stories of the wild buns.. So if this turns out to be a domestic that is now feral - can you tame it back to a pet bun or do some people have the outdoor feral bun as a pet, such as happens with feral cats - you can't really "tame" them perse but you can gain their trust.. Would be curious as to others experience.. Not to hijack this thread (sorry)- but its been fun to read and got me thinking.


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## ra7751 (May 26, 2008)

Umm....you know I have to be different and so be it this time. That appears to be a Snowshoe Hare. They have some interesting colorations as they morph between their white winter coat and their mottledreddish brownsummer coat. They have unusually large back feet (like the marsh rabbit in the southeast of the US). Their toes are very long and can spread out to be a "snowshoe"....marsh rabbits do the same to navigate the swamps and bogs in which they live. Looks to be quite healthy....remember that wild rabbits do appear thin to us (as compared to our domestics)but they eat exactly as nature intended and do not have much fat on their bodies.


Randy


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## bunnytoes (May 26, 2008)

There is a girl that I met at the Rabbit Sanctuary that has a wild bunny in her house. She found it after it had some sort of accident and was missing a leg. It is very tame now and is litter box trained but will not bond with her other rabbits. She says that is the only real difference that she has noticed having it as a pet is that it has nothing to do with the other rabbits. She said that it even gets into bed with them.


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## Spring (May 31, 2008)

I think this is the same bunny, not sure.. there's a couple that are in the yard. I saw the friendly guy hanging out with another more skittish wild bunny, though I've seen a younger one around too. When the two are together, one races off where as the other is a lot more curious. I really think maybe he was raised by humans, the fear just isn't there with him/her. Which isn't a good thing I don't think :shock:.. not if he's against a predator!

Snowshoe hare? How interesting! I didn't think we had those kind around here.. I'm just used to seeing thecottontails.

Enjoying the overgrown garden.. hehe)


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## trailsend (May 31, 2008)

*ra7751 wrote: *


> Umm....you know I have to be different and so be it this time. That appears to be a Snowshoe Hare. They have some interesting colorations as they morph between their white winter coat and their mottledreddish brownsummer coat. They have unusually large back feet (like the marsh rabbit in the southeast of the US). Their toes are very long and can spread out to be a "snowshoe"....marsh rabbits do the same to navigate the swamps and bogs in which they live. Looks to be quite healthy....remember that wild rabbits do appear thin to us (as compared to our domestics)but they eat exactly as nature intended and do not have much fat on their bodies.
> 
> 
> Randy



:yeahthat:

and... How neat is that have him hanging around in your yard like that... GREAT pictures!!


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## Spring (May 31, 2008)

I know, it's awesome!I saw him again, so went out to take some pics.. 

I'm interested to see if he sticks around. He seemsrelaxedwith humans, but I don't want him too friendly with us.. but I do enjoy seeing him around. Would hate him to loose his fear and get caught by something. So I'm just going to take a few pics if I see him, and leave him at that. He's just so gorgeous!

I'm going to post the pics I just took of him when I update my blog, then keep updates on him in there . Thought he deserves a name too, so decided to call him Roloffjust for fun.. hehe.


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## Bo B Bunny (May 31, 2008)

Yes, it's a cottontail in my opinion. Look at his tiny little feet and his wide fluffy white tail. Looks like Clover on steroids...... she stayed really tiny but long - I think cause of her leg.


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## edwinf8936 (Jun 1, 2008)

From this picture I would not say it is a cotton tail, the face is too wide. It may be a mix.

ed


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## Bo B Bunny (Jun 1, 2008)

That's true but cottontails and domestic rabbits can't mix. I'll venture to say that it's the snowshoe hare like Randy says only because I have never seen one and they could be similar to the cottontail.


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## Bo B Bunny (Jun 1, 2008)

I think Randy got it!!! but are his ears big enough?

Snowshoe hare photos!


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## Spring (Jun 1, 2008)

I think so too! I was hoping I'd get to see a footsie.. and I did! 
The first two are with flash.. the last two are just natural lighting.. slight difference in coat colour


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## juliew19673 (Jun 1, 2008)

Goregeous - just gorgeous.. I agree to keepa distance, but I SO want to see more of this wild bun - but don't want to intrude on nature.. Very cool that you posted and were able to even get, these photos..


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## Bo B Bunny (Jun 1, 2008)

He'll be white in the winter! OMG I am so jealous! I love them and we don't have them here! Look at that long back foot! :hearts: Still narrow feets which I didn't think hares had..... omg can you ship him to me?  I bet he was raised by people.


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## MatherRabbit (Apr 25, 2013)

He looks just like my cottontail rescue, Gizmo. Except he is wider across the beam like the females in our yard. There are lots of wild bunnies in our neighborhood. They all look just a bit different, just like people do. Gizmo's mom had really short ears. Her litter was all mixed (ears of all lengths). I have no idea who the buck was, but I'll bet he had really long ears! Keep those wonderful
pictures coming!


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