Something has been breaking into our (well, mostly my wife’s) garden. It ate what was going to be the first tomato of the season. Assumption is a rabbit, since
[LIST=A]
[li]There are a lot of them around[/li][li]the fencing was up and the tomato in question was too far in to be reached by a deer (of which there are also a lot) without knocking it down [/li][/LIST]
So tantrum was pitched, imprecations against bunnies uttered, requests for me to figure out how to rabbit proof the garden made (up to and including land mines that could blow their not so lucky feet off).
The fencing in question is about 5 feet tall, and plastic chicken wire looking, with about 1-inch squares.
Last night, I am called to the garden because she thinks a bird is tangled in the fence. Turns out to be a little baby/toddler bunny. “Kill the wabbit” becomes “save the bunny” (those little suckers are cute).
Don gloves, grasp the little fellow. He screams loudly - that is an impressive sound. Freed his leg, but he was still stuck somehow I couldn’t see. Wife gets a scissors, I cut him free of the fence, and see he somehow stuck his head into a fence square. I couldn’t hold him and cut that safely, so my wife had to.
Put the little fellow down (outside the fence) and he scampered off, apparently no worse for the wear. We think we saw mom/dad leave with him.
Adorable cute little babbie wabbits will quickly be producing babies of their own. With alarming proficiency. There are humane traps. I prefer a 22 rifle, and a dead eye. I am usually on the side of all animals and I plant extra peas in the pea patch for deer, so at least I get my share. Rabbits and deer will clean you out in one good night. I have had deer eat my rose bushes down to sticks
Do you have raccoons in your area? I used to live in a place where the 'coons would make overnight beelines for my newly ripened tomatoes, before I could get to them.
Went out today and found the first tomato just turning red, and then look on the other side and it’s half eaten. :mad:
That was my “go-to” as well. But believe it or not, I’m even more deadly with just a measly BB gun! And ammo is cheaper and no report to alarm the neighbors at 7am. I was skeptical at first, but, damn, that thing takes them out!
Still need the .22 for Jacks, but the Destroyers of Gardens are driven before me (to the lamentations of their women) with just a lil old BB gun. Last week was especially good.
Oh, and Since it’s quiet, you get to hear the hollow, wet “Pop” when you score a hit!
Gato, ew! Don’t want to hear that pop. I have no neighbors. And…I make Mr.Wrekker pick up the dead bodies. Just ew. I don’t mind rabbit murder but dealing with those poor dead bodies is more than I can do. And I damn sure ain’t cooking them!
We have problems with squirrels. I use window screening as fencing material. It’s lightweight, easy to cut and critters can’t stick their heads, legs, or mouths through it.
I have two tomato plants in pots - one on the front deck, and one on the back. Something was picking and partially eating tomatoes in the night. I set up a game camera to find out what it was, and discovered a rat raiding my plants.
I set out rat traps last night, and nailed one. I’m thinking it was just one rat doing both plants.
Yesterday, my dobe Victor brought me a sweet little bunny the size of a baseball. He was very sad, as apparently the batteries had run out. I couldn’t fix it, but gave it a very respectful send-off in the garbage can.
