Livin' the life...

This little rabbit has more than tripled in size in just 2 weeks and is certainly living a life of privilege - born in the greenhouse completely protected from any predators and in a burrow made out of food. Spoiled by living in a literal "all you can eat and drink buffet", it should be noted that in the wild desert cottontails rarely drink, and free water does not appear to be a requirement for either their survival or reproduction. They are drawn to moist areas because of succulent vegetation and morning dew, but in the desert without any rain for months at a time (or a provided water bowl), they are sustained simply by whatever moisture content is in the vegetation they eat. 69,78,37,0,B

New arrival...

First time spotting what was in the nest - a single baby bunny (it was only 24° outside at the time of this video). Litters can consist of from one - up to - twelve "kittens". Based on when the nest was built and the size of this baby, I am guessing it is 1 to 2 weeks old. Luckily this little cottontail survived some brutally cold temperatures over the past couple of days - mostly on its own. Rabbit moms bury their young in a nest to keep them warm and protected and only visit to feed their young once or twice a day. Since baby rabbits don't produce any distinct smells, the mother stays far away from the nest for the majority of the time to avoid leading predators there. Cottontails are prolific animals that have multiple litters in a year because few of the resulting offspring survive to adulthood. Those that do grow very quickly and are full grown adults at three months. 50,68,24,0,B

lost a friendly bunny...

 

...probably to a coyote

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Greenhouse Guardian...

 

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new bunny routine...

Lately in the early evening, the same bunny has been hanging around near my fridge on the porch.  He knows where the carrots are... 64,75,57,0,B

Nesting...

 

A bunny has started creating a burrow in the greenhouse where I store the hay and alfalfa.  Perhaps one of them is expecting...  60,65,52,0,B

watering a bunny...

 

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thirsty bunny...

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the ramp bunny...

This is Notchi (notch in his ear). When it is really hot out, he spends most of the day under the ramp to my porch. He and George are the only two bunnies here (out of about 60) that I recognize well enough to name.  Video coming Monday... 92,99,77,0,B

new kid on the block...

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look what the cat dragged in...

A neighbor on the ranch brought in a baby bunny that was captured but not killed by her cousin's cat.  I think this is just the place to rehabilitate him.  60,72,47,0,B

warm bunny

Cloudy and cool this morning so I ran the generator for a little while to bump up the batteries.  Lately I have noticed one TFL bunny has grown rather fond of the heat put off by the generator. He hunkered down as soon as I started it up.  69.72,59,0,B

processed food

The newest bunny learned about rabbit chow and range cubes today.  82,89,59,0,B

the disgruntled bunny

Finally got around to putting some hardware cloth over the lower openings on the greenhouse doors...mainly to keep the roosters out.  Discovered one of the bunnies wanted to get in there too.  She clawed away at it for a few minutes then just sat there looking defeated.  82,90,57,0,B

New Field Lab Bunny: 2016 Edition

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bunny buddy

Finally got a bunny to accept some hand feeding.  Guess I'm not so threatening from a wheelchair.
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spiders'n'bunnies'n'rain...oh my

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Bunny Habitat

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Bunday

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food+shade=rabbitat

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