Filthy Furry Thieves

When we first moved here to this convection oven known as the Sonoran Desert, one of the first things, other than the scenery, that caught my admiring eye was the plethora of rabbits. “Oh, they are adorable,” I said. “Aren’t we lucky to live somewhere that cute little bunnies hippity hoppity all around our yard?!”

Well, let me tell you, ladies and germs, those days are over. The Elmer Fudd in me has come out of his den. Pretty soon I am going to carry a rifle, talk with a lisp, and set up a large stew pot in the yard with a roaring wood fire blazing underneath it.

These creatures I once went all awwww over? Let me tell you; it is all a Sylvilagan act. That cute little thing they do with their nose and whiskers? Deception, that’s what it is. Don’t turn your back on them; they will destroy the bounty created from all your hard work and perseverance.

First of all, rabbits have no manners and no concept of boundaries. See this hole? One of the ruder cottontails dug it under a perfectly obvious good-fences-make-good-neighbors barrier. This is the third one I have found. Our counter attack?
Blocking the holes with rocks. We are a bunch of tree-hugging wimps but that’s all about to change.

Look at this! It was a Japanese eggplant, covered with leaves and blooms. I had planned on using its yummy produce to create my favorite Sichuan eggplant recipe that I would have posted for you, gentle readers, to share in all of its deliciousness. But no, no Japanese eggplant and no recipe. See? They are not just hurting me; they are hurting you. They are a virus spreading throughout the blogosphere.

Green beans, anyone? I went to harvest this morning and found this. I love green beans. Can anyone say favorite vegetable? Filthy furry thieves, that’s what they are.

Luckily, they haven’t found the honeydew

And haven’t bothered the muskmelon/cantaloupe.

However, I take nothing for granted anymore. I have research to do, rabbit repellent to mix, perhaps even traps to set. I’ve never eaten rabbit but there is a first time for everything. Rabbit Cassoulet, anyone? I need to replace that Sichuan Eggplant recipe with something.

Comments

[Beth T]

Oh dear. Yard Bunny is on my S*** List too, ever since he blithely hopped over the rose bushes and tried a nibble. Grrrrrr. I'm doing anti-rabbit research too, and found a site that might help you out:

http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/garden/az1237.pdf

I am culling that list and others to see what I can grow that Yard Bunny won't eat, since he's now fatter than ever after racing through my already frostbitten tulips and now my roses. Hopefully some of that stuff will grow in Michigan!

[Michelle]

I don't know, I'm thinking rabbits might be preferrable to the white-tailed deer we deal with here. Rabbits go under; deer go over and through...

[Beth in WI]

My mother always sprinkled dried blood at the borders. Don't look at me like that, she got it in bags. I think Ortho makes it. Also try brushing your dogs and putting their fur on the fences. If they think they might get eaten by dogs, maybe they will slow down enough to make good rifle targets. Good luck!

[Kathy]

Dried blood works, but can attract coyotes. Do you have actual bunnies or those darned jackrabbits? Up here, we bury the bottom of the fencing down at least 6 inches to prevent any varmint from digging under. That was after the year Ralph grew his prize winning cantalopes...the evening before, we'd go out to check to see which one to pick in the morning for breakfast. Sure enough, as soon as we got to the garden we'd see that particular one rolled off the vine and a big bite taken out of it. Even though there was a hot-wire around the garden, this continued to happen. It was raccoons! The sneaky little bastards would climb on a rock and jump over the fence and nab the perfect melon.
I'd be makin' Hassenpfeffer 'bout now. ;-)

[Julie]

Oh, can I relate to this blog! They have been digging up things in the yard and eating the green parts and leaving the roots to die in the blazing sun. They are desert cottontails and have slightly longer ears than regular cottontails but aren't nearly as big as the jackrabbits. Those dudes can travel. These sit and stare at you when you yell at them. I almost hit one with a rock the other day. Guess we will try and bury the fence part way when we put it up. These rabbits are horrid but so are the antelope squirrels and the cows who roam on the open range that we live in out here. Going to look at the link from the U of A. Thanks!