Baby rabbit in cat's den!

[Tobi]

This is one of my adventures today!

When I went in to feed Sally-cat this lunchtime, I heard a strange rustling from a cardboard storage box underneath the unit. Sally seemed to be showing no interest in it. The rustling came again. It was obviously a tiny creature in there!

It was dark in that corner, and I wasn't sure what it was....if it had been a mouse or rat, just putting my bare hand in might have caused it to bite me. Even a little bat would bite. I didn't have gloves.

Eventually, by gently poking about I could feel a warm body and fur. Its tail was sticking up and it definitely looked like a bunny's tail.

So I scooped it up and it didn't seem too upset by that. The little thing was only about 5 inches long. I examined it but it didn't seem to have any injuries.

So I carried it outside to a shed/summerhouse, where the door is slightly open, but no way wide enough for a cat to get in. The little rabbit wriggled a bit and seemed healthy. I let it go in the summerhouse (it is horrible weather outside -wind and rain) It seemed fine, and hopped about a little. That showed me it was okay with no damage. It can easily get out but cats can't get in! Hope it will be okay when it comes out....

It appears Sally must have carried it in. She must have done it quite gently not to cause any damage. Perhaps she treated it like a kitten? Goodness knows -but the baby is okay. I hope it finds its way back to its mama!

Update....tonight 9pm, after Sally cat had eaten and played rough games with golf balls in tunnels....she had a wash, then went to investigate the box. She obviously remembered (through no prompting of mine!) where she had left the rabbit this morning. It wasn't there of course, and she didn't seem too bothered by that.

[Catherine]

What an odd thing for Sally to have done. She picked up a random baby rabbit. I wonder where it was when she found it.
I am sure its mother is looking for it so hopefully they will be reunited. It seems an odd time of the year for a baby rabbit. Would it be one from last summer?

[Tobi]

That's what I was thinking Catherine. That was a definite baby. If it had been born last summer it would be a young adult by now. The one at Sally's was a wee baby. Old enough to look after itself and graze by the look of it....but certainly not an adult. The wild rabbits round here are normal size when they are grown. This one was 4-5 inches long.
Somehow that little one was born in the winter or at least very late Autumn. I can't guess its age but I imagine it was 3 months old if that.

I don't wish to project onto Sally what her intent was...but she treated it incredibly gently. My feeling was she carried it by the scruff of the neck (as cats carry kittens) She is a serial killer, by nature too! lol

[LPC]

Tobi and Catherine, to answer your question about the baby rabbit being born in late autumn:
"The breeding season for most rabbits lasts around 9 months, starting January/February to October" -
from http://www.rabbitmatters.com/wildrabbits.html

Tobi, what an exciting experience with the baby rabbit! It reminds me of how a grey rabbit hopped into one of the park lodges of Richmond Park, stayed there hopping around, and was adopted by my mother, who worked there. He became her family pet, called "Bun Bun". He lived in the house and was almost house trained, doing his business on newspaper (well, most of the time!). He was a terror for chewing electrical cables, though, haha!

Has the baby bunny gone now, Tobi? The "rough games with golf balls in tunnels" with Sally sounds like fun!

[Tobi]

I am not sure what has happened to the little rabbit but I am sensing that he is no longer in the summerhouse, so think he has got out. I daren't force the door open for me to get in and check out. The door is unstable (tied with a rope) The summerhouse is still standing and looks okay from a distance, but is in bad repair. If I force it to get through I will not be able to shut it again. Cat will certainly be able to get through then!

I didn't want to interfere too much with him. I just let him free in the opening, and hoped he would find his way to wherever he wanted to go, without traumatising him any more. I haven't seen him since. But the gardens there are so huge and a large area semi-wild, so he had plenty of places to escape to.

Golf balls in tunnels! That is Sally's favourite game. I built tunnels with small cardboard boxes and duct tape. She bashes golf balls in one end, and races to the other end to bash them back again (or I send them back through the tunnel sometimes) Her room is untidy because of all those tunnels. But she doesn't care!

[Catherine]

Thank-you for the link. I didn't realize that rabbits could be born that late in the year.
I have heard of quite a few pet rabbits called BunBun. It is a perfect name. I didn't know a wild rabbit would tame like that.

I suppose the little guy has a den somewhere. Would he still be with his mother? Maybe he went into Sally's room to get warm. You are having a damp cold winter. Maybe Sally saw him outside looking cold and some instinct took over.

I am sure he headed for home after you put him  outside. We will never know, but we can hope for the best.

Sally does have an amazing room. She as her different beds and a heater. She has all the food and water she needs.
Now it turns out she has amazing toys. Golf balls in tunnels sounds like a fun toy. Sally's room isn't untidy, it is just well lived in.

[Tobi]

No...Sally carried him into that box. It is quite an obstacle course to get to it (over a toolbox, a huge plastic bag full of stuff being stored, and the box is high-sided. He'd never have got in on his own. But Sally finds it easy to get up there.

Whether she was treating him like a kitten....or whether she intended to eat him later....we shall never know!  But I don't think she's eaten him as there is no evidence anywhere.

Elfin would be a nice name   But I don't think he's into all that 'pet' stuff. My guess was he waited for the rain to stop, then found his Mama.

[Catherine]

Cats have a strong mothering instinct. They just sometimes randomly pick up something and treat it like a kitten. At least this was a baby. I have never heard of a cat bringing home live food for later. It seems very much an un-catlike action.  It des seem very much like a cat to pick up a baby and carry it home. She probably would have tried to mother it somehow. I wonder how long it was there before you found it?

If it couldn't find its own mother I am sure other rabbits would take it in. There must have been a number of rabbit dens around the area. There would still be food around. We will hope for the best.

[LPC]

I wouldn't worry, Tobi. Baby rabbits cease to rely on their mothers for food at a very young age. The following page may help:
https://www.reference.com/pets-animals/l...73e49e674b

I'm sure that he is fine after his little adventure with Sally and hopping about a conservatory!

[Catherine]

Imagine the stories he will tell the other rabbits when he is older.

Rabbits can find shelter anywhere and there would be lots of food. I know rabbits can eat bark and leaves and anything else that is around.

I wonder what sally thinks.