A wild rabbit has moved into my garden… WWYD?

[ReeseWitherfork]

About a month ago a wild rabbit moved into my garden. She’s a happy little thing, comes out in the mornings and evenings as soon as the kids have come inside. Hides behind the shed during the day. The RSPCA website said to leave alone. My vet friend said there was no harm putting the odd lettuce leaf down. Now the weather is super hot, and there are thunderstorms on the horizon, does anyone have any insight into things I should be doing? I’m torn between wanting to leave her to it with having some compassion for a lost rabbit and helping her out with some water. I’ve grown quite attached! There was a fox sat on the lawn the other day and my husband even started panicking about her.

Oh. I was going to offer a recipe.

Is it definitely wild, not a lost pet? Rabbits prefer to live with pairs or groups so it's odd for a wild one to strike out on its own.

There's no nutritional value in lettuce (for a rabbit) so I'm very surprised a vet would suggest that. Put out water in a bowl, especially in this weather. If the rabbit is eating lots of grass then its diet is probably pretty good, but you could provide a tablespoon of dried food (nuggets, not muesli. Science Selective is good). Unlimited grass or hay is essential.

You could make a small gap in the shed so it can get in, then gradually make it its own space in there.

If it's catchable, you could take it to the vets for vaccinations (approx £60). If it's tame enough, you could get it neutered. (This is very important for females as 80% get womb cancer within five years otherwise.) Obviously she would be vulnerable whilst she was recovering hence she would need to be tame enough for you to contain her (in shed, perhaps) for 7-10 days.

If its a wild rabbit why do you need to do anything. DisplayPurposesOnly subordinate doe rabbits make strike out on thier own to have a litter, to provide protection from higher ranking rabbits.
It was on springwatch once. Sadly in that case a crow got the babies.

Is it definitely a wild rabbit if living alone?

I didn’t know that @Zwellers, are there any signs to look out for with regard to incoming baby rabbits? Or anything specific advice if that is the case?

99% sure she’s wild. Our house backs onto some fields. There’s a million of these little grey ones in the second field over so I assumed she’d got lost.

It might not have been lettuce @DisplayPurposesOnly, I’m not sure specifically what she said. She’s definitely eating lots of grass, some evenings she’s out grazing for hours on end quite happily.

ReeseWitherfork - i wouldn't poke in your shed to much in case there is a nest. It's normal for a rabbit to hide young kits and only come back to feed them, as that keeps them safer from predators. Given there are other rabbits in the next field I'd bet its traveling back and forth. I would just leave well alone.
Disclaimer above applies only if definitely a wild rabbit.

subordinate doe rabbits make strike out on thier own to have a litter, to provide protection from higher ranking rabbits.
It was on springwatch once

Ohhhh, interesting! Obviously my experience is only with domestic rabbits.

If definitely wild, then leave it alone apart from putting out water. Dont put out veg as really all it needs is available to it (and you could do harm, as veg will distract it from eating grass and hay/grass must be the bulk of a rabbit's diet). I expect it'll dig itself a burrow under your shed.

If she has babies, you won't know until you see them. If you do come across them, do not handle them unless an absolute emergency as she will abandon them (or possibly eat them).

It's a trap! Do not make eye contact! Never make eye contact. We ended up with a mother hare having her litter in the field front of us and unfortunately she managed to time it to coincide with barley machinery time. Very long story short I'm now the proud custodian (not owner because he owns me) of Argyll the leveret. He hasn't read the manual and therefore doesn't seem to realise he's not supposed to be affectionate, supposed to eat branches and gorse as well as the tasty stuff and shock horror go outside occasionally! He's also incredibly smart, cute as a button and knows how to use it and has cost me countless hours sleep trying to keep him alive for the last 7 weeks

This is clearly the beginning of a hare-themed version of Watership Down! Tell us more about Argyll the leveret?

@Objectionhearsayspeculation oh we’re in deep over here. She has a name now. We were cool and casual at first, but we’re a month in now. DH saw her on the driveway a few nights back when he arrived home at 2am and then didn’t see for a day or so and there was mild panic. We don’t want to get attached… but damn she’s cute.

We’ve not interfered so far. I’m just nervous about how hot it is (I’m down on the south coast and it’s about 50 degrees at the moment*). And storms are forecast! I don’t think she’s actually in the shed, just living underneath it. There’s a ditch just behind it so she’s probably going to suffer if the rain does pour down.

*it feels like 50, it might not actually be

Lucky you , we had a Belgian hare years ago and he was way more intelligent than any other rabbit I’ve owned

@ReeseWitherfork it's impossible to resist! We have cooling mats for Argyll but he refuses to lie on them and instead uses them like a horizontal slide, he takes a run and then skid's right along then squeaks and binkys. Not quite helpful for cooling him down but seems to entertain him, eejit that he is! We also put some pipes down and some mud around one edge in an effort to make a cooler place to hide in which he does like, he also uses it to ambush the cat though

Put our water nothing else. Rabbits are prey animals with prolific reproduction and are regulated by predators and food availability - putting out extra food and protecting her will encourage more than the land can naturally sustain

@Objectionhearsayspeculation we need to see a video of this!

Why do these things never happen to me 😭

"I’m just nervous about how hot it is "

Remember they are native to Spain and Portugal, and Australia is full of them.

@Mooshroo its not good, it’s like torture… we’ve become very attached to this tiny little thing that might abandon us (or get eaten by the foxes) at any moment. Luckily DH and I are way more attached than DC.

We used to have lots of wild rabbits but this year we have wild stoats whose main source of dinner is baby rabbit apparently.

And I know the ones in the wild are fine and adapt to the heat. I guess my nerves come from the fact that this one has ended up quite far from its natural habitat. I mean, I really have no idea how far wild rabbits roam but we don’t even see them in the fields neighbouring the house, they seem to stick to the next one over where there’s lots of plants and flowers and lots of little streams etc.

This woman can give you some tips

@Objectionhearsayspeculation please can we have a photo of Argyll?

Here's some of Argyll excuse the one of my pjs but he genuinely puts himself in the shape of a baby for cuddles, I've had pet rabbits before and none were as affectionate as he is (or as mad!)

I'm so jealous. As pp's have said leave well alone, she will survive very happily without interference.

He's adorable @Objectionhearsayspeculation 💖

OMG at Argyll the leveret. 🐇🥕