You found an orphaned wild rabbit, or you caught one of those that were damaging your garden including nibbling some of the leafy greens they love or causing havoc on your landscaping plants and you are not certain if you should domesticate it or not.
You do not want to even go near it since you are afraid it might bite or attack you. Here is a little more you should know about untamed bunnies.
Do wild rabbits bite?
Yes. Wild rabbits bite. Just like domestic ones, anything that may scare or threaten them will make them be aggressive. Although even domestic rabbit aggression does occur, the domestic ones are a lot more docile, gentle and friendly.
Therefore, if you try to catch them, they will “defend themselves by biting and kicking with their hind feet, growling and also emit a high-pitched scream”.[1] However, will in the wild, they will not naturally attack or bite you unless they feel trapped. Instead, they will tend to run away. However, baby ones are unlikely to bite you too.
Besides biting, these bunnies will always attempt to escape since they are not naturally used to being kept captive. While escaping, they can scratch and nip you.
What about adopting them?
If you find orphaned or abandoned wild baby rabbits, our best advice is to look around to see if you can find their nest. Rescuing them may sound a good idea. However, the “best chance for survival of a wild baby rabbit is to leave it in its nest.” [2]
There are high chances that their mother is still alive, and she will come looking for them to breastfeed them and not finding them will make her sad and she will try looking for her kits everywhere.
Also, avoid also disturbing their nest and in case you already did that, try to remake it. Only contact your local animal control or humane center if you are certain their mother is dead. Also, consider calling a vet in case it is injured. This applies to any orphaned and injured wild animal.
Finally, after touching them, we recommend you wash your hands with anti-bacterial soap, even if “wild rabbits do not carry many diseases that are transmittable to humans.” [2]
Why not adopt them?
Feral rabbits, unlike domestic, have slightly a different diet requirement and it needs someone who knows how to care for them.
Secondly, if you mix them with your house bunnies, they may transmit some diseases. Most domesticated ones are often well taken care of including their health care. In some areas, they are vaccinated against myxomatosis and viral hemorrhagic disease in some countries like the UK.
Finally, since they are more active and jumpier, the typical rabbit hutch or cage size may not suit them. You will need a larger one.
Conclusion
Unlike domestic bunnies, those in the wild might require an experienced wildlife rehabilitator to take care of them. Also, most states do not permit keeping a wild animal at your home unless you are a wildlife rehabilitation center.
Anonymous
we found a rabbit nest while mowing and without realizing they were rabbits,we started touching them and then one of us looked them up and we had spare supplies from raising kittens so we fed them after reading after being dinked around with momma doesnt come back so now we have 8 kits they havent opened their eyes yet. any advice?