Tonight while putting the chickens away I saw Little Bit chasing after something…
It was a little rabbit about 5 or 6 inches long and she nearly got it until Bob stepped in. I walked over to where Bob was pointing at the base of the tree and there it was, with its little head stuck into the crotch of the tree’s roots. Gently I reached down and scooped it up. Immediately it started wriggling in my hands and I held on just a bit tighter.
So furry and soft with little ears that framed its face. I looked into its eyes and saw fear. I’m sorry little one.
Nearing the fence I was just about to bend down and push it back through, when it began to scream! Apparently it could no longer contain its fear. How can such a little creature make such a big scream?
Surprised, Bob asked, “Did he make that noise?”
“Yup,” I answered.
The look of surprise on his face was priceless!
I wondered why it’d come into the yard. They hadn’t done it before. Then it hit me! It was the horses. They have eaten everything but the honeysuckle vine out back… there is not even one clover, nor one blade of grass for even the littlest of bunnies to eat.
If I have identified him correctly he’s a baby Sylvilagus floridanus or Eastern Cotton Tail Rabbit. Glad I saved him from the cat!
(Picture is borrowed today, click photo to follow link to owner!)
I hope he makes it!
Warning, The following is a bit alarming if you aren’t prepared for it!
Didn’t think a bunny makes a sound? Well, click HERE and listen to how the little guy can sound his displeasure!
*(The title is a quote taken from Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
Life on the Farmlet 
Love the title as our family has both the movie and have seen the Broadway version. Love the post because bunnies are running rampant up here in MA this spring and we are constantly “protecting” them from our lab and the next-door neighbor’s “hound”. We had one in our front yard early this evening while we were pulling weeds. They have come to trust we will not harm them. So precious!
Christine, I have only rarely seen our furry neighbors. I wish that they would come to visit me when I am pulling weeds. But, so far anyway, they do not trust me yet. Maybe it’s the cats? 😦
Lynda, I have heard rabbits scream in the desert when a coyote is about to attack. It is a sound that chills me to the bone.
Lindy, it certainly does and I hope this little bunny never has to do it again!
I have to admit that for a moment, when you wrote that the horses were eating everything, well, I was thinking you had a vicious type of hybrd monster horse living next door. I’m so glad that is not the case! I hope you will see your sweet little buddy again soon!
Ginger, the day those horses get THAT hungry… is the day we abandon the Farmlet and move back to the city! LOL! As for Little Bunny I really hope I do, because he was simply precious!
I, too, am glad you saved the bunny from the cat. Would it be on it’s own at that size? BTW – the link to the ‘scream’ didn’t work for me, athough I was totally braced for it after your caution.
Cindy, I checked the link and it immediately started up (still makes me jump even though I am expecting it!!!). Odd. I imagine that if you Google “rabbit scream” you will find it for sure…
As for the age of the bunny, these little cotton tails are only about a half to two thirds the size of my cat when full grown. So, I imagined that it was old enough to be on its own. However, the weather here has been very crazy. Too hot, too dry, then altogether too wet. I am sure it has set in motion some strange events out there in the wild kingdom.
Hi Cindy, About your question… Animal babies’ fur and feathers are usually camouflaged and it’s a pretty sure thing, when coming across a young one in the wild, to assume that Momma has left it there with strict instructions to “be still and wait here ’til I come back”.
I am going to enjoy your visits. 😀
Hello there, Just popped over from The Gardener’s Eden and had to comment on your Cottontail baby… When I was very small, my Dad found a little one about the same size as “yours” under the front step. To this day, I can still recall how its incredibly soft fur and silky ears felt and how hard it’s poor little heart was beating as I cuddled it close to my chest.
(Hoping you don’t rue the day you asked to see more of your fuzzy bunny… These days we grow about 1/3 of the lawn in clovers; which fixes nitrogen in the soil to keep the grass green and the rabbits happily out of the garden; ) Come to think of it, and Michaela would probably know for sure, but I think it might also help you break up that clay soil of yours!
Looking forward to reading more of your adventures, D
Thanks for visiting Deb! Knowing about the clover would explain quite a bit about why the little critter came into our yard! Most of our grassy areas are half to two thirds clover. I don’t think the little rabbit will return after the treatment it got from my cat though. 😦 Then again, it is probably a good thing for my vegetable garden!