Thread: The little bunny that moved in..

These two live in our garden. Have so far managed to avoid the dogs and are pretty brave now

Took a video of a young bunny out my front windows the other morning, as he made a couple of valiant, but clumsy attempts to mount a juvenile hare. She wasn’t having it..

Here's Lucky hard at work this morning - taking a rest under the tree outside back door..

Good to see in posts above so many hardened hunters quite at peace with wild bunnies living round the house. Yes there's a time to kill .. but also a time to just smile, and let 'em be

What a bunch of bunny lovers! Who'd have thought it?

Bunnies are cute.

Originally Posted by Chur Bay

Bunnies are cute.

....and tasty.

There is a wee one hanging around on our lawn that last couple of days, probably had it's burrow filled with water.
I showed the cat thru the kitchen window this morning, she went out and stalked it but didn't get it, I expect it (or bits of it) will turn up under the spare bed sometime soon

Like you Mudz , I am a rabbit serial killer, and just like you I think they are an amazing little animal and enjoy having them around.
They have a ton of character , a social system and entertaining to watch doing their thing. .
They other animal is a ferret, truly a marvel of evolution. It's a shame they are so destructive on our native species , I shoot them on sight but enjoy watching them move , stalk and work their way through the landscape. A natural born killer.

Good for you. As we get older our perspective changes.

There are many good reasons why we go out to hunt and kill game species. To gather the meat, help cull and control wild animal populations in our mountains/bush/farm environments, to let some of that old hunter/warrior DNA out of the closet, and simply to enjoy the beauty of the kiwi outdoors. Hunters/farmers do a great job culling/controlling invasive animal populations - pigs/deer/bunnies etc. A very important role - our team does this every shoot. Unfortunately Jacinda never understood this.

But even amongst all this killing/culling its extremely rare to find men/women who hate the target species. In fact the reverse is true. A great many hunters admire and enjoy the wild game - be it a big red stag stepping out in a clearing, a 220lb boar with 3" tusks, a bull tahr on a mountain rock, or a wallaby sitting quietly under a matagouri bush. Usually we will shoot, but sometimes ...we watch quietly for a time, and leave them. Yep - more often as you get older..

So no surprise when hardened hunter/killers chuckle when a little bunny appears on the back lawn, in the woodpile etc looking for a safe place. As the many pics/posts above attest, the same hunters are just as likely to smile some, let him be, let him have a safe haven. A bit of compassion, mercy, and a profound fondness for wildlife. No guarantees however with the bloody cats...

Originally Posted by mudgripz

So no surprise when hardened hunter/killers chuckle when a little bunny appears on the back lawn...

It's funny you say that, because if I look out a window or door and give a little laugh, the dog tears outside looking for a bunny!

It's easy to let it be when it is no challenge to shoot it.

Originally Posted by mudgripz

But even amongst all this killing/culling its extremely rare to find men/women who hate the target species.

I think that is true apart from possums. They seem to evoke visceral hatred in a lot of people, even non-hunters.

No "pest" animal is inherently evil. They didn't ask to be brought here, they are just trying to feed their families.
I'll kill them but I take no pleasure in it.
The only "pest" I hate are wasps.
I truly hate wasps.