Feral and stray rabbits

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Feral rabbits are domesticated rabbits that have been abandoned or escaped outdoors and in the rare case have thrived and created a colony. Feral rabbits are different than wild rabbits that belong in nature. Typically, an abandoned rabbit does not have a high chance of survival due to the lack of survival skills and camouflaging coat. When feral rabbit colonies occur in populated areas, they become a public pest and nuisance and are usually controlled by killing them all. If there is funding, then local rabbit rescues may come into the picture and try to catch and adopt out as many as they can.

Abandoning rabbits

Feral rabbits at a dump site in Nevada.

It is very cruel to abandon rabbits in the streets rather than taking them to a local shelter even with a chance of being put to sleep. Abandoning a rabbit to the wild is sentencing him a certain early death, while there is still a chance to be adopted in a shelter.

  • Domestic rabbits are not native to the Americas. They are descended from the wild European rabbit. Domesticated rabbits will be unable to breed with the local species of rabbits in the Americas and may end up fighting over territory with fatal results.
  • White and other brightly colored coats on a domestic rabbit give them no way to hide. Wild rabbits have an agouti coat that camouflage into the environment. Letting a white rabbit free is a death sentence.
  • A house rabbit does not know how to forage and does not have a warren (family group) that wild rabbits depend on. Warrens live together and have burrows (holes in the ground) that they share and use for warmth and protection. A single rabbit will not be able to build an appropriate shelter; building a burrow takes several rabbits and cannot be completed in an hour. Abandoned rabbits typically stay near where they have been left and are easy prey for cats, dogs, raccoons, and a multitude of other predators. Domestic rabbits will also not know what plants are safe to eat and where to obtain water to drink.
  • Domestic rabbits do not know how to dodge cars and trucks and can easily be run over as unsuspecting road kill.
  • A domestic rabbit let loose in an established feral colony can be killed in a fight for territory. An unspayed female rabbit can produce a litter of babies every 30 days and add to the problem. A park full of rabbits is not an idyllic place for a former pet.
  • A house rabbit can live 8+ years in a protected environment. The average wild cottontail lives only 6 months.
  • Putting an unwanted rabbit to sleep is kinder than abandoning him in the streets or outdoors. The rabbit will be terrified at being left alone outside in the wild with no caretakers and no friends. It is similar having a city person purposely abandoned on a deserted island with no prepared food, water, or survival skills and animals willing to hunt and kill you for food. A painless death is kinder than a prolonged death from starvation, disease, or attack. The rabbit will never find a friend in the wild and cannot mate with local cottontails because they are a completely different species.
  • Lastly, abandoning pets in the streets is most likely an animal cruelty offense ranging from a misdemeanor to a felony. It not kind at all to abandon any sort of pet to the streets or the wild.

A few graphic stories of domestic rabbits rescued from the streets:

Some more relevant scientific studies:

Catching a stray rabbit

Do not hesitate to contact your local rabbit rescue for volunteers to help you catch a stray domestic rabbit.

A few tips when trying to catch a stray rabbit:

  • Do not chase them unless you are trying to herd them into a specific area.
  • Set up walls with fencing, bed sheets, exercise pens, and baby gates. Use alleys and narrow spaces in between houses strategically.
  • Only set up a Havahart trap if you or a neighbor will constantly be watching it. A trapped rabbit is easy prey to the theft, fatal stress and panic, harsh elements, or predators.
  • If using a live trap, transfer the rabbit to a secure covered cage or carrier to reduce stress as soon as possible or cover the trap itself with a sheet or blanket to calm the rabbit down.
  • Banana, fennel, parsley, apple, and cilantro make good bait for rabbits.
  • Nets should only be used under experienced supervision. Bird nets with a wide soft rim and a very long handle work best. Make sure the mesh is fine enough that their limbs will not be caught in the holes. Once the rabbit is caught in the net, immediately secure the rabbit to prevent them from kicking and injuring themselves and transfer to a secure carrier.

The links below have more information on how to catch roaming stray and feral rabbits safely.

Here are some stories of how others have caught stray rabbits.

What do I do when I find a rabbit?

First, make sure that it is a domestic breed. See Wild rabbits for more details on how to distinguish a wild cottontail or hare from the domestic breed of rabbit.

To report a sighting of a lost or stray rabbit, contact your local rabbit shelter and/or rescue. You may also wish to file a report on the Abandoned Rabbits Tracking Map website for information tracking purposes.

See the section above for tips on how to catch a stray rabbit.

If you have never had a rabbit before, please take a look at our Getting started with a rabbit guide for the supplies you will need in the long term if you wish to keep them. Otherwise, please contact your nearest rabbit rescue or shelter for help and guidance. Rabbits may rarely be microchipped - you can visit a local veterinarian or shelter to try to scan for one.

You can also post a notice of a found pet on your local classifieds and put up a few local flyers to find an owner if you suspect the rabbit escaped. Realistically though, most rabbits found, especially in parks, are dumped and abandoned pets. Sites in the US where you can post found pet ads include Pawboost, Craigslist, and NextDoor among others.

In the meantime, to keep the rabbit safe in your house if you are unprepared, you can use your bathroom, bathtub, a large or extra-large dog crate, or a very large box. If there is slippery tile, put down some bed sheets or towels for traction as rabbits do not have paw pads and will slip and slide on tile and hardwood. Leave a bowl of water, and give a few handfuls of some fresh green vegetables to the rabbit. If you have no vegetables, you can hand cut a bowl full of lawn grass. If possible, make a trip to the local pet store to buy some hay. Do not feed copious amounts of carrots - these are actually treats and not a regular part of their diet.

If you have your own rabbits, please be sure to keep any new rabbits strictly quarantined to prevent transmission of diseases such as parasites, rabbit hemorrhagic disease, and myxomatosis, among many others.

This should generally go without saying, but unless you have veterinary training or have consulted with a rabbit-savvy vet beforehand, please do not self-medicate rescued rabbits, especially with over-the-counter drugs. The results can be fatal.

Extra resources

Feral rabbit overpopulation incidents

Please visit https://www.abandonedrabbits.com for the locations of abandoned rabbits colonies and areas affected by RHDV2.

United States

Canada

Megan Wilde. (2023). Beach Bunny Boondoggle: the untold story of Jericho Beach's feral rabbits in Vancouver

Australia

Experiences

Further reading

See also

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