Cotton Tails

[richhodg66]

We have a lot of them in the yard this year. Two in particular are regulars in our back yard and come very close to the patio glass door (gets the indoor cats real excited, but no harm done to anybody). Anyway, one of them is clearly a baby, at least only half grown, much smaller than the others we see. The other one has seemed to be in overwatch of the youngster and will even stand way up on its hind legs to look around for the young one.

How long do mother cotton tails continue to take care of their litters? I would have figured that by the time they are weaned and able to make it on their own, which this little guy appears to be, that relationship would stop.

[Mk42gunner]

I think it kind of depends on the area, by which I mean the available food supply. If they are eating out of your yard, that tells me they have found a good food supply and will probably stay close. You may be enabling a multi-generation welfare society.

I skimmed through an article about cottontails in an older Missouri Conservationist magazine at the Doctor's office today, it said gestation was 26-30 days, and breeding season runs from ~March to September or October. With a home range of from 1½ to 5 acres, but poor food areas might range to 15 acres.

Realistically, I don't think momma rabbits run the young off; most get taken by just about any predator before humans get a chance at them.

Robert

[Hickory]

Do you live in town?
If not send me a PM and I'll let you know how to deal with them.

[Hogtamer]

Old meany hawks will deal with them if they make a habit of staying in the open.

[smokeywolf]

MMM, MMM! Timber's (my avatar) favorite food.

[richhodg66]

We live out in the sticks, but the house in town had a lot too. I never have cared mush for the way they taste, squirrels are better and more fun to hunt. They aren't causing a problem, so I just let them be, besides, if the coyotes have them to chase, maybe they won't chase my outside cat.

Now that you mention it, I haven't seen either of them today, I wonder if some predator got them?

[trebor44]

Old meany hawks will deal with them if they make a habit of staying in the open.

We are having a bumper crop of cottontails this years and the Red tails are doing their best to thin them out. It use to be rare to see one or two on occasion but this year we have two living and grazing in our back yard. Our Arborvitae are showing a browse line and we get visitations from a neighbors large grey cat. I think the demise of the feral cats has helped the bunnies to survive! However, bunny season does open Aug. 30th. Note: they prefer grass to carrots and lettuce! Our south bunny loves the corn and seeds we put out for the quail and doves.

[smokeywolf]

In SoCal there's only about 3 months out of the year, that are cold enough to take them without having to worry about worms. Back in the late '70s-early '80s, I used to take them with bow & arrow or pellet gun. Check the liver for Tularemia.

Grilled on a hibachi and basted with lemon/pepper-garlic-butter.

[mold maker]

My family says they make the best "Chicken" pie ever.

[richhodg66]

Well, the little fella is outside the door, maybe 18 feet from where I sit, grazing happily, so he's OK. Haven't seen mama yet.

[Hickory]

OK, let me ask this question, do you like sweet & sour chicken on rice?

When I moved into my house nearly 40 years ago I had a bunch of rabbit that had to go.
This is what I did. In the fall when the apples came on, I bought 5 bushel of apples.
Every night I'd put 2-3 apples out in the driveway. This was the best to get shots off for me from the house without making much noise. I didn't want to frighten them opening the window.
The rabbits took the bait the first night. The next night I increased the apples to 5, the following morning they were gone also. After a week or so I reached the saturation point of 18 apples, at that point I left the back porch light on before dark and turned it off in the morning.
A few nights later, I'd open the window while the bunnies were feeding and shoot off several rounds.
This scared about half of the 20 or so rabbits. But in no time at all they were back. 5-6 nights of conditioning they were ready for the freezer.
The next night my Ruger 10-22 with a 25 round accounted for 17 cottontails.
When an Animal eats certain food the meat will take on a certain taste, rabbits that eat apples will have a sweet taste to the meat.
I quartered them and boiled them until the meat came off the bone. Froze them up in portions that would make the right amount for sweet & sour chicken with rice. After all, it tasted like chicken.

[richhodg66]

I don't think we have nearly that many. We have an 18 acre place that's mostly woods out in the country, so these are wary and wild. The season on them here runs year round, never closes, but it's the wrong time of the year to eat them. Maybe this Winter.

[varmintpopper]

I've always thought they tasted Like spotted Owl.

Good Shooting

Lindy

[bedbugbilly]

I haven't seen too many cottontails where we are this year yet (which is in the country on the farm). I used to hunt them many years ago but now, I really enjoy seeing them out in the yard . . . especially with young ones. I'd rather have a bunch of cottontails around than the woodchucks and pesky coons. LOL

[Blackwater]

I wish we had more around here! Coyotes and who knows what all else have pared their numbers down rather severely in my neck of the woods, and I miss seeing them more. The explosion of the coyote population has changed a lot of things here. One factor, I believe, is the changes in farming practices. We no longer have the fence rows like we used to, which is one of the major reasons we no longer have many bob white quail, too. But the rabbits miss them greatly too, I'm sure. Great cover from those hawks Hogtamer spoke of.

If you've ever seen a redtailed or other hawk take a rabbit, or squirrel, you'd really be amazed at how efficient and vicious they really are. It's an amazing sight.

[richhodg66]

I had a hawk try to take a squirrel out of a tree I was sitting in deer hunting once. The squirrel had been ten feet or so above me annoying me with all the noise he was making. I must have been better camouflaged than I thought, because one swooped into the tree top and missed him, but it sure made a commotion, the squirrel ran down the trunk and stopped and chattered a blue streak right next to me. Once I got my composure back a little, I thought what a cool experience it was. Doubt I'll ever have another like that again.

The wife and I kind of like watching the bunnies too. Until and unless they become a problem, I think I'll just leave them be.

[Mad Jack]

In SoCal there's only about 3 months out of the year, that are cold enough to take them without having to worry about worms. Back in the late '70s-early '80s, I used to take them with bow & arrow or pellet gun. Check the liver for Tularemia.

Grilled on a hibachi and basted with lemon/pepper-garlic-butter.

I grew up in the Antelope Valley. I shot them, cotton tails, year round any only found worms in a few of them. Jack rabbits on the other hand are dirty for the most part unless harvested in the winter. Nothing like rabbit hunting in the snow.

[Mad Jack]

OK, let me ask this question, do you like sweet & sour chicken on rice?

When I moved into my house nearly 40 years ago I had a bunch of rabbit that had to go.
This is what I did. In the fall when the apples came on, I bought 5 bushel of apples.
Every night I'd put 2-3 apples out in the driveway. This was the best to get shots off for me from the house without making much noise. I didn't want to frighten them opening the window.
The rabbits took the bait the first night. The next night I increased the apples to 5, the following morning they were gone also. After a week or so I reached the saturation point of 18 apples, at that point I left the back porch light on before dark and turned it off in the morning.
A few nights later, I'd open the window while the bunnies were feeding and shoot off several rounds.
This scared about half of the 20 or so rabbits. But in no time at all they were back. 5-6 nights of conditioning they were ready for the freezer.
The next night my Ruger 10-22 with a 25 round accounted for 17 cottontails.
When an Animal eats certain food the meat will take on a certain taste, rabbits that eat apples will have a sweet taste to the meat.
I quartered them and boiled them until the meat came off the bone. Froze them up in portions that would make the right amount for sweet & sour chicken with rice. After all, it tasted like chicken.

Love it. I did a similar thing with Quail in our grapes.

I love cotton tail rabbits quartered and cooked like fried chicken. Tasty.

[MrWolf]

...

If you've ever seen a redtailed or other hawk take a rabbit, or squirrel, you'd really be amazed at how efficient and vicious they really are. It's an amazing sight.

We were walking around our community lake (finger lake about 2.3 miles) and a hawk came straight down and hit a squirrel in the tree not 10' from us. Like an explosion and the hawk got him. Amazing how strong they are and he was on the side of the tree as if attached.