Backyard Baby Cottontail Experience

The discovery of a baby cottontail rabbit in our backyard over the weekend turned me into a rehab "client" instead of an employee of Lake Erie Nature & Science. As Community Relations Coordinator for the Center, I have basic backyard wildlife knowledge, but not enough to know exactly what to do when one of our Golden Retrievers presented us with a tiny baby bunny, eyes still closed. We placed the little animal on some yard greens in a bowl, resisted the urge to rush the creature right to rehab and went inside to do what we advise anyone in this situation to do-- call first!

Since there was barely a scratch on the bunny, I was pretty sure Rehabilitation Specialist Amy LeMonds would encourage me to try to put the baby back in its nest, but I wasn't sure what to look for. Amy advised us that cottontails nest right on the ground, covering a divot with dried grass and gray rabbit chest hair, often along a shrub line. A quick check of the shrubs and hosta where my dogs had been sniffing turned up the nest, with no siblings around. Amy also advised that the mother only returns to her nest at dusk and dawn to quickly feed the babies. During the day, Amy suggested we place a laundry basket over the nest and weight it down (with bricks, etc.) to keep the dogs from disturbing the baby's home again.

So, our fingers are crossed for the lone baby bunny whose mom unwittingly picked Golden Retriever territory for a nest. We resisted the urge to believe that we might offer it a better chance by attempting to hand raise it. In fact, baby cottontails are NOT like domestic rabbits and they have a poor survival rate in captivity. We also understand that in Nature, wild cottontails produce many young because they are so vulnerable in the nest, but our family now feels partly responsible for this little one and we're hoping for the best!

If you have questions about wildlife babies or adults in your backyard, you, too can call the experts at our Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Program 440-871-2900 ext. 204.

-Shawn Smith Salamone, Community Relations Coordinator