We returned from vacation this week to find that our backyard has become a wildlife sanctuary...quite against our will. I guess our week-long absence has encouraged local animals to think of our yard as a refuge from humankind....a peaceful oasis in the midst of the city's hustle and bustle. Unfortunately for them, we are home...and my children are anything but peaceful.
We discovered yesterday that a rabbit is nesting right smack dab in the middle of our backyard. Ruanita and the kids and I went out late yesterday afternoon to water Ruanita's tomatoes...which have grown at a freakish rate in our absence, by the way. When we stepped outside, there were two rabbits in the yard. They quickly hopped away. However, when they left, Lucas discovered a strange configuration in the middle of the backyard where the rabbits had been standing. It was a small shallow burrow dug in the ground and covered with grass and fur. Apparently, one of the rabbits was in the midst of building a nest. She quickly reappeared and continued with her nest-building task. We sat on the porch for almost an hour watching her. The kids were fascinated. She was a dedicated worker. Over and over, she retreated to the neighbor's yard, only to return a few minutes later with a mouth full of long blades of grass. Apparently, the grass in our yard was not good enough. She would pat the grass down into the nest and then hop back for some more. She seemed to be oblivious to our presence...intent on building her nest. At this point, the nest is empty. The rabbit did not look pregnant, but wild rabbits tend to be thin anyway....at least the ones who frequent our yard. I suspect she will be giving birth soon....and our yard will be her labor and delivery room.
I am a big proponent of nature sanctuaries. I believe wild animals need space to be wild....unencumbered by humanity's poisonous throngs. That being said, however...do they have to be unencumbered in MY backyard?? Next weekend, we are having a big birthday party for the twins and a GLBT Pride barbecue in our backyard. My yard will be overrun by kids, kids, and more kids. Not to mention clumsy, beer-addled adults. While the kids were fascinated by the nesting rabbit, I wouldn't exactly say that my children are conducive to a peaceful nesting environment. As a matter of fact, they are wild hoodlums most of the time. I do not trust them to be gentle with one another....must less a nest of helpless, blind, baby bunnies.
I suggested that we rid our yard of the nest before the mother rabbit has her babies in it. I thought it was the most humane way to handle the situation, rather than subjecting poor, innocent baby bunnies to the wrath of the Pierce-Ralph children. My kids, however, vehemently opposed that plan. I tried to garner the support of Ruanita....my life partner and the person who supposedly has my back at all times. I suggested that she simply mow over the nest (after making certain no babies were in it, of course) when she mows the grass this weekend. She responded by saying that she would a mow a circle around the nest when she mows the rest of the grass and that I could mow over the nest if I chose to do so. Nice. So....unless I can muster the cold-hearted ability to mow down a momma rabbit's hard-earned nesting space (I was counting on Ruanita to be the heartless one), I guess we will have to live with it. The only thing I can think of is to put a string barrier up around the nest to keep the wild kids from inadvertently stomping on it and to keep the wild animals safe and snug inside. I wonder how long rabbits nest? I think I need to do some research. Hmmm....add it to my ever-growing to-do list....
We discovered yesterday that a rabbit is nesting right smack dab in the middle of our backyard. Ruanita and the kids and I went out late yesterday afternoon to water Ruanita's tomatoes...which have grown at a freakish rate in our absence, by the way. When we stepped outside, there were two rabbits in the yard. They quickly hopped away. However, when they left, Lucas discovered a strange configuration in the middle of the backyard where the rabbits had been standing. It was a small shallow burrow dug in the ground and covered with grass and fur. Apparently, one of the rabbits was in the midst of building a nest. She quickly reappeared and continued with her nest-building task. We sat on the porch for almost an hour watching her. The kids were fascinated. She was a dedicated worker. Over and over, she retreated to the neighbor's yard, only to return a few minutes later with a mouth full of long blades of grass. Apparently, the grass in our yard was not good enough. She would pat the grass down into the nest and then hop back for some more. She seemed to be oblivious to our presence...intent on building her nest. At this point, the nest is empty. The rabbit did not look pregnant, but wild rabbits tend to be thin anyway....at least the ones who frequent our yard. I suspect she will be giving birth soon....and our yard will be her labor and delivery room.
I am a big proponent of nature sanctuaries. I believe wild animals need space to be wild....unencumbered by humanity's poisonous throngs. That being said, however...do they have to be unencumbered in MY backyard?? Next weekend, we are having a big birthday party for the twins and a GLBT Pride barbecue in our backyard. My yard will be overrun by kids, kids, and more kids. Not to mention clumsy, beer-addled adults. While the kids were fascinated by the nesting rabbit, I wouldn't exactly say that my children are conducive to a peaceful nesting environment. As a matter of fact, they are wild hoodlums most of the time. I do not trust them to be gentle with one another....must less a nest of helpless, blind, baby bunnies.
I suggested that we rid our yard of the nest before the mother rabbit has her babies in it. I thought it was the most humane way to handle the situation, rather than subjecting poor, innocent baby bunnies to the wrath of the Pierce-Ralph children. My kids, however, vehemently opposed that plan. I tried to garner the support of Ruanita....my life partner and the person who supposedly has my back at all times. I suggested that she simply mow over the nest (after making certain no babies were in it, of course) when she mows the grass this weekend. She responded by saying that she would a mow a circle around the nest when she mows the rest of the grass and that I could mow over the nest if I chose to do so. Nice. So....unless I can muster the cold-hearted ability to mow down a momma rabbit's hard-earned nesting space (I was counting on Ruanita to be the heartless one), I guess we will have to live with it. The only thing I can think of is to put a string barrier up around the nest to keep the wild kids from inadvertently stomping on it and to keep the wild animals safe and snug inside. I wonder how long rabbits nest? I think I need to do some research. Hmmm....add it to my ever-growing to-do list....
1 comments:
I would like to vote to keep the rabbits safe and not mow over the nest. I like the string barrier idea.
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