Blue Ridge Wildlife Center Patient of the Week – Eastern Cottontail

It’s Baby Bunny Season! This young patient is 1 of 29 eastern cottontails we treated in just the past week.

Photos / Blue Ridge Wildlife Center

Last year, we treated 468 eastern cottontails at the Center. The top causes for admission in this species are being attacked by a cat (26%), being attacked by a dog (16%), orphans (11%), and lawnmower/weed-whacker accidents (6%).

Many of these injuries can be prevented by protecting nests, keeping pets indoors or on a leash when outside, and checking before you mow!

Not all young bunnies that you find need to be brought in for care – letting them be raised by mom is always the best option. Mom only feeds her babies twice per day around dawn and dusk. Just because you do not see a mother over the course of a 12-hour period, it does not mean those babies are orphans. Mom won’t return if you’re watching nearby, so give the nest some space!

If you find cottontails and you are concerned, refer to our flow chart to see what you should do. You can always call us at 540-837-9000 if you have any questions or concerns.

Found a nest in your yard and you have pets? Baby bunnies only stay in the nest for 4-5 weeks, so consider walking your dog or cat on a leash during that time to protect the nest. If that doesn’t work, you can try using a laundry basket to protect the nest! There only needs to be a softball-sized entrance (created by cutting to combine two holes in this basket) for mom to enter/exit. For small dogs, an upside-down laundry basket may suffice. For slightly larger dogs, you may need to add weight to the top of the basket. The laundry basket solution does not work for cats so please keep your pet cats inside or walk them on a leash to protect wildlife!

Found a bunny? Click here for advice from Blue Ridge Wildlife Center.