Rabbits are among the most adorable of pets, and they’re also quite popular. In fact, rabbits are the third most popular pet in the UK. Most rabbit owners will keep their rabbits indoors, allowing them to roam freely in their home. Others will keep their rabbits outdoors in a hutch or enclosure.
However, there may be occasions when you need to get rid of a rabbit. Maybe you’re dealing with an infestation of wild rabbits, and they’re destroying your garden. Maybe you’ve tried to keep a pet rabbit, but it’s proving too much hard work.
Whatever the reason, getting rid of a rabbit may not be easy. And it’s important that you do it humanely and don’t cause any unnecessary suffering.
In this article, we look at the best ways to get rid of a rabbit and what kills rabbits fast.
What kills rabbits fast?
There are several poisons labeled for use against rabbits, including Pindone, Strychnine, Diphacinone, Cholecalciferol, and Sodium Fluoroacetate (Compound 1080). The first four are anticoagulants, which means they cause internal bleeding. The fifth is a nerve toxin and causes death by respiratory failure.
There’s also a bait that combines zinc phosphide with corn. Zinc phosphide reacts with stomach acid to produce phosphine gas, which kills the rabbit by asphyxiation.
The best ways to get rid of rabbits
Unfortunately, many pet rabbits end up being euthanized because they are no longer wanted. Whether the owner has reconsidered, found the rabbit too difficult to care for, or simply doesn’t want it anymore, it can be a sad and stressful situation.
Humanely killing a rabbit is not always easy because they are prey animals and may put up a struggle. And that’s before you consider the potential legal consequences.
We will discuss the best ways to get rid of rabbit:
- The first step is to understand why rabbits are in your yard, then you can take steps to get rid of them for good.
- One of the best ways to get rid of rabbits in your garden is by making it a less attractive place for them to be. Rabbits are more likely to be in your garden if they have cover, so clean up any brush piles in your yard, and trim back bushes and shrubs so there aren’t any hiding places. Rabbits also prefer areas that are moist, so make sure you water your lawn regularly.
- The most effective way to get rid of rabbits is to repel them and make them feel unsafe in your garden. Rabbits are very timid animals and prefer to run away from any threats, but if you can make them feel like there is a predator in the area, they will be much more inclined to leave. This can be as simple as using scent repellents or as complex as installing motion-activated sprinklers or sound machines.
- The most humane way to get rid of a rabbit is to trap it and then relocate it. A wild rabbit may have a perfectly good home in the area you’ve trapped it. If you take it too far away, then you may condemn it to death.
- A pet rabbit will also need to be relocated somewhere that it can’t get back from if you want to get rid of it completely. It’s not fair to just dump a pet rabbit somewhere and let it fend for itself.
- You can also use other methods of humane rabbit control such as removing any easy food sources, erecting fences, or even keeping a pet that will scare the rabbits off. These are humane rabbit control methods that will not kill the animals, which is especially important if you live in an area where it’s illegal to do so.
Whatever the reason, getting rid of a rabbit may not be easy. And it’s important that you do it humanely and don’t cause any unnecessary suffering.
What do rabbits hate the most?
Here are a few things that rabbits hate:
The smell of black pepper, chili powder, vinegar, coffee grounds, and garlic is offensive to rabbits. Gather these items in a bag and hang it near your rabbit’s favorite spot to chew.
Rabbits hate the smell of ammonia, so an open container of smelling salts or even a simple bowl of household ammonia will usually keep them away.
If a rabbit bites you, make a loud noise by yelling or blowing a whistle to scare it away.
Vinegar and water can be used as a deterrent spray. Rabbits don’t like the smell, and it may also help prevent gnawing on plants.
Sprinkle cayenne pepper on plants to keep rabbits from eating them.
Try hanging shiny pennies in tights around the garden area; the flashing light will scare rabbits away.
Foods that are fatal to rabbits
Rabbits are herbivores and have a delicate digestive system that can be thrown off by many foods. Foods that are good to eat for humans and other animals can cause serious illness or death in rabbits.
Avocado
Avocado is toxic to rabbits because it contains a fungicidal toxin called persin. Persin can cause frothy bloat, respiratory distress, and congestive heart failure.
Mushrooms
Rabbits should never eat mushrooms because they are toxic to rabbits. This includes the stems and spores of the mushrooms. Mushrooms contain toxins that can cause liver damage in rabbits.
Chocolate
Chocolate has high levels of caffeine and theobromine, which can be fatal when ingested by rabbits.
Onions, garlic, leeks, and chives
Onions can cause damage to a rabbit’s red blood cells if eaten in large quantities. They also cause digestive upset, leading to gas accumulation and severe pain. Garlic and leeks can also cause similar problems as onions in rabbits.
Apple seeds (and other seeds)
Apple seeds (as well as peach pits) contain cyanide, which is poisonous to rabbits. Cherry pits also contain cyanide so cherry trees are also potentially harmful to your rabbit’s health if they eat any part of the tree (leaves or branches).
Rhubarb
Leaves are toxic because of high concentrations of oxalates, stalks are fine in small amounts.
Tobacco
Tobacco causes rapid heart rate, extreme agitation, paralysis and death.
Does rat poison kill wild rabbits?
Yes, rat poison can kill wild rabbits.
The active ingredient in most rat poisons is very effective in killing rabbits, squirrels and other mammals. It’s also toxic to dogs, cats and other animals that may eat the corpses of poisoned rats or rabbits.
The active ingredient in many rat poisons is brodifacoum, a long-acting anticoagulant. Brodifacoum prevents the blood from clotting. The rodent bleeds to death internally.
The poison does not work immediately but takes days for the effects to be seen. The rodent is likely to die off somewhere away from where it was baited, which increases the chances of poisoning another animal.
Can you kill rabbits with a pellet gun?
A high-quality pellet gun with a . 177 caliber pellet and a pellet speed of 1000′ per second (FPS) can kill rabbits. A . 177 caliber is the smallest and most common type of pellet gun.
The . 22 caliber or . 25 caliber are larger calibers but less common and more expensive. In order to kill a rabbit from a distance, you want to make sure the pellet speed is at least 1000′ per second. Most quality air rifles will have a minimum FPS of around 1000′ per second.
If you are shooting the rabbit at close range, less than 15 yards and maybe even as low as 5 to 10 yards, then you can get away with using a lower FPS air rifle/pellet gun.
Conclusion
To get rid of a rabbit, you can use traps and snares, poison or shoot it.
The best way to kill a rabbit is to use a humane live trap to catch it. Once you have caught the rabbit, you can dispatch it humanely using an air gun or a blunt instrument. This is inhumane and we do not recommend it at all.
If you do want to poison the rabbit, you need to use strychnine. This will kill the rabbit within 24 hours and is not inhumane. You must be careful when putting out poison as domestic pets such as dogs and cats can also be poisoned.