# are wild bunnies ok to eat?



## gracie88 (May 29, 2007)

I have an overabundance of bunnies in my garden and it occurred to me the other day, that maybe they could be an asset rather than a liability. Can you feed raw wild bunnies to a dog, or do they carry diseases? I didn't mind sharing a bit of lettuce last year, but now the little stinkers are starting to nibble my asparagus :nono:


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## GoldenMom (Jan 2, 2005)

They do tend to carry tapeworms.


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## oldasrocks (Oct 27, 2006)

Rabbits in the wild are great to eat. I've hunted and ate rabbits for over 50 yrs. Although in the summer its best not to eat them so any rabbits caught in the garden become dog food. If my Shepherd hears a .22 going off she runs to get a free rabbit meal.


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## NickieL (Jun 15, 2007)

My coonhound quickly takes care of any bunnies that find thier way to her yard. I feel bad about that but on the upside, my blueberry bushes didn't get chewed to the ground last winter. They do however come into the rest of the yard  thats fine by me. One year they nested in my watermelon patch LOL


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

We ate Rabbits year round when I was young.But if your giving them raw to your Dogs you might want to worm them regular.

big rockpile


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

Ditto on the deworming if you feed them to the dogs. But wild rabbits are great table fare. You might as well enjoy them too and let the dogs eat the leftovers. But be careful, you might have to defend yourself to the Game Wardens and let them know the rabbits were destroying your garden. In most states Rabbit season is over till next fall/winter.


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## Guest (Apr 4, 2010)

My Grandma used to keep her Hav-A-Heart trap in her garden. She'd catch one and have it for dinner. She had more money than she knew what to do with but she said those bunnies were the best eating ever! :smiley-laughing013:


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## goodshephrd (Feb 21, 2010)

Used to eat lots of wild rabbit but only killed them in the winter after it had been really cold for a week or ten days. We had a problem with tuleremia here and that way the sick had usually died off by then.


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## backwoodsman (Jan 21, 2010)

Watch the livers of any you want to eat or feed raw to dogs etc. Spotted or discolored livers could mean sickness. Of course if you hit them with a shotgun and tear the liver up it makes it rather hard to check. My uncles, family and grandfather ate them pretty much year round too. Young ones are great fried. Older ones can be fried or made into great casseroles and stews etc. We use to make alot of burgoo with them also. Not as many around here as there was in my younger days. Check your game laws, some/most states have seasons etc but for ADC work they may not say anything about thinning the lettuce eaters.


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

Yea some say wait until it gets cold.But when I lived down South it never got cold and some states have Rabbit Season year round.

big rockpile


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

> are wild bunnies ok to eat?


I sure hope so. My pack is always chewing on some poor bunny that roamed too close to the yard. 

I'll echo everyone with keeping them wormed, though. (But of course, if your dogs are anywhere _near_ wildlife, that should be the rule anyway)


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## Goat Servant (Oct 26, 2007)

I was raised as a hillbilly and wild rabbit was one of our staples. The only thing you have to be looking for is "Rabbit Fever". This is identifiable by whitish spots on the intestines and organs. "Rabbit Fever" only seems to occur during the summer. We never ate rabbit in the summer. I wish we had your problem!!!! I love the taste of rabbit meat! Bob


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## nancy237 (May 29, 2008)

Tonya said:


> My Grandma used to keep her Hav-A-Heart trap in her garden. She'd catch one and have it for dinner. She had more money than she knew what to do with but she said those bunnies were the best eating ever! :smiley-laughing013:


Sounds more like a Hav-A-Snack trap :thumb:


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Neither DH or I am interested in eating rabbits, but then we can take a walk on the beach (seasonally) and get clams/oysters to eat, stock our freezer with venison, and will be raising chickens to eat. Wild rabbits and deer both can be very frustrating to deal with (garden, orchard, herb bed, and flower beds). We put up fencing, including electric, to protect the aforementioned from little wild foragers (no more issues). In addition, we did the same to protect our chickens from bears, coyotes, eagles, and hawks. Sam, our dog, runs off any others who venture onto our property, lured by the chickens... I taught him to distinguish between my domestic rabbits and wild rabbits. Domestics he will corner for me; wild ones he chases away. I haven't encouraged him to catch & eat them due to the risk of worms... 

I can understand the compulsion to eat those varmints, however, I'll pass. This thread should probably be in the Rabbit Forum (that is primarily for raising and eating them).

On the flip side, domestic rabbits can be raised for other purposes than for eating. The varieties I have are for "show" and for "pets." Their manure is excellent for our garden, their litters are sold, and the proceeds cover their food.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

lorichristie said:


> This thread should probably be in the Rabbit Forum (that is primarily for raising and eating them).


If the question were about domestic rabbits, that might be true. 
But it's about feeding wild rabbits to dogs. Seems like it should be right here.


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

> Erin P - If the question were about domestic rabbits, that might be true.
> But it's about feeding wild rabbits to dogs. Seems like it should be right here.


Good point! The answers are mostly about people eating wild rabbits, not just dogs. The HTer's in the Rabbit Forum are excellent resources! I am not against eating rabbit meat, but would much rather have a more substantial source for my meat. Time is kind of an issue for us. DH is fast at dressing out, cutting, and packaging the venison. We live near salt water, and both enjoy digging for clams, harvesting for oysters, and fishing. There are Crab, shrimp, and a variety of different fish. This is worth our time. The coyotes can have the wild rabbits. Sam gets some of everything we eat and is one spoiled "yahoo."

Our dog gets cooked venison and I will never encourage him to kill/eat rabbits due to the worm issue and us raising domestics. Furthermore, since I raise rabbits, if one got out I highly doubt a dog used to eating rabbit would spare him. Of course, that is just my particular issue and opinion.

If you want to feed your dogs wild rabbits (after they are cooked to be safe), I'd just keep in mind that you probably won't be able trust them around domestic rabbits. That may not matter. To me, it does.



> Nancy237- Sounds more like a Hav-A-Snack trap


This was funny:hysterical: 

Hmmm, a coyote trap... I don't think we could feed Sam coyotes, but would sure like to!


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

lorichristie said:


> Good point! The answers are mostly about people eating wild rabbits, not just dogs.


True enough.  Thread drift happens. lol


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## desertshi (Jul 23, 2008)

oldasrocks said:


> Rabbits in the wild are great to eat. I've hunted and ate rabbits for over 50 yrs. Although in the summer its best not to eat them so any rabbits caught in the garden become dog food. If my Shepherd hears a .22 going off she runs to get a free rabbit meal.


Why shouldn't you eat them in the summer?



big rockpile said:


> Yea some say wait until it gets cold.But when I lived down South it never got cold and some states have Rabbit Season year round.
> 
> big rockpile


Yep....I eat wild rabbits all year round when we get some. They are everywhere, but we have to be out around dusk in the truck to get them. I absolutely love rabbit meat!! mmm, mmm, good. Tastes alot like home grown chicken. 
Don't know why you shouldn't eat them in the summer though....we do?!


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

From thread drift to...:hijacked:









Okay, one of my domestic little bunnies. I promise to stick now to my own thread...


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## SFM in KY (May 11, 2002)

We never ate wild rabbit on the ranch. My grandparents were concerned about "rabbit fever". I don't know if that is the same thing as tularemia or not. However, they had know of at least one person who had died of "rabbit fever" and it was something we just simply did not eat when I was a kid. However, my grandfather did talk about shooting rabbits when he was working at riding jobs, so apparantly he did at some point in his life.

Here in KY most of the country people I talk to do eat or have eaten wild rabbit. Many of them do mention they don't eat them during the summer months, however, although I've not asked why.


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## WstTxLady (Mar 14, 2009)

There really ISN'T a time to not eat rabbits. I know some people prefer to wait until its colder due to fleas but you can eat them anytime. For dog or people, wild rabbits are really good to eat.


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## Macybaby (Jun 16, 2006)

I raise domestic rabbits for eating, so any cottontails go to the dog or barn cats. The dog eats everything, the cats eat everyting but the hide and feet.

The dog and Cats sure think cottontails are delicious, but they turned their nose up at the jackrabbit.

Cathy


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## nancy237 (May 29, 2008)

Bunnies are never okay to eat...

You must name them "rabbits" to eat them ...


bunny stew...no
BBQ bunny nope


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## ginnie5 (Jul 15, 2003)

we grew up eating them all year. My Grandpaw hunted them all the time. Nothing better than fried rabbit.


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## gracie88 (May 29, 2007)

> Bunnies are never okay to eat...
> 
> You must name them "rabbits" to eat them ...


 Of course you're right, don't know what I was thinking.

And that bunny pic is way cute, he can hijack my thread any time. The ones in my garden don't look like that. They are bigger and rougher and usually have a hunk of produce hanging out of their lip.


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Glad you like the hi-jacked thread "pic" of one out of my most recent litter. The father is a Mini Lop while the mother is a Lilac Mini Rex.

The varmints that we keep out of our local gardens look like this:









If our dog could catch one, he'd eat it!


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