We may here mention that the proper method of taking up a rabbit is to hold it by the ears with the right hand, and to support the body by placing the left hand under it.
Should a number of rabbits be kept, it is as well to allow each family to have a run in succession. It is very pretty to see the playful antics of the young rabbits, the races they run with each other, the scufflings they have in the corners, and the staid manner in which the mother sits and looks on, and when they become too noisy silences them by a stamp of her foot.
This gesture is used either as a signal of alarm or defiance, and the force of the rabbit’s hind foot is really astonishing. We have known a buck rabbit vanquish a large cat in a fair fight simply by jumping over her back and kicking fiercely as he passed. He struck out whole bunches of pussy’s fur, and the cat, unaccustomed to such treatment, ran away and left her antagonist victorious and triumphant.
It is necessary to separate the rabbits in their exercise, and not to permit two families to occupy the same ground at the same time, as they are very quarrelsome animals, and will fight desperately among themselves. In any case the buck rabbits should not be allowed to mix with the others, for they are terrible bullies, and will assault and kill even their own children, without the least remorse. When properly tended, the rabbit becomes quite tame and familiar, and will come to its owner at the sound of its name.
The food of rabbits is easily obtained, and consists of bran, pollard, grain, and various vegetables. Parsley is an especial favourite, but cabbage leaves should be avoided as far as possible, as they are apt to have a bloating and puffy effect, and are often injurious, especially to young rabbits, giving them the disorder that is well known under the expressive term of “potbelly.”
The following is a list of vegetables which rabbits can always eat in safety:—
Grasses of the finer sorts—the coarse, large-bladed grasses are not to a rabbit’s taste—lettuce, parsley, carrots and their green tops, turnip-tops, green ears of corn, sow or milk thistles, clover, tares, vetches, beet-root and leaves, vine leaves occasionally, green furze tops, potatoes, and Jerusalem artichokes. Cow-parsley, as it is popularly called (Myrrhis temulenta), is a very favourite vegetable with the rabbit: but unless the gatherer is perfectly acquainted with its form and leafage, he will be wise to leave it standing; for it marvellously resembles the common hemlock (Conium maculatum), which is extremely poisonous; and unless the two plants be thoroughly known, the rabbit may be poisoned through the mistaken kindness of the owner.
As this plant is a really valuable one, we will give a few simple and plain directions for distinguishing it from hemlock.
Cow-parsley is about three feet in height, the leaves are greatly branched, and the stem is ribbed, spotted with purple, and covered with numerous short hairs slightly bent downwards. The hemlock in general shape resembles the cow-parsley, but it may be known by the smooth reddish purple spots and its unpleasant smell when the leaves are grasped in the hand.
Various dry grains, such as barley, oats, and Indian corn, are useful to the rabbit; and dry peas are also beneficial if sparingly given when the creature has been partaking largely of green food. Very little water is needed; but it is better to put into the hutch a small pan with a few spoonfuls of water in it. A very little oil-cake is useful in the winter. At first the rabbits do not like it, but they soon become accustomed to its taste, and are then very fond of it.