If you are also a beginner rabbit owner, just like I was some months ago, you must be wondering about a lot, like do snakes eat rabbits? And many other questions. When you buy a rabbit or any other pet, you want to be sure of keeping your pet safe of any dangerous animal. Snakes are one of the most dangerous animals that you need to keep your rabbits away from, if you are keeping the rabbits outdoors. This article is going to talk about the topic in more detail and will give you exactly what you came here for.
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Snakes Are Not Vegetarians
Snakes are not at all vegetarians, like some of us maybe. When they have to feed themselves, they eat other animals that are weaker. The type of animals that they might eat may differ from species to species, but some of them do eat rabbits. Some of them specifically eat warm blooded animals that may include rabbits and birds. On the other hand, there are species that will eat insects, eggs, other reptiles, and even fish. It is also believed that what the snake eats may also differ with the size of the snake. Smaller snakes usually eat insects and worms while larger snakes may even eat animals like rabbits or even deer.
How Can That Be Possible
One may wonder how is it possible for a snake to eat an animal that is double or triple its size, right? Well, the snake can open its mouth wider than itself and the body of the snake can also expand, which allows the snake to eat an animal as big as a rabbit, if the rabbit is of a larger size. Snakes have a vast choice when it comes to selecting its lunch or dinner, and this vast choice would happily include a rabbit in it. Before we get into any more detail, let’s first introduce you to the families that snake and rabbits belong to. This will give us a clearer idea of the topic that is under discussion.
What Family Do Snakes Belong To
Snakes, also known as serpents, are reptiles, and there are over 3400 species of reptiles that you may come across. They are classified through their limbless and long bodies. Snakes are also classified as a type of lizard that has evolved over time as their structure has simplified, and also specialized. Snakes have formed a reputation of being predators that would hurt you, but that is completely misunderstood. All of then maybe predators, but the venomous ones have gained the spotlight and now all of them are known to be harmful and dangerous, even if they are not.
Which Snakes Are Dangerous To Rabbits
Less than 300 of the 3400 species are the ones that can actually inflict any danger. Snakes are known to have control over the amount of venom that they inflict, and this will vary as they might inject more venom when hunting for food or in self-defense. Rattlesnakes are known to be very dangerous due to the large amount of venom that they might inject.
Different Species of Snakes
The different species of snakes do have some things in common. They all have scales, limbless bodies, and belong to the larger family of Serpentes. When it comes to the differences, there can be many. Some of the snakes are venomous, while others may be not. Many of these have venom such that it will attack the prey’s nervous system, while others may impact the red blood cells of the prey. The snakes also differ in the size, as some may be the size of a pencil, while others may be as large as a school bus. What the snakes eat also differs with the species. Some of them may eat rodents, while prefer to eat a large variety of animals.
What Do Snakes Eat?
To get the facts straight, all snakes are carnivores, and all of them eat meat. You will not be able to find a vegetarian snake, if that is what you are looking for. Snakes don’t only eat other animals, but they may also eat other snakes, if they get the chance to. Due to this, they are also called zoophagous animals.
Snake Diet
The species of snakes don’t only differ in their sizes or appearances, but also differ in their diet choices. The smaller the snake is, the smeller things will it feed on, like worms, insects, fish, and many others. The larger ones, like anacondas or pythons can also eat a pig, a deer, or a rabbit. These snakes are so strong and wild, that they may even take down an alligator, let alone a rabbit. There are some species of snakes that has a certain type of diet, like there is this type of snake that only eats eggs. Not to forget, there is a species of snakes that hunts other weaker species as well. Different snakes have different ways of hunting the prey. Some of them will actively go after the prey and hunt it. Other snakes hide until they see a prey that they want to hunt. In the dessert, the snake might even hide beneath the sand until a prey passes by.
If you are going to keep a rabbit, you need to be aware of garden snakes or the large rattlesnakes as they have the potential of attacking the rabbits. If your rabbits are too small, even the normal sized snakes can attack the rabbit. Let’s have a look at the details of the belonging of the rabbit, as you yourself are a beginner at this one.
What Family Do Rabbits Belong To?
Rabbit is a long-eared animal that is a mammal, and it belongs to the family of Leporidae. The family of rabbits have remained unchanged since a very long time now Rabbits are born with no fur, and prefer to live in trees, where they dig burrows in the soil. The longer the ears of the rabbit, the more chances of it detecting a predator that may attack the rabbit. They usually eat grasses and plants, and they may intake large amounts of plant material to make sur that they get the proper nutrition.
What Prey Animal Will Eat A Rabbit
Rabbits are an important part of many food chains. They are the pray of various mammals and birds that may rely on rabbits as an important part of their diet. Wolves, eagles, owls, and snakes. All these animals will attack a rabbit if they get the chance to. This article wants the beginner rabbit owners to know what animals they want to keep their rabbits safe from, especially Rabbits also influence on the vegetation, due to which they are called pests in many situations.
Is Your Rabbit Safe?
The answer to this question is not as simple as it may sound. The safety of your rabbit depends on a few things that include the type of snake that could be near your rabbit or rabbits, the place where you have placed your rabbits, and if the place is safe to keep the rabbits. Not all snakes will eat the rabbits or attack them. As we discussed, smaller snakes are not expected to attack the rabbits. Larger snakes that may include rattlesnakes and garden snakes that are large in size are expected to eat the rabbits.
As you already know, you will need to keep your rabbits safe in any case, but if you are keeping your rabbits outdoors in a hutch, you really need to be careful. To do that, you can have a look at the below mentioned measures that you could take:
- Identify openings in the hutch:
You must carefully examine the hutch that you are keeping the rabbits in, and make sure that none of the openings are greater than quarter of an inch as that will allow a snake to sneak in and disturb the rabbits.
- Cover up the openings in the hutch:
You must cover any openings that you detect in the hutch. If you have a wooden hutch, you should patch the openings that you see, so that you don’t leave any room for the snakes. This can be done by simply going by the instructions that are given on the package. You can even use cloth to cover the openings that you think will make space for the snakes to get in.
- Trim the plants nearby:
The bushes or the plants that may grow near the hutch will basically give room to the snakes to hide. As mentioned above, there are some species of snakes that hide until they find the chance to attack their prey, which could be your rabbit in this case. You must keep the bushes short and also trim the grass very short.
- Leave no leftovers of food:
After you have fed your bunnies, clean up any leftovers of food that may be there as they could attract snakes for sure.
- Use snake deterrents:
Using snake deterrents will allow you to keep the snakes away from the hutch or even coming near the area.
