Wild rabbit pest control for Hereford & Mid Wales
rabbit pests
stop the destruction!
In years gone by, rabbits were a staple food source. However, as our appetite for rabbit meat has dwindled, fewer are being controlled through hunting, and natural predators no longer keep their numbers to a manageable level.
Rabbits cause major damage to gardens and crops across Herefordshire & Mid Wales. Their constant burrowing strips young plants, whilst undermining roads, banks and gardens. . . often causing structural damage, hence the need for aggressive rabbit control.
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These pests breed exponentially, having as many as 5 litters a year of 6 to 8 kits each time, so rabbit population explosions are inevitable if numbers are not controlled.
BONUS: More about common wild rabbitsThe common European rabbit (Oryctolagus Cuniculus) is thought to have been introduced to Britain by the Romans in the first century AD. Further imported and bred by the Normans in the 12th Century for their meat and skins, many escaped and rabbits are now commonplace throughout the UK. . . the only exception being some smaller islands.
A rabbit's system of burrows, known as a warren, have tunnels that can be around 2m long, with a nest at the end lined with grass, moss and belly fur.
Wild rabbits use regular trails, which they scent mark with distinct, spherical, faecal pellets. . . making them easy to spot.
Signs of rabbit damage can include:
Shoots on herbaceous plants grazed to ground level
Foliage and soft shoots of woody plants grazed up to a height of 50cm (20in).
Bark gnawed away from the base of trunks, especially in winter when snow or frost makes other vegetation unavailable. (Ringbarking in this way can kill trees and shrubs).
Adult rabbits weigh around 1.2 to 2 kilograms and can be 30-40 cm long, making them smaller than most domestic rabbits. . . with a natural lifespan of up to 9 years (although rarely achieved in the wild, where the average is less than 3 years).
Rabbits are herbivores who feed by grazing on grass, forbs and leafy weeds, however, they will also eat a wide range of ornamental plants, fruits and vegetables, and gnaw tree bark in winter months.
Rabbits are considered a garden or farm pest because they graze heavily and rapidly for roughly the first half hour of a grazing period (usually in the late afternoon), followed by about half an hour of more selective feeding. During this time, the rabbit will also excrete many hard faecal pellets that will not be reingested. If the environment is relatively non-threatening, the rabbit will remain outdoors for many hours, grazing at intervals.
Reproduction: Rabbits generally are able to breed at a young age and many regularly produce litters of up to 7 young (kittens), often doing so 4 or 5 times a year with a rabbits' gestation period of only 28 to 31 days. Newborn rabbits are naked, blind and helpless at birth amd the mother commonly nurses their young only once per day, but the milk of rabbits is highly nutritious, the young grow rapidly and most are weaned in about a month.
Males (bucks) do not assist in rearing the young and the mother rabbit is able to become pregnant again 4 days after the birth of her kittens.
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treatment options
The most common, and humane, rabbit pest control method is trapping. . . with spring, cage or drop traps. Although legal, Surepest rarely use gas as a means of rabbit pest control.
likely fees & charges
Because so many population control options exist, a detailed site assessment is necessary before an overall strategy can be costed accurately. Call Cliff Howard on the 'pest line' below for his expert advice.
pest line: 07837 793 963
Please remember that a fuel surcharge of £10 may be applied for site visits over 15 miles from Hereford.
BONUS: Open a local distance guideThe following places are all less than 20 miles from Hereford and would not, therefore, attract a fuel surcharge: Kingstone, Ross on Wye, Hay on Wye, Ledbury, Ewyas Harold, Eardisley, Bromyard, Weobley, Leominster and most of the Forest of Dean.
Just slightly further afield, but still well within Surepest's service area are; Worcester, Newent, Tewksbury, Gloucester and Monmouth.
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