Unfortunately, six inches below ground level isn't deep enough to stop rabbits burrowing underneath. If you should decide to try the "wire" option, you'd need to dig at least 2 ft down and then place the wire in the hole in such a way that the lower part of it is bent//turned outward from the boundary. This can work - sometimes - to keep the rabbits out. Not really worth it, however, as they'll usually find an alternative route!
The most successful - actually "tried and tested" - is to have two semi-feral cats. Your local RSPCA would probably be delighted to rehome them, as they are usually the ones which people don't choose, because they want a "house cat" rather than a semi-wild outdoor one. The cats will live happily in a shed - need cat-flaps for access - and do need to be fed each day, though they will catch and eat young rabbits. The most useful thing, however, is that they can be outdoors 24/7 - which of course no dog would be - and they will hunt/lie in wait for their prey and thus act as a deterrent too.
My two whippets do catch rabbits in the lane from time to time, but those in the garden usually manage to escape through the fence or down into the burrows.
edited to add that since the last of my two cats died, the rabbits have taken over again..................
Thanks to all for the replies…….Looks like I'm going to have an up hill task, Fencing is not practical due to the size, although a good idea about fencing off a veggie plot. An air gun also sounds effective, (don't think 'her ladyship' will approve), She is however a great cat lover so we may get a couple. ……….Next question, How to stop cats 'doing their business' on a veggie plot? and the answer is …all of the above!! Thanks everyone
My husband used to go out with an air rifle at 6am when we lived in Kent. He gave be John Seymour's book on self-sufficiency so I could learn to prepare rabbits for cooking. Unfortunately there were fleas pinging about on the work surface when I tried!
I like Dove's suggestion, but you could get one of these.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
Ferrets can make good pets too, although you have to accept their musky odour. Much nicer to feed now you can get pelleted food, the one I knew as a kid was fed on chicken heads from the butcher. My brother kept them until he moved abroad, and had a little harness and took them for walks.
You need nets as well as ferrets for rabbiting though, and the stomach to kill them yourself or get a dog that will. A couple of hawkers once asked permission to fly their birds on our land and came regularly for a while, until one of the rabbits bit the hawk badly enough that it ended up at the vets!
The only viable solution to rabbits, is to plant a 'rabbit garden'! Plant a patch in the garden that is so attractive to rabbits that it will feed on the rabbit garden and stay away from your more precious planting.
in answer to your question, your cats are unlikely to mess in their garden, they'll do it in someone else's (or around the edge at least) and anyway protecting from cats is easier than protecting from rabbits!
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Unfortunately, six inches below ground level isn't deep enough to stop rabbits burrowing underneath. If you should decide to try the "wire" option, you'd need to dig at least 2 ft down and then place the wire in the hole in such a way that the lower part of it is bent//turned outward from the boundary. This can work - sometimes - to keep the rabbits out. Not really worth it, however, as they'll usually find an alternative route!
The most successful - actually "tried and tested" - is to have two semi-feral cats. Your local RSPCA would probably be delighted to rehome them, as they are usually the ones which people don't choose, because they want a "house cat" rather than a semi-wild outdoor one. The cats will live happily in a shed - need cat-flaps for access - and do need to be fed each day, though they will catch and eat young rabbits. The most useful thing, however, is that they can be outdoors 24/7 - which of course no dog would be - and they will hunt/lie in wait for their prey and thus act as a deterrent too.
My two whippets do catch rabbits in the lane from time to time, but those in the garden usually manage to escape through the fence or down into the burrows.
edited to add that since the last of my two cats died, the rabbits have taken over again..................
Thanks to all for the replies…….Looks like I'm going to have an up hill task, Fencing is not practical due to the size, although a good idea about fencing off a veggie plot. An air gun also sounds effective, (don't think 'her ladyship' will approve), She is however a great cat lover so we may get a couple. ……….Next question, How to stop cats 'doing their business' on a veggie plot? and the answer is …all of the above!! Thanks everyone
My husband used to go out with an air rifle at 6am when we lived in Kent. He gave be John Seymour's book on self-sufficiency so I could learn to prepare rabbits for cooking. Unfortunately there were fleas pinging about on the work surface when I tried!
I like Dove's suggestion, but you could get one of these.
Ferrets can make good pets too, although you have to accept their musky odour. Much nicer to feed now you can get pelleted food, the one I knew as a kid was fed on chicken heads from the butcher
. My brother kept them until he moved abroad, and had a little harness and took them for walks.
You need nets as well as ferrets for rabbiting though, and the stomach to kill them yourself or get a dog that will. A couple of hawkers once asked permission to fly their birds on our land and came regularly for a while, until one of the rabbits bit the hawk badly enough that it ended up at the vets!
The only viable solution to rabbits, is to plant a 'rabbit garden'! Plant a patch in the garden that is so attractive to rabbits that it will feed on the rabbit garden and stay away from your more precious planting.
Hi if anyone has problem in their gardens with rabbits let me know can help u out just leave me a message and I will send u my number
Anyone with any rabbit problems can message me and I will help clear them I'm Paul if anyone needs help I have ferrets and all the equipment
in answer to your question, your cats are unlikely to mess in their garden, they'll do it in someone else's (or around the edge at least) and anyway protecting from cats is easier than protecting from rabbits!