Rabbits in the Garden!!

Kill the Wabbit

It's official. A rabbit has found my lovely lettuce cold frame and is wreaking havoc.

What has happened? How can this be? I've had a garden there for three years, no wabbits. Is it because Jess has deserted the garden to loll around a pool in Texas, basking in the heat? Is it because I never agreed to Gavin keeping a cat? Is it because of my vaunting pride, that had me forcing every guest to my home in the last month outside to admire my garden?? (I forced Jim and Nina out in the rain to gaze at it.)

Whatever the reason, the beast is here,
and it's devastating the garden.

Actually, so far, it's just lifting the plastic and feasting on some leaves of crisp, lovely Romaine near the edge. But still! I'm no fool, I know what this means. I am in official panic mode.

My immediate impulse was to post its wittle skin stretched on sticks at the garden perimeter, ala Planet of the Apes, as a warning to all rabbit predators. But after some deep breathing, I've decided to explore more humane methods. Briefly.

Look, I admit I am capable of horrible acts when my domain is threatened. Those who know me will recall the indicent with the peanut butter sandwich laced with rat poison pellets that I offered to a squirrel who had chewed through the soffit on our porch. I still feel shame about that twelve years later, even though the little devil just picked out the pellets, ate the sandwich and survived. (We found bright blue poison pellets covered with peanut butter scattered all over the porch under the soffit hole.)

And then there was the time I encouraged Brad to shoot a squirrel (same squirrel, maybe. we hoped.) with a paint ball gun. He got him in the back, and we watched with mutual horror as the little guy dragged his helpless paralyzed back feet behind him to safety. (Picture me wailing as Brad marched over with a shovel to dispatch him.) But that guy recovered and escaped too.

Even so, I can't carry any more guilt over animal torture.

So please help me to find a more humane way to thwart this garden beastie.

I have heard they are afraid of coyote urine, but can't think how to get a coyote to come piss on my garden.

I did do some quick research before I left for work. People talked about cayenne and black pepper mixtures sprayed on the garden. One guy spread the used litter from his cat's litter box around the garden and that seemed to work. No more rabbits approached the garden. (Jess would never approach the garden again either, though. Hmmm.)

I did run out to my garden just before leaving for work with a huge pepper grinder and frantically ground pepper all around the lettuce.

(Hopefully, my neighbors didn't see me apparently dressing my salad before I'd picked it.)

I will post further suggestions, pictures, attempts, failures, successes.

Help.