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How To Keep Rabbits Out Of Garden: 7 Effective Methods

Rabbits seem like harmless creatures. However, the presence of rabbits in your yard can result in numerous burrows, and they consistently nibble the plants. That is why at times, you might want to keep them out of your yard. The question which then arises is, how to keep rabbits out of the yard?

Fortunately, there are a handful of ways in which you can do so. We will share with you a complete list of such steps which you can undertake to keep the rabbits out of the yard.


7 ways to keep rabbits out of your lawn

Even if you execute a couple of these ways to keep the rabbits out of the yard, you will be able to keep them at bay.


1. Maintain proper hygiene

We are speaking about hygiene in your yard as well as the garden. Most people do not pay a lot of time and effort to maintain their yard. It is one of the primary reasons why rabbits can infest your yard.

Maintain your yard and keep rabbits out of your yard
Maintain your yard and keep rabbits out of your yard


A few signs of unkempt yards include:

  • Overgrown bushes
  • Low hanging branches
  • Cracks and crevices in the house frame
  • And so on

If you notice any of these in your yard, it is a clear-cut indication that you have not been maintaining your yard. However, by following a few tips, it is effortless for you to maintain your yard and keep rabbits out of your yard.


These steps include:

  • You have to trim the branches and bushes that have overgrown. These are the natural habitat of rabbits, and therefore once you trim these, rabbits infesting your yard is unlikely.
  • You have to seal any crevices and cracks in your yard as well. Such cracks and crevices mimic the rabbit’s natural habitat, and therefore they are often attracted to them.
  • You have to seal the open spaces and spaces beneath the structures as well.
  • Once you undertake these few actions, it becomes effortless for you to look after your lawn or yard and ensure that rabbits can be kept at bay.


2. Make use of an electronic repellent

Electronic repellents available to keep the rabbits away
Electronic repellents to keep the rabbits away

Did you know that there are electronic repellents are available to keep the rabbits away?
The best thing about these electronic repellents is that they are automated. You will not have to worry about monitoring your yard consistently.

How these repellents work is by spraying water on rabbits. The advantage of these repellents is that they use a motion sensor to detect the rabbits. Whenever a rabbit is detected, they spray the rabbit with water. A sudden burst of water startles the rabbit and scares them away.

If this happens repeatedly, the rabbits eventually learn to stay away. With the help of this simple mechanism, you will be able to keep the rabbits at bay.

Expert Tip: Repellents can easily last for years together, which means that you won’t have to worry about replacing them anytime soon and they are incredibly affordable.



This ensures you can install them at multiple places in your yard. Once you do so, keeping the rabbits at bay is easy.


3. Install garden barriers

To keep the rabbit away from your yard is to install physical barriers
To keep the rabbit away from your yard is to install physical barriers

The most obvious way to keep the rabbit away from your yard is to erect physical barriers. If you do not make it easy for the rabbits to get in and out of your yard, they will, of course, stay away. For the same, you have to install garden barriers.

Wondering which ones are these? There are essentially two types of garden barriers you can use.


Wooden fence

If you have a wooden fence in your garden, likely, the rabbits won’t be able to enter your garden or your yard. The only exception is that when the fence is too low. Rabbits hop around and can quickly jump up to 4 feet. If the fence in your yard is lower than 4 feet, it cannot keep the rabbits away.

Another factor to consider is the gap in-between the fence. If the gap is pretty large the rabbits can get through the fence. That is why it is a good idea to get a consistent fence.
Installing the fence with the right specifications will undoubtedly keep the rabbits away from your yard.


Chicken wire mesh

Rather than having to worry about the thickness of the fence and the height of the fence, there is a simpler alternative available. You can use the chicken wire mesh or the shrubs over a fence that has more gaps. However, it is necessary to erect the wire mesh up to 4 feet or higher to ensure that the rabbits do not jump over it.

Creating garden barriers with any materials can certainly make your life easy and keep the rabbits away.


4. Incorporate plants that rabbits keep away from

Incorporate plants that make rabbits keep away
Incorporate plants that make rabbits keep away

Certain plants can help you in keeping rabbits away. That is because rabbits are not fond of these plants. They might hate the leaves of those plants or the scent of the flowers.

These plants include:

  • Basil
  • Garlic
  • Onion
  • Hot pepper

When you have these plants in your yard, rabbits will keep away on their own. It is not necessary to have all of these plants in your garden. You have to try and plant a couple of them and check if the rabbits can be kept away. If those plants are not working, you can switch them up with the others on our list above.

The only exception is that the younger rabbits might not get scared by these plants. That is why they might still hop into your yard. If you are suffering from the infestation of younger rabbits, you can use these plants along with a high enough fence to keep the younger and older rabbits away.


5. Eliminate nesting spots

it is a good idea to eliminate the likely nesting spots of the rabbit
it is a good idea to eliminate the likely nesting spots of the rabbit

One of the main reasons why rabbits might infest your yard is to give birth to their offspring. In a single instance, a female rabbit can give birth to 10 rabbits. If you do not keep them away from your yard, so your entire yard might be infested with rabbits.
To avoid this issue, it is a good idea to eliminate the likely nesting spots of the rabbit.

Not everyone is aware of the likely nesting spots. That is why we will cover them below
Overgrown and the grassy area of your yard is the most likely nesting spot for a rabbit. That is because it provides natural protection to the female rabbit as well as to the offspring.

If you eliminate such a spot, the female rabbit won’t be attracted to your yard. Similarly, if you have plenty of shady areas in your yard, such spots are also nesting spots for the rabbit. You can either eliminate the shade or use visual deterrence in that area to scare away the female rabbit.

Expert Tip: Eliminating the nesting spots in your yard is the surefire way to keep rabbits away.


6. Install reflectors

Reflector to make rabbit away
Reflector to make rabbits away

Rabbits are very timid creatures. That is why they are scared of a lot of things. However, you will be surprised to know that their reflection is among them. It is not that easy to display their reflection since rabbits move around a lot and very swiftly. A reflector is the best way to do so.

No matter how swiftly they move, their reflection will be visible using that reflector. That is sure to scare them away. Their likely perception is that there is another creature moving equally swiftly. Since they aren’t able to detect or identify that creature, they get scared.

There is, however, another alternative. Instead of using a reflector, you can also install a small animal statue. The animal statue can be of a predator like a snake or a cat or owl.
Nevertheless, you can easily buy a reflector online or through any of the supermarkets and install it. Installing a couple of these can help you keep the rabbits away.


7. Adopt the right pet

The list of rabbit predators includes dog
The list of rabbit predators includes dog

The rabbits are not that high up in the food chain. That is why they have quite a few natural predators. If you adopt any of their natural predators as a pet, that will surely scare away rabbits. Even if they stray in your yard, they are likely to get killed. Even though this is not a pleasant outcome it will help you keep rabbits out of your yard.

The list of rabbit predators includes a dog or a cat. Fortunately, both of them are great pets. If you aren’t willing to adopt a pet another alternative helps you keep rabbits away. You can get cat or dog hair from your family or friends and sprinkle them in your garden.

That is sure to spread the scent of a dog or a cat in your yard, which is enough to scare the rabbits away. Getting cat and dog hair again and again from your family and friends is not an easy task. To avoid this, you have to keep the hair in pantyhose in your yard. That will ensure that you do not lose the hair, and the scent gets spread far and wide.

Only when the hair gets washed away, you need to replace that hair. Thus, if you’re open to getting a pet, this step can help you keep rabbits away. Otherwise, we have discussed a more accessible alternative above.

There are a few smells that rabbits are afraid of. If you want to make use of them, you can refer to the section below.


What smells do rabbits hate?

Certain smells can repel rabbits with their fragrance. These include:


1. Garlic

Garlic contains a natural chemical called allicin
Garlic contains a natural chemical called allicin

Garlic has a very pungent smell. Many adults do not like it. Therefore, it is no surprise that rabbits hate the smell as well. There are two ways in which you can use this smell to your advantage. The first option is to plant garlic in your yard. However, that is a lot of work.

There is another alternative. You can use a garlic spray or you can easily mix garlic with some raw eggs and create a spray on your own. When you spray this in your garden, it is sure to keep rabbits out of your yard.


2. Vinegar

Another smell that rabbits hate is vinegar
Another smell that rabbits hate is vinegar

Another smell that rabbits hate is vinegar. Vinegar is widely available in our homes. That is why you won’t have to worry about procuring vinegar. To create such a spray, you have to mix vinegar with water. You can use the spray around your yard to spread the smell of vinegar and keep the rabbits away.

Expert Tip: Vinegar has cleansing properties. That is why, if you merely clean the furniture in your yard with vinegar, that alone will keep rabbits away.



3. Chili

The smell of chilies can also keep rabbits away
The smell of chilies can also keep rabbits away

The smell of chilies can also keep rabbits away. The advantage of chili powder is that its fragrance is pretty strong. You need to sprinkle chili powder around your yard. Rabbits have pretty sensitive noses. That is why when you spray chili powder in your yard, they can detect the smell from a distance and keep away.

Once you spray chili powder in your yard. the fragrance can last for 1 to 2 weeks. That is why you need not sprinkle it repeatedly.


4. Sulfur

The smell of sulfur is another thing that rabbits hate
The smell of sulfur is another thing that rabbits hate

The smell of sulfur is another thing that rabbits hate. Due to their sensitive noses, rabbits hate the smell of sulfur which mimics the smell of rotten eggs. Procuring sulfur powder isn’t a difficult task. You can easily order the powder online and sprinkle it in your yard.

However, you need to remember that you cannot sprinkle the sulfur powder in your yard if you have pets. The sulfur powder can be harmful to your pets. You can use these four smells to your advantage to keep rabbits away from your yard.


Conclusion

Keeping rabbits out of your yard isn’t difficult. You need to know what to do. With our detailed guide above, now you have numerous ways in which you can keep rabbits away from your yard. No need to worry about the nibbling of leaves or dug-up burrows in your garden. With our guide above, rabbits will no longer be a problem.

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