what size pipe for rabbits?
Contributors to this thread:Small Game
From: DonVathome
18-Nov-16
What size pipe should I put under my brush piles to cottontail rabbits? I need something big enough to let rabbits in but small enough not to let fox & coyote in here in Ohio. I a thinking 6"?
From: El Diablo Rojo
18-Nov-16
Not sure ?? But I did hear Richard Gere used 1/2" for his gerbils .
From: Fuzzy
18-Nov-16
6" will admit fox, I'd say 4"
From: mountainman
18-Nov-16
hahaha! Holy hell Rojo. Sorry I have no experience with Rabbit pipes. But man that made me laugh.
From: DonVathome
18-Nov-16
4" is pretty small, I would think they would not go inside?
From: White Falcon
18-Nov-16
I hunted them for years, and never heard of putting a pipe in a brush pile. Please explain. Sound like a new idea.
From: Stickhead
18-Nov-16
My thought he is trying to create a safe habitat for them, but this is also news to me.
From: Stickhead
18-Nov-16
My thought he is trying to create a safe habitat for them, but this is also news to me.
From: Jodie
18-Nov-16
Six inch minimum, leave both ends open.
From: BUCKeye
18-Nov-16
We stack up a couple wooden skids then pile on the brush. The skids provide good hiding holes
From: Joey Ward
18-Nov-16
Wooden pallets.
From: Beav
18-Nov-16
6 " is perfect! One grove I hunt for them a lot has a bunch of 6" irrigation pipe on the one end and they run in the them to get away all the time.
From: DonVathome
18-Nov-16
Thanks and yes to keep safe from predators, brush piles collapse and safe places where a rabbit can escape fast are hard to come by. Imagine a 6" pipe 6'-8' long with TWO exits so if yote is at one end rabbit goes out other side with brush pile between them! Or if he is smart he simply stays put. I do agree 6" - really cant imagine a fox getting in there (inside diameter likely 5-1/2") 4" seems was to small and 8" might let small fox in.
From: Dave B
18-Nov-16
I am a well driller, they are always popping out of my 5 and 6 inch casing scrap piles.
From: Corn bore
18-Nov-16
They easy fit in a 4 inch pvc pipe.
From: DonVathome
18-Nov-16
I do not doubt they can fit but like it? Stay in it all day?
From: 3arrows
19-Nov-16
If you are looking for something they like,nothing better than wood pallets with shingles or roofing paper on top.cover with brush will last for years.
From: DonVathome
19-Nov-16
I liked the wood pallet idea but did not think they would last, adding roofing paper great idea! I have access to lots of pallets free and leftover roofing paper. Do you just lay them flat or raise them a little with something? It seems like most pallets would be 1"-3" to short.
From: BUCKeye
19-Nov-16
We stack up or pile up about 3 to 4 of them
From: 3arrows
19-Nov-16
More than two is over kill,better to make two piles.Also you should hang some salt spools, kills worms in the spring (xbay).
From: Linecutter
19-Nov-16
My suggestion would be make a smaller entrance and a larger center. Brush piles collapse and make it harder for the rabbit to find shelter let alone escape. Maybe make a 6 inch pipe entrance and expand it to a larger pipe in the center for an area to nest in. The larger the brush pile the more you could put in. Just a thought. DANNY
From: willliamtell
20-Nov-16
Don't forget some running water. Towels optional
From: DonVathome
21-Nov-16
2? Why? bigger open spaces inside? Seems to support my guess they were to small. I really like the 6" pipe idea, not to worried about nesting, they seem to nest in my yard in grass and under landscape fabric all the time! And I have 2 huge dogs!
From: LINK
21-Nov-16
I drive over 30-40 of these every day. There's at least 1 rabbit in nearly every one. Bottom pipe is 6".
From: Linecutter
21-Nov-16
If you live here in Ohio you know some of the winters we have can be brutal on rabbits if they don't have some place to nest up in or you can call it a den. Where I rabbit hunt there some areas we call the junk yards has rolled field fence sheet metal over pallets pieces of drain pipe, piles of broken up concrete, old dryers or washing machines, they will also use old ground hog holes. It gives them a place to escape the weather and live, as well as from predators like me :-). Not knowing what your terrain is like and what kind of cover is available for them during bad weather is the reason I suggested the larger interior if you want to increase the population of rabbits there. I have rabbit hunted the same farm for 39 years and I have seen the cover decrease do the farmer cleaning up some areas (some of the junk yards) and brushy areas turn into small woods. Less rabbit habitat more deer habitat. In this time I have watched the rabbit populations slowly decrease (use to see 20-25/outing now 10-12 is a good day), mostly due to that decreasing cover for them to hide, to seek shelter from the winter weather, and predators. DANNY
From: Fuzzy
21-Nov-16
6" nominal pipe size is >6" ID my 47 pound dog can and will crawl thru a 10" culvert foxes and 'yotes are more motivated and smaller
From: Glunt@work
21-Nov-16
I would do 6" and not worry about predation. A brush pile that foxes and coyotes frequent for dinner isn't a problem, its an opportunity :^)
From: DonVathome
21-Nov-16
Good info! Never thought of holes to get away from cold, really no holes here at all and could be reason for few bunnies. Will make nesting boxes to. Thanks!
From: deerman406
21-Nov-16
I find that funny, plant wild rose, no need for anything but that. I do a traditional rabbit hunt every year and we have taken over 400 shots some years. The secret is plenty of think cover. This is in NY by the way and the areas I hunt have great rabbitat!! Shawn
From: TD
21-Nov-16
Huh...... Never mind.... I was thinking somewhere along the lines of a DIY cannon or mortar tube.......
From: Linecutter
22-Nov-16
deerman406 you are right about the wild rose, only thing is once you get that stuff started it can be darn near impossible to control. Bird eating the seeds and spreading them everywhere and the root system can be very extensive. I know in some of the areas I deer hunt it is a nightmare, you can't penetrate it. It is a very invasive plant. If you can get black berries or raspberry's stated that is something different, good cover and good food source, plus the benefit of the berries for you. DANNY
From: Dennis Razza
22-Nov-16
Old tire off rim with small 5" hole cut one each end for entry and exit. Lay it flat and put brush pile right over tire. Won't rot and they love it! Make sure hole goes to the ground like mini door.
From: smarba
22-Nov-16
Sounds like good idea Razza, to emphasize what I think you are saying, one would want to be sure the hole is right along the bottom edge so that the tire has a way to drain and doesn't get filled with water. Or put a couple of drain holes in the down sidewall.
By the time he incorporates everyone's input, sounds like Don will have a full-scale hampster tube colony on his property LOL!
From: Term
18-May-17
I also Use pallets. Stack 3 flat but all corners pointing in different directions. This closes avenues for foxes and coyotes to get front legs in very far. Then take tin roofing and nail it to the top with excess hanging over the sides. Cover with brush and your done!! I like to put them close to food plots and other stand sights. Fun to see all the wildlife on slow days.
