Monday, May 22, 2006
Rabbits have nothing to fear from Zeke
From the RoundTable blog
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My cat Zeke, who understands completely his membership in the Family of Lions, crouched low in the grass, his ears back, his tail still, not 10 feet from a grazing rabbit.
Did the rabbit feel this mighty predator's eyes on him?
It seems not.
Twitchy little rabbit ears, nibbly little pinkish mouth. The rabbit grazed closer, closer, closer to Zeke, while only Zeke's eyes moved, tracking the rabbit's herky-jerky, apparently nonchalant movements.
Finally, maybe the rabbit sensed a little something wrong. A little something out of the ordinary. Because, this rabbit stood up on his hind feet and rubbed his little hands together.
I am not kidding you.
"Oh, dear! Oh, dear! Oh, dear! What is that? What is that?" The rabbit seemed to be looking Zeke's way.
Zeke did not move.
Then, with a little sigh of relief, the rabbit plopped back down into the clover.
Now, Zeke made his move ... a streak of gray fur! A swift and terrible burst of speed!
Well, so much for mighty predatory moves. Maybe that's why the rabbit seemed so unconcerned all along. Zeke never closed even an inch on that rabbit. Wham! The rabbit was out of there, shaking his little white tail behind him.
Oh me, oh my. Casually, not even out of breath, Zeke ambled over to the porch and snuggled up beside me on the swing. "Did you see that?" he purred. "I let him get away. You know that, don't you?"
I tell you, these rabbits in my yard this year are so unconcerned by me and the cats they don't even look up when we walk by. Even I have gotten within 10 feet of these rabbits this year. Of course, I'm never really going to try to catch one. I know better than that. But ... do the rabbits know better than that? It seems they do.
For a while this spring, when the rabbits stayed so calmly in my presence, I worried about their safety, given the presence of my many cats. But among my cats, only Zeke has the necessary skills and youth to possibly catch a rabbit. And now I know the rabbits are safe, even from Zeke.
Zeke, the Mighty Hunter. Zeke, the Terrible. How many mornings have I found the leavings of his nightly hunts in gory little piles on the porch? Mice, beware!
But the rabbits, it's clear, have nothing to fear.
Of all the wild life that skitters through my yard, I think I like the rabbits best. They seem so familiar and approachable, as if I might actually manage to reach out and pet one someday.
Once, when the nephews were still very young, they spotted a rabbit in the woods. "Look! A rabbit!" they squealed, absolutely enchanted. Their first wild life spotting on their own!
Now, these boys drive fast cars, hold jobs, hunt with guns, shave.
But whenever I spot a rabbit in the yard, I still hear their little-boy voices. "Oh, wow!"
Yes. Oh, wow. Rabbits.
Beautiful rabbits.
