“There’s a dead rabbit in the yard,” I sighed to my wife as I came in the house. We had reached the end of a long week, and rest was just one mowed lawn away. I discovered what was once a rabbit as I walked around the house to remove the downspout extensions before starting to mow the lawn. It was an unpleasant sight, and yet another reminder of the unexpected thrills that come with home ownership.

The rabbit could not have decided to rest in peace at a worse time for me. The rain earlier in the day meant I was procrastinating mowing until the last possible moment in an effort for the lawn to dry out. Family coming over the next night meant this new discovery needed to be dealt with quickly, and, to top it off, today had been trash day, meaning it would still be in our lives for a whole week.

This creature was clearly killed by some other animal and came to rest just inches from the edge of my yard. If it had been dragged just slightly further, none of this would be my problem. A phone call to my parents and several minutes of Internet consulting resulted in an action plan to remove the hare. Could you just throw it away in the trash? Do I need to dispose of it in a certain place? Turns out, this entirely depends on your community. I did some quick searching for the Albert Lea area for you and came up short. There do seem to be a few businesses who will take care of the cleanup for you if you desire, but you can do the Googling to find them in your personal time of need.

This was not the first rabbit that has crossed our path this season, though it is our first deceased one. Our garden, though unplanted, has been called home by many of the neighborhood rabbits. I imagine this will be a problem next year when we envision a fertile garden blossoming with fresh vegetables, but until then, I’ll let the rabbits enjoy their sanctuary. They’ve likely been here longer than us, anyway.

When the previous homeowners returned the curtain rod they accidentally took from our home, they left a note remarking how they are already missing the bunnies in the backyard. With the large quantity we have, I wouldn’t mind if they’d packed some to take to their new place. After the outcome of this most recent rabbit, it seems like the bunnies wouldn’t mind a vacation home far away. I’m guessing none of their brethren died on the previous owner’s watch.

Sera’s dutiful response to my announcement of the rabbit’s presence in our yard was a surprising offer of assistance. Her curious nature drew her out of the house, but her weak stomach brought her back in. This was a job for her husband, and only him. Much like the spider I removed from the bathroom weeks ago, my wife was only interested in it to verify its death.

Days later Sera’s impulsive nature took hold as I hastened out the door behind her child-like call of, “Follow me, I have an idea!” I found her at the sight of the rabbit’s death with a fresh peach pit in her left hand and a shovel in her right. With no regard to our landscaping or a peach tree’s ability to grow in Minnesota, Sera was ready to plant a tree in remembrance of our rabbit friend.

As I reflect back on this moment, I realize I should have let her do it. The practical husband in me reminded her that it’s a stupid place for a tree. It won’t grow into a tree anyway, and I didn’t want another place to plant grass seed in a few weeks. Plus, mowing around a dirt plot where you know a tree will never grow didn’t sound like my ideal mowing strategy for the rest of the summer. After a final consult from the Internet, we returned indoors half-heartedly. I was to discard of the peach pit (it now waits with the rabbit to be picked up) and have since taken note to not so quickly abolish my wife’s innocent plans.

I’m not sure what our next deceased wildlife creature will be, but I hope it doesn’t come for many years (and that it’s small). And don’t worry, I’ll take note to purchase seedless produce in the days following that sad event to ensure my yard doesn’t sprout any new trees in remembrance of the life lost.

 

Rochester resident Matt Knutson is the communications and events director for United Way of Olmsted County.