Nothing keeps down rabbits more thoroughly than a soaking wet summer;
while heavy rains drown the partridge and pheasant broods above ground,
they also drown the little rabbits in their furry nests below. Yet in
times of drought, when herbage is parched and sapless, the keeper who
supplies water for the rabbits to drink in arid, sandy warrens does
much for the prosperity of the does and their young. Rabbits eat their
young when in want of water, and a dry summer puts a check on the
increase of rats, since the old ones kill the young for their blood.
With rabbits, a favourite place is always a dry spot by the side of
water, although the ground is likely to be favoured by stoats. Rabbits
found in such places are always extra fine and fat.
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