Are there wildlife organizations in the UK who might offer behavioral information on rabbits specific to the British Isles? I personally don't know if we share common species on this side of the pond. Not to be unkind, but the rabbit attack sounds like something out of a Monty Python skit--but certainly believable!
The wild cottontail bunnies on our ranch frequently eat the chicken feed my hens have billed out of their feeders. And the bunnies were the first to learn how to use the pedal (treadle) chicken feeders; squirrels learned next, some hens never learned! The rabbits here, so far, have always been well-behaved and are unafraid of my comings and goings during morning chook chores. Some of my hens, however, have pecked the bunnies on the head if they get too close.
The wild cottontail bunnies on our ranch frequently eat the chicken feed my hens have billed out of their feeders. And the bunnies were the first to learn how to use the pedal (treadle) chicken feeders; squirrels learned next, some hens never learned! The rabbits here, so far, have always been well-behaved and are unafraid of my comings and goings during morning chook chores. Some of my hens, however, have pecked the bunnies on the head if they get too close.