A White and Grey Rabbit in Toronto's Milliken Park

On a recent walkabout in Milliken Park, in Toronto, Bob and I were surprised to see, hopping about the lawns and gardens, an unusual looking rabbit. Unlike our common Cottontail Rabbit, this rabbit was white with a smokey grey snout and a grey wash on its hind quarters. Could it be that someone’s pet escaped and is now making the park its home? Or is it possible that someone released their pet for no longer wanting to care for it?

The sleek, elegant rabbit was leery of our presence, like any wild rabbit would be, suggesting that it had been in the wild for sometime. We had to move cautiously to avoid scaring it away now that the rabbit has become feral.

Confident in its camouflage there on the wood chips and in amongst the dried grass, the rabbit lazily stretched out and relaxed.

It was an unusually hot afternoon, so the heat of the sun was making the rabbit drowsy.

We surmise that this white and grey rabbit will now remain one of Milliken Park’s residents. I wonder if we’ll see the results of cross-breeding with the Cottontails that populate this city’s green space. I’m sure it won’t take too long to tell. In the meantime, it seems that this tame rabbit gone wild is surviving quite well.