wild baby bunny nest

Question
last week our dog found a rabbits nest in the back yard he brought one of the babies to me , which i put back in the nest.  He looked to be ok.  later that night I went back out to check and found the nest to have been disturb again. but it must of been the cat next door.  One was still alive looked ok and I put him back again another not so lucky.  I have seen the mother come to the nest and feed it was very cool. I know she dose not stay and only comes a couple of times a day.  with that all said we have not let the dog out in the yard he is a bit upset but i told him not till the baby is gone.  The cat next door did not want to hear that and I see her creeping around.  Can I keep her away some how or cover the nest somehow that mom would still come and feed if she seen something over the nest but could still get in by a opening. Thank you for any advice you could give me to protect the nest till baby is not so defenseless or (a sitting duck) thank you

Answer
Dear Jo Anna,

It makes me crazy when people let their cats outside to murder wildlife.  Cats should be kept indoors for their own safety, as well as that of the native fauna.

That said, the only thing that will keep the cat out is a cat fence:

http://www.catfencein.com/

which can be installed on your fence backwards to keep the cats out.

Alternatively, you can squirt the cat with a hose every time you see it to deter and discourage it from hanging around.

Since the nest already has been disturbed, I'd be loathe to do anything else that might scare off mama, such as putting a basket partially over it.  There's no guarantee that would keep the cat away, and might even attract the cat's attention.

You could also ask your neighbor to keep the cat inside until the babies are old enough to leave the nest, though my experience with cat owners suggests this might not work.  But it's worth a try.

If you know the direction from which the cat comes into your yard, you could install a motion-detector sprinkler, which will work very well to keep the nuisance out of your yard:

http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/scarecrow.htm

Might be too late for this nest, but good to have in the future.

I hope the babies and mama will be fine!

Dana