Agoraphobic hare scared to leave house

Once upon a time, there was a hare called Frances who was afraid to go out. Only this is no fairy tale - Frances really is an agoraphobic hare. Ever since she had a run-in at a few days old with a plow, she has been scared of the outside.

Now Frances spends her days lazing round the home of her adoptive parents, the Naylor family, watching TV, drinking puppy milk and playing. ‘I have tried to get her to go into a run in the garden outside but she gets spooked,’ said John Naylor, who took Frances off the farmer who almost hit her.

The wildlife artist, 50, from Langtoft, East Yorkshire, added: ‘Maybe one day she will get over her fear. She has the run of the house and is very intelligent, she’s an amazing creature.’ Now three months old, the leveret is friends with the family dog, a terrier called Mouse, and adored by children, Eve, six, and four-year-old George.



Mother Suzy said the hare could be naughty and has chewed through many wires and nibbled on the carpets. ‘You can’t get angry with her because she is so cute and is now a much-loved member of the family,’ she added.