Bark deteriorated crab apple tree

Question: Below are recent photos of bark that appears to be chewed off our tree. It is a crab apple tree. Any ideas to help maintain the tree, and to prevent this from the future. We aren’t sure what did this or how it occurs. As the snow melted, this is what we found. 
Please advise,

responder: eGardener  Replied April 06, 2023, 12:28 PM EDT
response: Hello Marilyn, Your tree has been chewed by either voles or rabbits. If the damage is higher up on the trunk or if that's ground level I'm seeing in the photo. If higher, then it's probably rabbits. Voles only chew at the base of trees because they tunnel under the snow pack. I can't tell from the photo if the tree was chewed completely around its circumference but if it has, it will die. The layer under the bark that is nutritious for animals is also the lifeline of water and nutrients for the tree's canopy. If that's gone, there's no way for the tree to get its nourishment. You may see some leafing out in spring but that's due to residual energy supplies in the upper part of the tree. Those leaves will drop off eventually. If it hasn't been completely girdled, there isn't much you can do for the wound. Just be sure it is kept dry by not letting sprinklers hit it and keeping mulch from touching it. Also, make sure the tree gets sufficient water for the entire growing season until the ground freezes next winter. Start checking for when the ground dries out a bit after the snow has melted before beginning the watering program. Good-luck!

responder: The Question Asker Replied April 06, 2023, 3:46 PM EDT
response: Thanks for the reply.  Snow is still covering ground level and is packed in there. We put repellent around it and wrapped area w Saran Wrap til it thaws . The damage is all around the tree trunk. Then I thought I’d use a tree bark wrap this spring and a rabbit fence. . It is in between 2 in ground sprinkler heads, so it will get watered. Life of tree likely shortened… Hope to get it healthy, but we will see and deal with it when it dies. Also 2 nearby shrub branches are stripped. Thought I’d just prune those down. Going to put couple repellents around, one pelletsfor voles and put mothballs around. Any other ideas or thoughts on saving the tree?  or keeping the rabbits and voles away?

responder: eGardener  Replied April 06, 2023, 4:03 PM EDT
response: Hello Marilyn, It's better to encircle the tree base with 1/4" hardware cloth to keep the voles out in winter. I recommend doing that in the fall before it snows. The stuff is a bit hard to cut (you'll need wire cutters) but the quarter inch size of the holes will keep the smallest voles off the base of trees. For taller critters like rabbits, you can set up chicken wire fences around your trees since those come in 3' heights. The trick is to shovel the snow away from them so that the snow pack doesn't build up high enough for rabbits to cross over the fences to get to the tree bark. A chicken wire fence can also protect shrubs. It takes being observant of how high the snow is and when to shovel. Some years we get lucky and there's just a few inches of constant snow pack and you won't have to shovel. I agree, you could prune out the damaged parts of the shrubs when you can get out to them. Here is a link to information about how to protect your trees and shrubs from winter damage. I hope this helps.