Beech Hedge Bark Stripped

I have just been out to water my purple bech hedge that I planted 14 months ago and have noticed that a couple of my trees have had parts of their bark stripped. The trees are only about 2ft high but the area stripped is about an inch in height in three places near the base. I have also noticed quite a number of ants crawling up the trees - could these be the culprit?

Is there anything I can put around the affected bark to protect it from disease and if the ants are the problem what is the best way to deal with them. Any help much appreciated.

 

It's more likely to be rabbits!

 

If it is rabbits, you can buy guards for the tree trunks to protect them.

 

Thanks for your replies.

I don't think it is rabbits that have caused the damage to my bushes as the bushes are planted between mine and my neighbours adjoining driveways which front onto a residential road. There are no fields/open spaces where rabbits usually inhabit.

Could it possibly have been caused by a cat as we do have quite a few of the pesky things around here.