do you need the father with the mother and the babies or is it better to keep them apart
2006-09-12 02:51:58 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
No! You never want papa in with mama...he will eat the babies!! It's a territory thing...plus they can be very aggressive when they jump around, and can seriously injure and kill them that way as well.
2006-09-12 06:01:12 · answer #1 · answered by Kellye B 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I raised rabbits for years, so please trust me on this. The buck needs to be separated from the doe about a week after they breed. Female rabbits want to be alone during gestation. If the father is present, the doe will become very nervous and won't build a nest many times and if she does, the father will eat or stomp the babies as soon as they are born. Believe it or not there are times when the doe will eat her own young and many times this can be due to a vitamin deficiency. Do you know approximately what day she conceived? The gestation period lasts from about 25 to 31 days. I was told by my vet to actually place a couple of fresh strips of raw bacon in her cage a few days before the babies are born. This is very effective in building the mother's system up so that she is not depleted and therefore will not consume her young. "If" she does eat her babies anyway even if she is given the perfect quiet environment and given bacon, she is likely to do it again and again, so it's best to never breed her again.
What kind of nest box does she have? Be sure to line it with soft straw and don't freak out when she pulls wads of her own fur out to line it with;) Also try and make sure her nest box has some type of strip across the bottom so the babies can't "roll" out. It needs to be at leas 3" high.
Hope this helps! Good luck with your bunnies. There is nothing cuter than a 2 week old bunny with it's little eyes open chasing each other around. All this has made me want to go out an buy a couple. LOL
2006-09-12 10:26:26 · answer #2 · answered by ? 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Keep the male away from the mother and babies. It is that way with many an animal. It is even sometimes best to separate the human male from mother and child. The male of just about any species is a dangerous animal.
2006-09-12 10:27:13 · answer #3 · answered by Pepsi 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If she is pregnant, she'll start to make a nest with hay and with her own fur - make sure she has plenty of hay, and somewhere safe and cosy to make her nest - yes, keep her separate from the father - keep her in her own cage/hutch so that she feels safe there.
Her pregnancy will last for 28 to 32 days, and then let her do her own thing and look after her babies for at least eight weeks!
This article will give you a lot of help -
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html
Very best of luck!
2006-09-13 09:59:30 · answer #4 · answered by Lea 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Do not let the father stay in the same area as mom. He will kill and eat the new babies, which takes 30 days to full term.
2006-09-12 10:14:01 · answer #5 · answered by skyeblue 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. Rabbits particularly males can be cannibalistic around infant rabbits. The Buck should be separated.
2006-09-12 09:57:45 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Please don't breed your rabbit. Each time you bring a baby in you are taking a loving home from a rabbit that is already in a shelter who may be killed due to lack of space and funds.
2006-09-12 10:36:02 · answer #7 · answered by sugarcarat 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Who knows, they are only rabbits
2006-09-12 09:54:47 · answer #8 · answered by Ichi 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I wish your can oder for them verey well .
2006-09-12 09:56:34 · answer #9 · answered by Abdumalik A 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋