my rabbit had to baby's yesterday and one of them died and one lived but the mother seemed like she didn't want to care for the one thats alive and i'm worried it might die she has had a litter before but they all dead.... please give some advice on how to help her take care of it
2006-12-20 22:24:14 · 10 answers · asked by tara16701 1 in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Here's two excellent articles on how to care for your bunny family -
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html
I quote from the first article -
"If mama has pulled her fur, it's because she is planning to use it to line the nest. If she hasn't made the nest yet, you can do it for her, and then place the babies in the nest. If mama has already made a nest, then leave it intact, and simply move it to the nest box. A covered litterbox (the type used for cats) makes a good nest box. It should be lined with a towel on the bottom (but make sure the towel has no loose strings or holes, since babies can get tangled and strangled!) topped with a layer of soft hay or straw. The babies in their nest should be placed on top of the hay. Make sure mama sees where her babies are, and then let her choose what to do. The box should be high enough so that the babies can't crawl out, but low enough to allow mama to easily hop in to nurse and hop out when she wants to get away. NOTE THAT MAMA WILL NURSE ONLY ONCE OR TWICE PER DAY, AND THEN "IGNORE" THE BABIES. This does not mean that she has abandoned them. She is merely following her instinct to stay away from the nest to avoid drawing the attention of predators. Don't assume that because you don't see her feeding the babies that she has abandoned them. It is her natural instinct to stay away from the nest. If the babies are warm and wiggly, and their bellies are round, you should not interfere. Bottle feeding almost invariably does more harm than good! If the babies seem cold, shrunken, lethargic, and are more bluish than a healthy, pink color, mama might not be feeding them. Only then should you consider what to do about feeding an orphaned litter - http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html"
All quoted from
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html
- please have a read of these two great articles for lots more info.
And very best of luck to your new bunny family and you all!
2006-12-21 01:00:31 · answer #1 · answered by Lea 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Rabbits don't care for their babies the way cats and dogs do. Generally the mother rabbit nurses her babies once in the morning, once at night, and leaves them covered up and hidden the rest of the day. She doesn't stay with them to keep them warm.
Rabbit milk is extremely high in fat and is why they only need to nurse twice a day. A wild rabbit would need to spend most of their day hunting for food, and that instinct is still there for domestic rabbits.
Leave the baby alone unless you see more than a day go by where the mother doesn't nurse it at all and you're sure she hasn't. Baby rabbits are very hard to bottle feed because of their high fat needs - something that isn't really available over the counter.
Your vet might be able to help, but if not, ask for the number of a local wildlife rehabilitator. They're used to dealing with the babies of wild animals and might be able to better direct you to a formula you can buy or make for the baby.
2006-12-21 00:01:21 · answer #2 · answered by escpthemadnss 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It sounds as if your rabbit has no mothering instinct or is very young herself.
I think you can expect the other baby to die unless you take over the duties of the mother, feed and clean it.
If you decide to do this you will have a long and difficult job on your hands as it will need fed at least every 3 to 4 hours.
Good luck.
2006-12-20 22:30:07 · answer #3 · answered by Bladerunner (Dave) 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When a rabbit has babies they need to be left alone and not really disturbed. If you touch the newborns this can result in her rejecting or in some case they have been know to kill their own offspring. It is a natural instinct, so for example in the wild she would kill them rather than let a fox kill them, if it disturbed her and know where the burrow was. I would say try and let her have as much peace and quiet as possible and i'm sure she will feel more relaxed. However if you are really worried about the remaining kits then please call a vet for proffesional advice. Good luck!!
2006-12-20 22:57:45 · answer #4 · answered by jo jo 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
ive bred my rabbit three times..and have had no luck. (we tried again but keeping her w/an expert) your rabbit seems to not have the capabilities to care for babies properly..this baby might not survive on the mothers care. my mommy took horrible care of the babies and the last litter she didnt seem to feed...tried feeding the litter but they must need mothers milk. what we shoulda done and you might wanna try if theyre not getting nutrition is put the moms nipples up to the babies and let them drink it..see if thatll work..i mean dont push her on them, just do it gently.
other than that its best to leave them alone and see how it turns out.
oh and dont ever touch them w/your hands..the mother will definitely reject. im not even sure if you should feed them w/regular milk..like i said the babies for me died that way..after feeding them the mother rejected the one that was still alive (even though we did not touch them)
lets hope for the best for our babies..mine had babies a few days ago and so far theyre doing fine! pray the one will live
2006-12-21 02:16:49 · answer #5 · answered by Garbo's snowflake 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The mother dos not recive milk after 72 hours (3) days after birth. Rabbits dont nurse their babies like cats and dogs do, they do it all the time and say with thier babies. Rabbits only nurse them maybe once or twice and day and then that is about it.
2006-12-20 22:30:15 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No you ought to no longer take her faraway from them in the event that they don't seem to be in a nest container you ought to get one it is going to save the kits from crawling out of the nest and dieing from the chilly and it will help her to no longer step on them. you will get a nest container from a farm grant save. The nest container must be long sufficient for the rabbit to place down in. Rabbit do no longer tend their youthful like a mom canines or cat will. frequently the only time a mom rabbit might tend to her kits (infant rabbits) is whilst she feeds them it relatively is two circumstances an afternoon early morning and previous due at evening. you may tell if the mum is feeding them the kits might have a rounded abdomen.
2016-10-15 08:59:45 · answer #7 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've got a bunnie! Ok, first of all, it needs somewhere to sleep,rest, and stay. May I sugest a small basket with a blanket or cloth of some sort? Feed it milk ( through a small tube). DON'T touch it very much, and when itgets a little bigger, feed it "thin" vegtables and fruit.(like lettuce and cabbage)
2006-12-20 22:46:20 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
did you touch or pick up the baby? rabbits don't like it when you take their babies, because you leavae your smell on them and they won't take care of them. when my mum was young she had a rabbit and when it had babies, my mums sisiter picked them up, so the rabbit wouldn't care for them and she ate them! seriously, im not joking!
call your vet because the baby is unlikely to live without it's mother!
good luck, hope it works out!
2006-12-20 23:10:20 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
ring the vet aks
2006-12-20 22:27:12 · answer #10 · answered by pen 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋