Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
Okay I just found one of them out of the nest what should I do overnight to make sure they don't come out of the nest? Should I change the nest to a taller wall?
Unexpected Kits!
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There's a good article on rabbit.org called domestic baby bunnies and their mom. Maybe it will help.
What a surprise! I'm glad she had everything all ready for them and made them a nice nest. It's likely this isn't a first litter. Not always, but usually first time mom's don't care for the babies very well.
It can be hard to determine a peanut from a runt sometimes, even for experienced breeders. To me it looks like it could possibly be a peanut, but it also looks like it may just be a runt. I think if there is any doubt, that it is best to give it a chance and keep a close eye on it. If it appears to be doing alright and is feeding well, then it's a runt. If it's skinny, lethargic, and not thriving, even if you are assisting it's feedings with mom(if needed), then it's probably a peanut.
That's quite a bit of fur on those babies. Looks like mom must have gone a couple days overdue. Usually they are born without fur. I agree that you are going to need a different nesting box, or you risk them crawling out, getting separated, and cold(not a good thing). I would suggest using a box with sides high enough to keep the babies from crawling out, but low enough that mom can still hop in. A shoe box or other cardboard box will work. For my 2 lb dwarf doe, the nest box was about 9x12x4(front) and 8(back). This gives mom enough room to move around in but small enough to keep the babies from being able to wander off too far from the center of the nest. Next put some carefresh bedding in the bottom if you have it, or you could even do layers of newspaper. This is to absorb any urine. Add any extra hay that might be needed if there isn't much hay in the nest that your doe already made. Next scoop the top layer of the nest that the momma bun made, with the hay, fur, and babies if they are secure in there(or set them aside somewhere safe until done), and set on top in the new nest box. You want there to be a bit of a hollow towards the back of the nest box where the babies can nestle down into the fur to keep warm. Next, place her litter box where you think she is most likely to want to go, and the nest box in the opposite corner, though you may need to switch if she seems to be using the nest box to pee and not the litter box. Hopefully she doesn't do it in both. You want to keep the nest box clean. If the hay is getting soiled then you will want to clean out the soiled parts as needed.
Mom will usually only feed once or twice a day(morning and/or evening), and usually 'ignore' them the rest of the time. You want to check the babies at least morning and evening for full bellies to make sure she is feeding at least once a day, and to make sure mom is cleaning them and stimulating them to pee. If the bellies look full before they have been fed, she may not be stimulating them and you may need to take over using a warm q tip and gently stimulating near the genitals. You may just want to go ahead and do it anyways. I did with my litter just so I knew it was being done and to avoid any problems from occurring if mom wasn't doing it. Also good to check their noses to make sure they aren't crusting over. Be careful when handling the babies. They are quite squirmy and can literally pop right out of your hand. Best to do any handling close to a soft floor.
Full milk belly
You also need to start gradually increasing mom's food over the next week. She will need more pellets while nursing the babies. You are basically working up to unlimited pellets, but also make sure she is eating hay as well and always has it available. The type of pellets you are feeding is going to matter as well as she will need more protein and calcium for nursing. What type is she getting now?
At about 11 days their eyes open. If they aren't open by 14 days, you may need to very gently use a warm cloth to help them open(never force). Check the eyes to make sure they aren't goopy or cloudy. The bunnies also start exploring around this time, and once you can't keep them in the nest, you then remove the nest box. With a smooth plastic cage bottom, you are going to need to keep hay or something on the floor to give the babies traction so they don't develop problems with their legs. They also won't be using a litter box yet, so need something on the floor that will absorb the urine when they pee all over. I used towels(with no holes or loose strings or frayed edges) and just changed them out regularly.
You want to make sure there is soft leafy hay(thick stems are too hard for the babies to eat) for the babies to start munching on. I was worried about digestive issues occurring from pellets too soon, so I was more careful about when I let my babies get to them. I placed mom's dish higher up so the babies couldn't get to them easily, but mom could. They would get the odd one that mom dropped and I would give them a few more each day, but it wasn't until about 4 weeks that they could reach the pellets and were gradually eating more of them, and were eating mostly hay to begin with. I felt this worked best to help their digestive systems adapt to solid food. It's also good to keep checking their bums every day in case they develop mushy poop from the pellets, as the poop can dry on the opening and plug them up.
You may be able to sex them now or in a couple of days. It can be a bit difficult though. Some are more obvious than others. I actually found it even harder as they got older with all the fur in the way.
“Both pictures of a buck, the one on the left is actual the one on the right is marked in red to make it a little easier to see. There is a little bit of a gap between the penile opening and the anus. This will not be present in the newborn doe.”
“This is a doe. The anus and vent will be touching.”
(http://madhatterrabbits.wordpress.com/2013/01/03/sexing-your-rabbit/)
Weaning usually happens between 5-8 weeks. I like to keep them with mom til 8 weeks if possible, as long as she is tolerating them well. If she is getting fed up with them sooner and starts to nip or bite them, you may have to separate them from mom before 8 weeks, though it would be good if you could still return them to mom just for nursing if she will tolerate it, until they are 8 weeks old. One good thing to have for her in the cage to get away from them pestering her, is a box or something she can hop up on to get away from them for a break.
When to separate the babies, or even mom from babies, depends if you have boys or girls, and how mom does with them in her cage. If you have two does(which you would need to be sure of) and mom is fine with them in her cage and weans them on her own, you may just be able to leave them together with her, until they are old enough to spay and bond. If mom starts getting irritated or fighting starts to occur, you would need to separate. If you have one or two bucks, separate them from mom at 8 weeks, and you may be fine to leave the babies together until 10-12 weeks. I separated mine at 12 weeks.
And ENJOY! Raising baby bunnies is a fun experience
It can be hard to determine a peanut from a runt sometimes, even for experienced breeders. To me it looks like it could possibly be a peanut, but it also looks like it may just be a runt. I think if there is any doubt, that it is best to give it a chance and keep a close eye on it. If it appears to be doing alright and is feeding well, then it's a runt. If it's skinny, lethargic, and not thriving, even if you are assisting it's feedings with mom(if needed), then it's probably a peanut.
That's quite a bit of fur on those babies. Looks like mom must have gone a couple days overdue. Usually they are born without fur. I agree that you are going to need a different nesting box, or you risk them crawling out, getting separated, and cold(not a good thing). I would suggest using a box with sides high enough to keep the babies from crawling out, but low enough that mom can still hop in. A shoe box or other cardboard box will work. For my 2 lb dwarf doe, the nest box was about 9x12x4(front) and 8(back). This gives mom enough room to move around in but small enough to keep the babies from being able to wander off too far from the center of the nest. Next put some carefresh bedding in the bottom if you have it, or you could even do layers of newspaper. This is to absorb any urine. Add any extra hay that might be needed if there isn't much hay in the nest that your doe already made. Next scoop the top layer of the nest that the momma bun made, with the hay, fur, and babies if they are secure in there(or set them aside somewhere safe until done), and set on top in the new nest box. You want there to be a bit of a hollow towards the back of the nest box where the babies can nestle down into the fur to keep warm. Next, place her litter box where you think she is most likely to want to go, and the nest box in the opposite corner, though you may need to switch if she seems to be using the nest box to pee and not the litter box. Hopefully she doesn't do it in both. You want to keep the nest box clean. If the hay is getting soiled then you will want to clean out the soiled parts as needed.
Mom will usually only feed once or twice a day(morning and/or evening), and usually 'ignore' them the rest of the time. You want to check the babies at least morning and evening for full bellies to make sure she is feeding at least once a day, and to make sure mom is cleaning them and stimulating them to pee. If the bellies look full before they have been fed, she may not be stimulating them and you may need to take over using a warm q tip and gently stimulating near the genitals. You may just want to go ahead and do it anyways. I did with my litter just so I knew it was being done and to avoid any problems from occurring if mom wasn't doing it. Also good to check their noses to make sure they aren't crusting over. Be careful when handling the babies. They are quite squirmy and can literally pop right out of your hand. Best to do any handling close to a soft floor.
Full milk belly
You also need to start gradually increasing mom's food over the next week. She will need more pellets while nursing the babies. You are basically working up to unlimited pellets, but also make sure she is eating hay as well and always has it available. The type of pellets you are feeding is going to matter as well as she will need more protein and calcium for nursing. What type is she getting now?
At about 11 days their eyes open. If they aren't open by 14 days, you may need to very gently use a warm cloth to help them open(never force). Check the eyes to make sure they aren't goopy or cloudy. The bunnies also start exploring around this time, and once you can't keep them in the nest, you then remove the nest box. With a smooth plastic cage bottom, you are going to need to keep hay or something on the floor to give the babies traction so they don't develop problems with their legs. They also won't be using a litter box yet, so need something on the floor that will absorb the urine when they pee all over. I used towels(with no holes or loose strings or frayed edges) and just changed them out regularly.
You want to make sure there is soft leafy hay(thick stems are too hard for the babies to eat) for the babies to start munching on. I was worried about digestive issues occurring from pellets too soon, so I was more careful about when I let my babies get to them. I placed mom's dish higher up so the babies couldn't get to them easily, but mom could. They would get the odd one that mom dropped and I would give them a few more each day, but it wasn't until about 4 weeks that they could reach the pellets and were gradually eating more of them, and were eating mostly hay to begin with. I felt this worked best to help their digestive systems adapt to solid food. It's also good to keep checking their bums every day in case they develop mushy poop from the pellets, as the poop can dry on the opening and plug them up.
You may be able to sex them now or in a couple of days. It can be a bit difficult though. Some are more obvious than others. I actually found it even harder as they got older with all the fur in the way.
“Both pictures of a buck, the one on the left is actual the one on the right is marked in red to make it a little easier to see. There is a little bit of a gap between the penile opening and the anus. This will not be present in the newborn doe.”
“This is a doe. The anus and vent will be touching.”
(http://madhatterrabbits.wordpress.com/2013/01/03/sexing-your-rabbit/)
Weaning usually happens between 5-8 weeks. I like to keep them with mom til 8 weeks if possible, as long as she is tolerating them well. If she is getting fed up with them sooner and starts to nip or bite them, you may have to separate them from mom before 8 weeks, though it would be good if you could still return them to mom just for nursing if she will tolerate it, until they are 8 weeks old. One good thing to have for her in the cage to get away from them pestering her, is a box or something she can hop up on to get away from them for a break.
When to separate the babies, or even mom from babies, depends if you have boys or girls, and how mom does with them in her cage. If you have two does(which you would need to be sure of) and mom is fine with them in her cage and weans them on her own, you may just be able to leave them together with her, until they are old enough to spay and bond. If mom starts getting irritated or fighting starts to occur, you would need to separate. If you have one or two bucks, separate them from mom at 8 weeks, and you may be fine to leave the babies together until 10-12 weeks. I separated mine at 12 weeks.
And ENJOY! Raising baby bunnies is a fun experience
Last edited:
Sugarbread
English Angora Momma
How are the kits doing?
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
Well they both survived the night, I was making sure momma gave extra feedings to the Tiny one. She was moving a lot less then yesterday though. Went on with my day and just got home, I went to check on them all and the tiny one passed on. :nerves1 *Sigh* I'm okay though. I named her/Him (Thinking its a her) Chloe. The other one is nice and plump though, little fatty! mama is feeding the kit just fine and is still pulling a little hair out of her to make more nest.
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
JBun: WOW! Thanks for all of that information! It really helped =) thank you so much for taking out the time to write all of that for me!
Sugarbread
English Angora Momma
Awe, well nature took its course, rip little bunny 🙏🐰
Keep us updated on the remaining kit! Are you thinking you'll be keeping the kit?
Keep us updated on the remaining kit! Are you thinking you'll be keeping the kit?
Sorry to hear about the little one but very glad the black one is thriving. Keep us posted...
but very glad the black one is thriving. Keep us posted...
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
So it's the sixth day being alive soon it should open its eyes! It's a she I believe as well! View attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419301358.629725.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419301375.175757.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419301401.618573.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419301445.984812.jpg
She's getting so big so fast as well! If the other one was still alive I believe I would have not been able to carry both in one hand still x) how or when can you start to tell what type it is? I'm kinda wondering if it's a lop. Since I don't know the dad I guess I will have to wait and see huh?
She's getting so big so fast as well! If the other one was still alive I believe I would have not been able to carry both in one hand still x) how or when can you start to tell what type it is? I'm kinda wondering if it's a lop. Since I don't know the dad I guess I will have to wait and see huh?
She is just precious
ladysown
Well-Known Member
it's not black.. if it was the ears would be black inside. eyes up from day 9 to day 12. depends on breed. might be a silver marten in colour.. black or sable. white snip on head means vienna gene most likely present. ears look (at this point) to short to be lops.
woahlookitsme
Well-Known Member
Looks blue otter or blue silver marten. Weird that the white marking on the head showed up. There's the Vienna gene in there somewhere. All baby rabbits look alike so you won't be able to tell what might have mated with mom until it's older. Even then it still may not be apparent as rabbits do not breed true when crossed between breeds unlike dogs
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
She opened her eyes at 7 days old!!! I'm in love lol. Exactly what is the Vienna gene??? I couldn't get a good picture with eyes open though xC View attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419400307.491660.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1419400335.558178.jpg
The vienna gene is the one that produces blue eyes in rabbits, and also gives white blotchy markings on the coat, often in the "dutch" pattern, but it can be something as simple as a white blaze, or single paw on an otherwise uniformly coloured rabbit. A blue-eyed white rabbit has the vienna gene passed on from both parents.
woahlookitsme
Well-Known Member
She's adorable! Color is Vienna marked blue otter. Can't wait to see her at 2 weeks of age! If you can believe it they get even cuter when more fluff comes in!
It probably opened it's eyes so early because it seemed to have been born a few days late, judging by the amount of fur it was born with.
I agree, they just get cuter! Wait til it starts crawling out of the nest(any day now) and taking it's first steps and hops. I have a few videos from my baby buns growing up. I love to watch them sometimes and remember how adorable they were and how fun it was raising them.
I agree, they just get cuter! Wait til it starts crawling out of the nest(any day now) and taking it's first steps and hops. I have a few videos from my baby buns growing up. I love to watch them sometimes and remember how adorable they were and how fun it was raising them.
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
I'm still unsure if I will sell her, and she seems to be getting out of nest already she wants out and not to stay in nest, lol and I figured that was the case. Is it okay to let her out of the nest now? She seems to want out badly. I've caught her out like three times today I've put balls in the way of the area to exit nest to block her from getting out. and I've been taking tons of vids of her walking all shakily already lol she's getting much steadier
She's okay to explore the cage area, but watch her. Kits are good escape artists!
Lady_TOX
Well-Known Member
So if I let her walk around is it only for a little then put her back in or just let her roam freely
