baby cottontails

[kyliegp]

Hi guys, I'm new here (and to rabbits really...) and was hoping to get some advice for my new buns. Now I know with wild rabbits people say leave them be, mom only comes back to the nest twice a day, but in this case there was no nest anywhere to be found. One of the poor babies had crawled into a tim hortons cup for shelter from the wind. We came back hours later and they were still there out in the open on a very cold day. I contacted humane societies, vets, and wildlife rehab centers but no one had the means to take them on. One died on the first night, and I now have two very seemingly healthy babies.

So anyways, I've been feeding them KMR mixed with a little acidophilus (2ml in the morning and 2ml at night), stimulating them to poop and whatnot, and they've come a long way since the first couple days where they wouldn't eat or poop. I suspect they are 5 days old and I've contacted breeders in the area that will hopefully give me some cecotropes for when they reach that age.

So as this is my first time any other advice from formula recipes to what age to do what and anything in between would be greatly appreciated by both me and the tiny buns

 

[Ana_The_Dreamer]

I helped care for baby cottontails when I volunteered at a wild life shelter, so I'll try to help as much as I can. I had to dig out a bit of information to answer your questions.
Age and Amount (This WILL vary so much depending on type of rabbit. It is impossible over the internet to see your particular rabbit, so this is only approximate.) You can use KMR kitten or KMR kitten plus Goat milk, regular not low fat (never cow's milk). Add a pinch of acidophilus (aka Probiotic) to the formula to promote healthy gut flora. (As you're already doing I see) Formulas vary depending on region. Avoid Esbilac and any puppy formulas! Feed twice a day only for healthy babies. It may be easiest to start with a 3 cc/ml syringe or an eyedropper. Feed only with the bunny sitting upright, and point syringe down towards bottom or side of mouth, so if too much comes out, the baby does not aspirate. At first, they may only take a few drops at one feeding until they are not stressed and used to it.
Newborn to One Week: 2 – 2+1/2 cc/ml each feeding (two feedings per day).
1-2 weeks: 5-7 cc/ml each feeding (two feedings per day). (depending on bunny..may be much less if smaller rabbit!) Newborn babies (if eyes closed) all need to be stimulated to urinate and defecate prior to or following feeding until their eyes open.
2-3 weeks: 7-13 cc/ml each feeding (two feedings). Domestic eyes open around about 10 days of age. Start introducing them to timothy and oat hay, pellets and water. As well as fresh greens! Dandelion greens and hay are very important for wild rabbits.
3-6 weeks: 13-15 cc/ml each feeding (two feedings–again, may be less depending on size of rabbit! Possibly half this at most.) Cottontails wean and release about 3-4 weeks whereas domestic rabbits are 6 weeks.
Only handle a wild bunny only during feedings because excessive handling can be extremely stressful or potentially deadly. Most die from overfeeding and|or stress.
Here's another recipe for formula if you don't want to use the one I listed above:
[FONT=Verdana,]RABBIT MILK FORMULA[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,]1 can of sweetened condensed milk or fresh goat's milk (don't use cow's milk) [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,]3 tablespoons heavy cream [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,]3 tablespoons Karo corn syrup[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,]1 egg yolk[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Combine ingredients in a plastic bowl. Warm in microwave and heat mixture until it's slightly above room temperature. Test it by putting a few drops of the formula on your wrist first because you don't want to accidentally scald the babies. [/FONT]
I would read this article to find more information, it's very helpful:
http://www.2ndchance.info/bunnies.htm
I hope you can find a professional to care for your wild bunnies!! Wild rabbits need an experienced caretaker or it's likely they won't survive.

 

[kyliegp]

good stuff thank you
turns out my boyfriends dad knows a guy thats breeding bunnies, do you think a foster mom with babies the same age is a possibility or would she reject them because they're so different from her own?

 

[Ana_The_Dreamer]

I have heard of domesticated orphan rabbits being put with a "foster mom" but I'm not sure if that's the same case in a wild orphan situation.. perhaps someone else on this forum will be able to answer you.

 

[JBun]

They're cute little guys I'm glad that they are doing well.

The problem you may encounter asking someone to foster them to one of their does, is that they may not want to risk their own rabbits possibly contracting an illness from the wild babies.

The link posted above is a good link with good info regarding rearing wild orphaned babies.

 

[kyliegp]

thanks for all the input guys I've read the links, very helpful I was just stimulating one after feeding and he tensed up and bam peed all over me, it went on FOREVER half his body weight must have been pee, I've never seen one of them pee before kinda surprised me for a second haha. Thing is it was sort of brown? I read online that rabbit pee can vary from clear to dark and its fine but since they're being hand raised I just want to make sure

 

[Ivythelionhead]

Oh such cute little things, I hope they survive and live a healthy happy life.

 

[lovelops]

I've also helped rehab cotton tails and found for weak ones if you fed them only twice a day the weak ones would die off. We fed them more often like 4-5 times a day and they thrived and grew up to 6 weeks and we strong enough to be let out back into the wild. I know the mother only feeds them once in the wild, but once again that is natural selection. The wild life rehab here in MD feeds more than twice a day. Everyone is different..

Ana the dreamer, that rabbit milk formula with kayo syrup is not really valid and I've found has killed more baby rabbits then helped. My rehab only gave Kitten Replacement milk or Goats Milk, nothing else. I've seen this on the internet for years and someone I know that gave it to their rabbits, domestic had them all die.
No one thrived after the mother, a Holland Lop died after giving birth. Most of the mix will give them bloat... I'm not posting this to be confrontational, because
I came across that when I first started raising Chico and Chica my dwarfs when their mother died, and also the other cotton tails I rehabbed. I wish that mix
could be taken off the internet because I bet it has harmed more bunnies than helped..


Vanessa

 

[Ana_The_Dreamer]

Oh I didn't take your post as confrontational at all, lovelops. I was just doing work last night and thought "Hm. Maybe I should go back and advise the cottontail person just to stick with the KMR." so I came on this morning to make another comment and here you did already. I've known of people using the recipe before, but never of the kits dying from it, so that's good for me to keep in mind.

 

[Ana_The_Dreamer]

I've known of people using the recipe before, but never of the kits dying from it, so that's good for me to keep in mind.

Since I can't seem to edit, I meant to say: I've known of people using the recipe before but just not liking the results as much as that of the KMR, but never of the kits dying from it, so that's good for me to keep in mind.