Baby wild bunnies

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Prob is I don't have alot around the house where they are. She had them sort of under the grill which is how we found them but we were using the grill and was afraid the heat would be too much.

Thats when I gave them the basket. Do you think I should cut two holes into it? I only have a big one in the front. Momma bunny isnt very big.

Someone told me to put carrots, timothy hay and lettus for them. I haven't because I really don't want to attract any critters to my house, also not sure if its safe for them to eat.

I can't wait for them to start hopping around. They are so cute and I will prob worry more when they arnt protected in the nest.

We do have some shrubbs in the back yard that is were mom hides.
 
I wouldn't put anything out to eat. The babies need to learn to forage for themselves. Plus the fact that putting out food will attract other animals to your property.

You are doing all you can to help these babies get off on the right foot! You can only do so much for wild animals. It's up to them to learn to survive. It's that "Mother Nature" thing. Only the stronges survives.

K:)
 
I feel like thier mother lol. My husband rolled his eyes because as soon as I heard rain today first thing I thought of is the babies are going to get wet and cold.

Don't laugh I'm an animal person at heart and wild or not I can't help myself. I found an old tarp in our garage so I put that over the two grills and made a nice warm or at least dry place for them.

Mama bunny was here this morning and fed them and shes in the yard now so I'm guessing shes coming to feed them again.

Now I'm worried because one of the babies left the nest is under the grill. Will he go back into the nest? I'm going to drive myself crazy with worry.
 
Babies have left:( When I came home from work they were all out of the nest and hiding under the grill but when I went to check on them they were no where to be seen.

I looked all over the yard but only with a flash light.

Will they come back? They are still so small I hope nothing gets them. We have two beagles that live behide us.
 
They won't come back to the nest. That part of a bunny's life is done. You might see one in the yard, but I think your baby bunnies are now on their own. Hoping they stay away from the neighbor's beagles too.

K:)
 
Will they still hang out in my yard or will they just venture out. I did see two of them this morning right around where the nest is some grass.

I just worry about when I let the dogs out if I don't see them hidding in the grass. Let alone when I have to mow. I told my husband I was going to walk in front of the mower to make sure he didn't run one over.

Mom is still hanging out I saw her this morning.
 
The babies are observant at that age, but they do freeze when frightened. So I would watch when mowing and the dogs.

Mom will stay around because she found a good place to give birth. You may get another nest soon. Mom sounds like she's looking around again. We have a lot of test holes in our backyard. Babies will stay around for a bit because it's what they know. But as they get older, they will venture to find their own place. They are all individuals.

But just keep watch.

K:)
 
This thread has proved helpful, 3 days age my Beagle mix found a nest in part of my garden that I haven't turned yet. They are fine and the eyes are now open. Mom seems to be caring for them. I knew enough to leave them alone but my thoughts were confirmed by the information shared here. I am waiting for mom to move them so my dogs can roam in my fenced yard again. for now it's the tie outs or leashes in a different part. AND I now have to plant marigolds around the vegtables.....they're cute but it doesn't mean I want my vegatables snacked on.
My only other concern is that the big 2 1/2' gardner snake that lives in the wood pile finds them before they get to big for it....well thats the way it was meant to be.
 
Females tend to stay in the area, males have a larger territory range. Three to five acres for females, seven acres for males. They'll range where protection and good forage is available.

sheltieluver: great job on watchful eyes for the infants and juveys. Still keep your eyes on alert for the weeks ahead. -- And all hawk-safe cover, predator-prowlin' cover will give the wee ones the best chance of survival.

I am unaware of mom's moving babies to a different area once she births, but I will ask my rehab friend who's got little ones right now, preparing for eventual release of the 20-30 e/c's in her care.

My hubby and I observed mom cottontail (named Hutch Beeler) instruct her youngens to move to the arbor cove. We couldn't hear exactly the whispers she said ... "kids, it ain't safe here anymore, follow me to this spot" - but watched in amazement as several approx. 13-day old youngsters darted on weak legs to a cove where brush piles, logs and protective natural habitat items allowed more seclusion and protection. Then we watched as they would run out to nurse from mom for a few more days until mom no longer visited.
^This was the same day that a Cooper's hawk swooped down to snatch the last one and mom turned on the Cooper's.

(Eventually the gold vagrant domestic cat carried away a juvey from the litter who had run to seek cover in the tall plants by the neighbor's garage).

** Beeler J the female from that the front yard litter grew up in our yard w/ protective spots and lived for 5 1/2 years. Beeler J would nibble cilantro and oats during the winter months when she hid under our deck. An occasional romaine section when it did not freeze.

Try to keep things like plaintain, clover, wide grasses and timothy grass in your yard near edge habitat. From our experiences wild ones will eat old-fashioned oats and apples fallen to the ground, or offered by humans when winter arrives. Bark and twigs from brush piles is great. My friend has a mom cottontail JFur who has survived in his yard since 2008 and she'll eat the supplemental oats (or granola) he sets out when snow piles are high. She was a rehab patient of mine.

I hope all of you will have the joy of seeing cottontails! Petunias are helpful to plant as cottontails we've observed will nibble the flowers right off the stalks. :)

OxyRabbit, hope the little ones get big quickly and can feel safe in any areas you provide. At our house, we focus on protection spots.


 
If anyone is interested in seeing the blog and photos we kept, you can PM.

Stay safe and protected.
 
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=46787&forum_id=16

Wild Baby Bunny in House (RIP) Sun May 17, 2009

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Dandelions!! Dandelions!! :) ^ Extra RO thread links on eastern cottontail input

myheart, I'm truly rooting for the momma cottontail you see in your yard so she'll stay safe.

We've got an e/c youngster we are keeping an eye on in our flower&bush island habitat plus our edge habitat at the moment.

Momma cottontail was seen across the street about two weeks ago by the huge Hughes Juniper. We saw her pulling fur from her body (gathering it in her mouth)
May:brownbunny-27-12 @ 8 pm by our blue spruce.

Cottontails need to find alternate safe havens to evade predators. Once they feel secure in a certain territory, you'll likely enjoy their presence. Best Wishes ~


 
wildliferehabber.com - Bunny Brochure - this article submitted by Mary Anna Babcock

http://wildliferehabber.com/modules/wildlifesection/item.php?itemid=14

"Cottontails are not physically able to move their young either with their mouths or with their feet so if an occupied nest is suddenly empty it has most likely be predated. Mom rabbits cannot find a nest of bunnies that has been moved although some success has been realized by moving the nest no more than a few feet each day until the nest is out of danger."

^ From the Bunny Brochure article on wildliferehabber.com

TF input: - Cottontails have been kept by concerned humans and lived up to the age of 5 to 9 years; such as when a field injury will sever a leg and the cottontail is now impaired. Special permits are obtained. It is not impossible for cottontails to thrive in appropriate captivity settings. Two acquaintances and one super knowledgeable friend have kept cottontails in their homes before the laws were widely publicized. --

-- When rehabbing juveys we noted on a rare occasion that one would dash against the side of the hutch while preparing for a release (a soft release is when they are housed in protective wire units outdoors on hay and supplemented with weeds and greens' feedings ;) to acclimate to nature sounds). We would give small bits of apples to our patients. Nothing like kale or stuff they wouldn't naturally find without going to a grocery store.

Most tend to hunker down in the brushy environment inside a rehabilitator's long enclosure. For the one juvey who did slam himself into the wooden hutch wall, s/he's risking fracture. This is not the case for every rabbit being contained in rehab mode. We released at 4-5 weeks or larger, to give the e/c's a higher chance of survival due to sizing.

Obviously it is not the right thing to do to keep a wild animal as a domestic or captive creature. Yes, yes, cottontail rehabbers get overwhelmed with calls to accept infants and juveys from an official wildlife center, as I did years ago. So let mom do the best she can to teach her young, and natural instincts prevail. Cottontails focus on eye contact, and dart to safety when eye contact is averted. Smart thinkers!
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FWIW, a domestic rabbit parent has seen a cottontail carrying an object in her mouth and she perceived the object to be a baby bun.
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If you see a cottontail sitting out in the open (where he/she shouldn't be without freezing, fleeing at motion) there is a chance that cottontail is sick. And he/she chooses to "die" by making himself available to overhead predators. Such as the case of poisoning from eating a toxic substance. Plenty of roundworm (from raccoon feces), e.cuniculi, mites, fleas, flystrike, and ticks for outdoor critters.


 
OxyRabbit, glad to hear the youngsters have left the nest :hug: and are searching for "safer" haven (i.e., not to co-mingle with dogs).

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website - http://www.crittersofthewoods.com/how-old-is-this-baby-rabbit.php

This link ^ was sent from a discussion on FB that involved a layperson finding a lone rabbit in the yard. The pix and education info may be helpful to folks who are not aware of cottontail development.
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On a side note, a rehab friend visited on Friday to show my 86 y.o. friend baby opossums in her rehab care. / Occasionally injured cottontails will overwinter in their guardianship (home environment) if it's not ideal to release them before snow, cold and especially protective area can be sought out & remembered. VERY COOL to know the life-extension qualities and actions taken by lagomorph humans!!

~ :hearts
 
We have a nest in our backyard and I've been leaving them alone and mommy has been coming at night and feeding them but last night we had a rain storm and it basically washed their nest away. This morning I found them all trying to hide under my son's picnic table which provides no cover. They all have very full bellies so I know mommy came to feed them but their little hole has been filled with mud and their nesting material is drenched and now resembles a hair ball. They don't want anything to do with their nest anymore but are only 2 weeks old. They hop around but are still pretty wobbly. What can I do to give them some shelter without blocking Mommy's access to feed them?
 
One of the young ones has proven to be a daredevil. It has moved back into the back yard hiding in the rose hedge and wood pile and daring the dogs to catch it. Must be a teenager LOL.
 
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