mom and babies.. or at least rabbit and babies

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betsy

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Location
, Wisconsin, USA
ok.. picked up a "mom" rabbit and her 7 week old babies at a shelter today.. (I'm a rescue) need advise. I would assume like cats, if a rabbit nurses it would be obvious. this one does'nt look like it's been nursing. she herself is a small like 3 pound rabbit.. she is smaller then my polish. her "babies" are not even the size of a small chick.. maybe less then half a pound. I haven't seen them eat, but they are really scared... WHAT DO I DO!!! Do I feed the babies.. and if so with what and what food/formula. the rabbit that is with them doesn't seem interested in them but isn't hurting them.. should I leave her??? it's warmth.. they seem comforted by her to a point..

HELP
betsy
 
The mom nurses only 2 times per day ..early in the morning and in the evening

she could be nursing without you knowing it .
Iam tranferring this to the rabbitry as they will be able to help you more.
 
At 7 weeks...will they eat the pellets? Once a baby opens it eyes, they usually shortly bounce out of the nest box and try to nibble food.
 
they are soo scared they don't do anything... with baby kittens you look for firm bellies etc.. they are sort of flabby and thin... not plump and fat... they don't do anything but cower in the corner.. the other rabbit with them is social and eating..
looking at some pics on here I would guess mini satin??? but just a guess.. closest thing i can find..
 
I guess my other question is are they really 7 weeks.. a lot of people that dump them in shelters don't really know... my holland I got from a breeder and she was a LOT more developed then these guys

 
ok.. trying this..
100_0266.jpg


this if it works, is the "mom"
 
OMG they are cute

I'm sure that they could look cute and normal but still be thin.

you can give them pellets (find out the brand they were on and continue that ) and also alfalfa , timothy , grass hay .

I'm not an expert on this (to say the least) but they look alright to me.

Ijumped over from the Infirmary to see how this was going.
 
The mom appears to be a tortiseshell dutch mix, and the bunnies are also tort dutch mixes. The dutch comes from the white marking, which usually shows up as a blaze between the eyes and down the nose, and in the shoulders area and feet. My Tony (in avatar) is probably a full-blooded tort dutch and he has the characteristic dutch markings.

They are adorable and I hope you get them eating again.
 
I don't think those kits look like 7 weeks old, to be honest. I would have placed them a couple of weeks younger.

When a mum feeds she will stand over them. It will take roughly 5 mins or so and that will be it. They normally do it when no one is around.

I was going to say a vienna marked tort, but I don't know the breed of her. They are all very cute though.
 
To me they look to be about 3-4 weeks old...old enough to have their eyes open and explore a bit and maybe even nibble on some hay...but I have 7 week old babies that are all over the place and ready to be weaned and they look far far different.
 
I thought they were younger too.. ok.. sooooo assuming the worst.. that they are 3-4 weeks old, how do I go about taking care of them now... they are not moving about, jump when touched etc.. how much do i handle etc... they look about the same this morning as they did last night.. so no worse.. that is good.. mom is eating and pooping like nuts..

Shouldn't mom's tummy look like she is nursing?? she looks like a normal rabbit..

when should i start handling the babies?

should I be offering anything but plain pellets and hay?

mom like banana. .is that ok for her to eat even when nursing??

sorry for all the questions...


 
You can handle the babies as much as you want. the more handleing the more they are going to get used to you and not be so scared. They should be eating pellets by now so i would have some available for them and they should be drinking water on their own also. They could just be really scared at this point and might just need a few days to get used to the new place. who knows how scary the shelter was for them.
You probably will not see mom nurse them but just make sure they are eating pellets and drinking water, even if you have to put the water in a crock/bowl instead of a water bottle. They are very cute though.
It is alright for mom to eat veggies even though she is nursing just don't give any veggies to the babies.
hope this helps
 
I would leave them to settle for a couple of days and then strat to handle them. I say that because they are clearly very unsettled and scared and you need to make sure they are eating and drinking before starting to ahndle. But sitting with them and talking to them would be good from now.

Mum can have fresh, but make sure you introduce it slowly if you are not sure whether she can eat it or not. Some people say kits can have fresh if mum is, but that's not personally something I have ever done.

The pellets they have been on, and hay, need to both be fed in unlimited amounts. Hopefully the babies should be nibbling the pellets and hay at this age.

Mum may not look too different but if you feel her you should be able to feel her nipples are huge if she has milk. It may be that she doesn't have milk though, which might complicate things a little. Hopefully that's not an issue though.
 
she looks AND feels like a normal rabbit.. no milk bulges or anything... I actually sexed her to see if it really WAS a girl.. at least that is right.. so now what.. babies are moving around a bit more.. the orangish one was in the pellet dish.. appears to be eating..but I am unsure about the tortie, the smaller of the two..but both seem more relaxed today.. still scared of me...
so do i leave them or start bottling them.. both have TINY teeth.. about like the little front teeth of a cat..
thanks for all the advice.
 
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