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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Question about mom bunny & her new kits??

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    • thytaysmom
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        My female rabbit had 6 kits born 24 hours ago. I am worried that she is going to possibly eat them BECAUSE, she had her very first set of kits in Feb, she had only 2. Within a few hours after having them she had ate ones leg off and both ears and it died. The 2nd one she had bit it’s neck, and then it’s ear had dried to it’s neck in the blood but I removed the kit from her nest, it still died I think they had gotten too cold before I got home and found them. Well, I checked on her new kits this morning and found 6 cute, very fat and healthy looking kits!! I picked up each one to inspect them and none of them had blood, bites, or any missing body parts and so I thought ok, all is good, she isn’t going to eat them and I was VERY happy because I was SO AFRAID her entire pregnancy that she would eat them after what happened with her 1st set of kits.  Well, I went back out to feed her about an hour ago and I noticed that now 1 of the babies has blood on it’s neck where she has bitten it, just like how the kit from her first set had been done, same bite on the neck under where the kits ear lays and it’s ear is stuck to it’s neck from the dried blood    So now I am REALLY afraid she may be starting to nibble on them to eat them but I do not know. It is a bite not a scratch so I am unsure if this was accidental bite or on purpose just alarming to me since it is identical to the other one she had started to eat on in her first set of kits. I also cannot tell just how bad of a bite it is since it’s ear is stuck to it’s neck now. I also cannot tell if she has hurt any of the others as this one was just on top of the pile and I do not want to handle them any more scared it will upset her so I assuming this is the only one she has injured so far. I do not know whether to wait and see what she does or just remove them. Last time I tried to wait and see she ate on them both so I am afraid to wait and see what she does. Last time it literally took her 20 minutes to eat the ones leg and ears off in between me checking on them so it would not take her long to do some damage to them if that is what she is doing. Can anyone offer any suggestions? I feel if I take them out now, keep them in a warm place all bundled up, and get her and hold her gently and carefully and allow them to get milk from her they will live but I don’t want to remove them if there is no need but then I don’t want to leave them and her eat the poor things and they die   I have NO IDEA what to do and worried sick about the little things!! Should I leave them or remove them? A rabbit breeder this morning suggested me removing them. She stated she removes ALL her bunnies kits and just holds the mom rabbit comfortably and allows the kits to get milk and when the kits bellies are full she puts them back into wherever she is keeping them and puts the mom back into her cage and she does this 2 times a day and said that she has never lost 1 kit in years doing it this way. ANY suggestions?? I am so worried about them!


      • NewBunnyOwner123
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        1930 posts Send Private Message

          We do not promote breeding here. I wish I had advice to offer but I don’t breed, and never even researched breeding because it was never in my plans. My advice? Get the momma fixed and spoil her everyday


        • thytaysmom
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            I did not breed my bunnies on purpose, I am not a breeder never have been, never will be, it was accidental. We have 2 bunnies we love with all of our hearts. I did not know they were a female and male, we had been told they were both female. Until she had her first kits, I did not even know she was pregnant. We promptly separated them when she had the 1st set of kits. They have been separated ever since. But 1 day they were in the yard in their individual play areas and I must not had locked the females play area all of the way and she was able to leave her play area and she got into the males play area, she was in there for maybe 5 minutes before I saw her and promptly removed her. I didn’t realize she was even pregnant until she started getting bigger and then I could feel her belly and knew and then knowing she was pregnant I was afraid she was going to eat her new kits. It was not on purpose at all! They would be fixed already but we have no vets here who deal with bunnies, only cats and dogs, so that isn’t an option or it would have already been done. Like I said, this was not on purpose breeding at all, but now that she has them I am truly worried about them and want to do the best that I can to care for them. So I was just trying to get any suggestions or help on the matter.


          • RabbitPam
            Moderator
            11002 posts Send Private Message

              It’s true that we do not allow intentional breeding on this site, and we also make every effort to discourage “oops” litters. That said, it doesn’t help the predicament you are in now. You need to safeguard the babies without their dying from lack of the mother’s care. It may be beyond our specialty, and I would urge you to first separate her from them for a few hours at the moment while you get them some help. Babies are left alone for a while in daylight while their mother is off, so they should be OK if they are already round and healthy.
              OK, I just reread the part where you’ve talked to a breeder, and I urge you to work with that breeder to help you. DO NOT WAIT AND SEE.
              You already know.

              If the breeder is not available to help, then I would start with a call to your vet. Ask her if she can do 2 things: first, examine the mother and get her spayed immediately, or set up an appointment for an immediate spay as soon as it is safe for her after giving birth. This was really inevitable after not getting it done once you learned you had opposite sex rabbits.

              Second, ask her how to care for the babies while keeping the mother away, and is it the same as the breeder’s suggestions?
              I believe a vet will know what’s safe to do, and when, regarding the babies’ need for mothering. You will probably need to care for them yourself without the mother near them at all, or find a surrogate that will work with the babies.

              I would consult the vet first for immediate advice, then, if the breeder can’t help or doesn’t want to take them, call your local shelters and rescues to find one that handles rabbits and especially litters. Many shelters will get a pregnant doe, so may be much more experienced on getting them through the weaning ages until they are ready for adoption. And if there is a new mother in one that lost her babies, she may be able to surrogate. If not, they still may be experienced in raising abandoned babies. And then you will want to have them adopted out, so it would be very helpful for you to get them in other hands right away, leaving your 2 spayed, neutered and your only pair from now on.

              If you get attached to these babies, you will need to be prepared for a host of problems, starting with keeping them all separated at a very young age (no later than 4 months) or you will have multiple “oops” litters. I think you need to call this an emergency, and get outside assistance very quickly. I don’t know if any of the babies will survive this mother’s attacks, and they don’t deserve the painful damage you described she did to her first kits. Accept that she is that way, and take steps to save them from further harm.

              And it’s clear you love your 2 bunnies, so please take my urgency as concern for the babies, but not a condemnation of your life with them. You are doing the best you can and it’s hard to understand and deal with animal behavior sometimes. Hang in there!


            • Roberta
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              4355 posts Send Private Message

                I experienced two oops litters and one thing I learned from research is that this behavior is rare in healthy bunnies. Mothers will not even reject the kits normally if they have been handled by humans. This said my concerns are for the mum… This sort of behavior is generally caused by stress from lack of correct food, limited space, threat of predators or poor health.
                Your bun should be having unlimited hay, green vegetables and pellets before and after delivery. She needs the extra nourishment not only for herself but for the production of milk for the babies. If her cage is too small she might be stressed from not being able to move away from the babies during the day which is what would normally happen. The mother will virtually ignore the kits and stay a distance away to confuse any predators in the area returning to the kits once or twice a day usually in the late evening or early morning to feed them. Do you have other pets or is she somewhere that other animals are present or can be heard. Like in a hutch next to a fence possibly with a dog on the other side. If she is outside at night there could be cats stalking the hutch. The other thing that will cause her to attack the babies is if the themselves are sick.
                I agree with Rabbit Pam… Work with the breeder and get veterinary advice immediately.


              • Roberta
                Participant
                4355 posts Send Private Message

                  Now is also an excellent time to have your male rabbit neutered. I got caught out the same way you did with my first oops litter and the second occurred because I was not aware that they had to remain separated for another month until the male was completely out of residual sperm. I put mine back together after only a week as that was what I was told at the time. I truly feel for you, I know how stressful this can be, the constant concern for both mother and babies. I was very fortunate with my buck rabbit Piglet. He adores the babies and whilst mum was off having her own time he would dote on the babies in one instance two fell from the nest and would have gotten cold and died had he not culred around them, one beneath his chin the other against his tummy, to keep them warm until I got home and put them back in the nest. They had fallen all the way to the bottom floor of the bungalow and the nest was at the top. (Its a big bungalow)


                • lily
                  Participant
                  18 posts Send Private Message

                    hello! so my bunny accidently had baby bunnies and she had 5 bunnies, 1 died after 1 week, and now has 3 healthy babies and 1 sick baby. the sick baby doesnt have as much fur as the others and is alot smaller (they r 8 weeks old now). the sick baby also is blind in both eyes with a terrible eye infection and also was born with his feet curled in and cant walk to well so he drags himself around which hurts his legs and feet. the healthy babies are all fluffy and the sick baby isnt . we had to seperate the sick baby into a different cage then the mom and the 3 other bunnies because she attacked the baby and made his side bleed and i found him tipped over bleeding and having a stroke or a seizure. i realized that she is still feeding the babies but that means she isnt feeding the sick one since he is in a different cage. idk what to do about any of this, so if u could help that would be appreciated! (i am saving up to take the sick baby to get put to sleep since he is in terrible condition, but idk if that is the right thing to do!)


                  • jerseygirl
                    Moderator
                    22338 posts Send Private Message

                      Posted By lily on 3/18/2018 11:25 PM

                      hello! so my bunny accidently had baby bunnies and she had 5 bunnies, 1 died after 1 week, and now has 3 healthy babies and 1 sick baby. the sick baby doesnt have as much fur as the others and is alot smaller (they r 8 weeks old now). the sick baby also is blind in both eyes with a terrible eye infection and also was born with his feet curled in and cant walk to well so he drags himself around which hurts his legs and feet. the healthy babies are all fluffy and the sick baby isnt . we had to seperate the sick baby into a different cage then the mom and the 3 other bunnies because she attacked the baby and made his side bleed and i found him tipped over bleeding and having a stroke or a seizure. i realized that she is still feeding the babies but that means she isnt feeding the sick one since he is in a different cage. idk what to do about any of this, so if u could help that would be appreciated! (i am saving up to take the sick baby to get put to sleep since he is in terrible condition, but idk if that is the right thing to do!)

                      As this is an old thread, I will lock it to prevent further replies. Lily, Ive started a new one for you here: https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/166015/Default.aspx

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                  Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Question about mom bunny & her new kits??