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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Rescued someone’s Easter gift

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    • Alison K
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        Hi! I’m new here and need help. One of my coworkers was given a live baby bunny for Easter. Needless to say on the following Monday, someone told me about it and when I saw the little bun, my heart broke. It couldn’t have been more than 2-3 weeks old and in a box filled with Cheerios, a piece of lettuce, and a slice of bread. I about died (and wanted to hunt down the gift giver so I could find the breeder and beat them senseless). Anyway, I have a 7 month old Holland Lop at home who still was being transitioned over to timothy from alfalfa. To get through the night, I gave it some pellets and alfalfa and the baby surprisingly took to both. He/She loves to drink from the water bottle. It’s been 2 weeks now. Ollie, as he has come to be named, poops and pees and is otherwise very healthy. Just every now and then he goes through little (scary!) lethargy spells and he hasn’t grown much or shown any weight gain. I plan to get him to a vet again soon as possible. I’m just wondering if going to KMR would help? Is there a success rate with bunnies weaned after 2 weeks? Ollie is a little bundle of energy. I’m trying to be the best bunny mom possible.


      • jerseygirl
        Moderator
        22338 posts Send Private Message

          I about died (and wanted to hunt down the gift giver so I could find the breeder and beat them senseless)

          I hear you!

          Thanks for taking him in.
          So how old do you estimate he is now?
          I’m thinking there’s not much point using KMR now. Especially if he’s taken to eating the hay and pellets.

          A fecal test would be an idea.

          Sending some healthy growth {{{vibes}}} for little Ollie.


        • Linette
          Participant
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            Hopefully it will set your heart at ease, if the bunny was two weeks old when you got it it would almost certainly not be alive now. Two week old bunnies are still fully nursing etc.They are not cute yet so unlikely to end up sold as a cuddly Easter bunny. So it likely has a good prognosis.

            I wouldn’t go back to milk feeding. The vet may have some good ideas about supplements that would aid growth and weight gain. Oat hay is higher in calories than other hays and can be purchased at some pet stores, you could add a bit of that along with the alfalfa.

            Give this one LOTS of cuddling, I truly believe that “touch” helps them grown and thrive tremendously at a young age. He would normally be with his siblings and be getting a lot of body contact. Even a stuffed bunny to snuggle up with might be a good idea.


          • Bam
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              Thank you for taking him in!

              I agree with Linette, 2 week old bunnies aren’t postcard-cute yet, so Ollie was probably a bit older. That he takes hay and pellets now is just great!

              How does his “lethagic spells” manifest themselves? When a bunny is resting in perfect contentment it may look very dead. It can be very very scary even when you’ve seen it several times. Young animals ( I’ve only had puppies and a ferret) can fall asleep when they’re playing, sometimes mid-jump and be limp like rag-dolls. It’s natural. Young animals sleep a lot, it’s vital for their development and growth.

              I also second Linette with the cuddling and touch and physical closeness. Bunnie-babies sleep close togeather in the warren when they’re young. All mammals need tactile stimulation to ensure normal development and general thriving.

              Best of luck with your little one and please come back here with any questions you may have. It seems you’re doing great so far. Lucky little Ollie!


            • Roberta
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                Don’t know if this helps but this is a pic of my current foster/rescue bubs at two weeks… Eyes only a few days open so still a bit squinty, not very active, mainly cuddling in a big group… Only eating from Mummy at this stage and experimenting with a little hay nibbling.

                 


              • Roberta
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                  Baby buns do sleep a lot, it could have something to do with them playing hard when they are awake….. As Bam said, at two weeks he would mostly likely already be dead…. 4 weeks would be the youngest and that is still two young. I had to rehome an oops litter at 6 weeks, luckily I found a way to stretch it out to 7 weeks with a little creative playpen timing… By then they were pretty much eating independently and just checking in with Mum for a top up or some extra mummy cecals… and NO, I am NOT a BREEDER… I’m in rescue so the litters I have had were from A. A Mistake of my own when I was less educated and B. The result of some one elses lack of care and regard of their pet…
                  If the lethargy you are seeing is during day light hours it could just be the normal sleep cycle, all 13 of mine are comatose at the moment, they will probably arc up for play time in another 3-4 hrs…If I bother them now I’ll get the fish eye, a grunt and they will roll over and go back to sleep… The not so cute and elegant side of house rabbits.

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              Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Rescued someone’s Easter gift