New bunnies

Discussion in 'Pets' started by carolyn, Dec 4, 2013.

  1. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    Ooooopps....my boy bunny scaled the wall last month to get to the only girl bunny I have and today I went out to find a nest of new babies....does anybody know anything about taking care of them? I know nothing. I was so hoping there would be no babies from that event. I guess I was wrong.
     
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  2. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Well it's hard to keep a good man down, I reckon. You know, I believe that you just let the mother nurse them for a few weeks and the address the REAL question---To whom can you give the weaned babies. They would make great gifts for supervised youngsters with responsible parents.
     
  3. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    I understand your point of view there, S..... :oops: but that isn't my worry at this point...what do I do with them? it is supposed to get down in the teens this coming weekend and I am under the impression that they are not to be touched as the mother will abandon them. I am not bottlefeeding a batch (or whatever they are called) of bunnies. I think the dog will kill them If I bring them in. there is no keeping her away from the rabbits when I take her out with me to do chores. I found two of them dead when I went out there and I am sure there are 3 or 4 live ones in the nest. I am thinking to move them to a greenhouse where they are out of the wind/weather, but I am just clueless.
    later....
    So I went to you tube and there was a video that said the mother feeds them once a day and then it is only for about 5 minutes (in the middle of the night) and she doesn't cuddle them like a cat or a dog. She doesn't even stay near them. How interesting. I was worried she was not going to take care of them, but she seems normal according to the info there. I couldn't find that info on googling it.
     
  4. cherylad

    cherylad Countess of Cute-ification Plants Contributor

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    Is the cage portable enough to be moved? If so, I think your idea of putting it in the greenhouse is a good one.
    Or is there anyway to put in a heat mat?
     



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  5. Henry Johnson

    Henry Johnson In Flower

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    Carolyn, the most important thing that you can do for the 'kindle' (baby rabbits) is to see that the 'doe' (the mother rabbit) is well fed a nutritious, high protein diet and both mother + babies are protected from varmints.. Good luck with them..
    Hank
     
  6. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    I see what you mean, C. I am not sure what you can do actually...perhaps letting nature take its course is the best. If any survive I am sure that you can fins a home for the. If none do, then your problem is also solved...but then in a natural way.
     
  7. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    Cheryl, i don't think a heat mat is an option, but moving the whole shebang is my most likely option and probably to the shed. I don't think the cage will fit through the greenhouse door.

    Thanks Hank. I have her in a cage up off the ground and she is fed alfalfa pellets, water and a mineral block..I am hoping that is enough.

    S, Letting nature take its course is truly may plan of action, but I hate to make a muddle of it if they can survive but don't because I messed up.... not that I need more bunnies. Now if they survive...where do I put them? will be my next worry. They will be of weaning age at 6 weeks, that pus me in the middle of January.
     
  8. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Well C, like I said getting rid of them may well be simple. Hanging up notes in the super market, asking friends at church. placing them up for adoption on the internet. I do not think that you will have a problem there. Let's first see if they survive.
    If there are no takers before easter then I'll bet that someone will take them over the easter holidays. They are ideal then for kids...along with little chicks. At least that's the trend here.

    After they get some size and you cannot have time to build them a little moveable pen, why not ask the pound to take them off your hands.

    It is a prob, I can see that.
     
  9. eileen

    eileen Resident Taxonomist Staff Member Moderator Plants Contributor

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    Carolyn be extra careful not to stress the doe too much if you are thinking of moving the family. Female rabbits have a habit of killing and eating their young if they think they're being threatened in any way. Mother Nature knows best so I'd be inclined to leave things in her hands.
    Before you know it the female will be in season again and the buck could scale the wall for more fun. :rolleyes:
    Maybe a trip to the vet with the male rabbit would be a good idea as there are now injections they can give that will stop his urges.
     
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  10. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    Well, Eileen, I didn't want to gross anyone out too much, but that already happened with one of them...gross! and one other one died, I saved them for the neighbors snake.. I was thinking to pick up the whole cage and move it around the corner into the shed, but I put a feed sack across the front and stuffed it with straw to keep the wind out of it.

    And I will swap cages with the other bunny as soon as I can. I have one that is built for a single one in that cage and this cage has a divider in it, which I didn't notice didn't quote meet the roof of the cage. There was a 4" gap up there.
    At least the weather is nice today and tomorrow. That makes it a little better for their chance of survival.
     
  11. jbest123

    jbest123 In Flower

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    Even if you had made a pet out of the rabbit and handled it every day Its best to just let them alone. Continue your daily chores like feeding and watering. You may want to block the buck's access because he will kill the bunnies so the mother would breed earlier.
     
  12. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    Thanks jbest. I was thinking to try not to disturb her too much, but I didn't think about him scaling the wall again and killing them...I will go fix that.

    so, that is fixed, I moved him out of that hutch to a little cage in the shed.

    btw, She is really a rescue rabbit. When I bought the cages she was hopping around the lawn and so we caught her and brought her home with the cages. She was given to the people where we got the rabbits from and they let her roam the lawn. Not much of a pet, I brought her home for the fertilizer she will produce for the high tunnels.
     
  13. waretrop

    waretrop Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Yes all of the above...most times rabbit mamas don't keep their babies alive or kill them. I wouldn't move them for there is a higher chance of her killing them.
    Don;t tell too many children for you may have to explain what happened if they die.

    Do keep us posted and try to take pics.....wow
     
  14. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    Barb, If they survive I will try to find homes for them, but not until they are at least 3 weeks old will have abig hope of them surviving.
    I will try to get a few pics of them. She doesn't seem to bothered by me being out there. she let me pet her when I opened the cage.

    [​IMG]
    ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden )
    momma bunny



    new nest that she keeps covered
    [​IMG]
    ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden )




    a quick peek inside the nest. I counted 4 of them, but I didn't move the covering or the babies to get a close look.
    [​IMG]
    ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden )
     
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  15. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Great foto's C.
    In spite of the timing and weather difficulties, this is proving to be quite interesting. You have us all on tender hooks waiting to see the development.
     

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