# mom and babies.. or at least rabbit and babies



## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

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


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## Maureen Las (Apr 30, 2009)

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.


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## wooly_queen (Apr 30, 2009)

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.


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

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..


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

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


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## wooly_queen (Apr 30, 2009)

Hhhhhmmmmmmmmmm.... I dunno. I would have to see them to guess an age.


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

i would have to know how to post pics to do that.. any help there..?


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

ok.. trying this..






this if it works, is the "mom"


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

babies... we think


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## Maureen Las (Apr 30, 2009)

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.


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## betsy (Apr 30, 2009)

anybody have a clue what they are?? besides rabbits..lol.. breed.. i'm tired..


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## SweetSassy (Apr 30, 2009)

The mama and babies are beautiful. ray:


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## BellTowerAngoras (May 1, 2009)

Dutchie mixes? Just a guess lol They are very cute  Congrats on your new rescues


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## tonyshuman (May 1, 2009)

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.


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## Flashy (May 1, 2009)

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.


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## TinysMom (May 1, 2009)

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.


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## betsy (May 1, 2009)

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...


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## massie777 (May 1, 2009)

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


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## Flashy (May 1, 2009)

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.


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## betsy (May 1, 2009)

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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## Flashy (May 1, 2009)

To be quite honest, in my inexperienced opinion, I would not bottle feed. Bunnies can be weaned at this age, and I would worry that bottle feeding would cause more problems than it would solve. I would push pellets and hay and obviously water. It's good that one kit is eating, hopefully you will see the other one eating soon.

How is mum with the kits?


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## betsy (May 1, 2009)

she is interested but distant.. she will let them come by her.. and yet is by herself at times.. she is never mean to them or aggressive toward them even when i handle them.. so that is good i guess.


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## gentle giants (May 1, 2009)

No, do NOT try to bottle feed them, especially not at this age. If the mom wasn't feeding them, they wouldn't have lived this long. When I bring in new rescue rabbits, unless they need medical care I leave them alone as much as possible for the first coupleof days to let them settle in. Whne you do start to handle them, do it gradually. Start just by touching them a little as they move around, and move up slowly from there to picking them up. If you jsut go in there and grab onto them all you will do is make them more afraid. 

Rabbit rescue and care is very different from caring for cats and dogs, partly because a rabbit is a prey animal and therefore thinks and acts very differently from a predator like a cat. You may not ever see the mother rabbit nurse, because it is her instinct to hide when she does this.


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## Blaze_Amita (May 1, 2009)

at that age, i would just monitor them make sure they don't drop weight and just let them get used to being held and handle them, flip them over, check their teeth(all once they get more used to you) and just keep moving them towards being more calm.


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## BlueCamasRabbitry (May 1, 2009)

I would start them on pellets. At seven weaks they should be being weaned, and it sounds like maybe they already are 

Emily

Edited for misspelled words.


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## betsy (May 2, 2009)

happy to report they are doing well so far, thanks for all the advise... the only possible problem would be semi soft sticky poo... not even sure who it is.. would assume from the size that it is mom.. not runny just not round poo... should i worry or is it just the food change.. should i give her anything or just leave well enough alone... thanks guys for all the help.. I am loving having baby bunnies.


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## Flashy (May 2, 2009)

Is it excess cecals? It might just be she is gorging on the unlimited food; that's what Sandy did when she had a litter.

Is mum producing regular normla poo too?


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## betsy (May 2, 2009)

when she first came and a few times after I have found normal poo too.. just mid day yesterday there was mushy stuff too.. will have to get down there today, I have only been up for half and hour..i'm being lazy.. lol


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## DeniseJP (May 2, 2009)

I was going to guess 3-4 weeks myself - they have that "baby bunny look" of snuggling together... my older kits would be out of the box and bustling around at 7 weeks - these kits do not look that old. 

All are gorgeous!

Good advice given here.

Denise


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## betsy (May 2, 2009)

ok.. can I ask another question? sorry to be a pest.. poo is pretty much normal again.. 
with the babies , is there a way to pet them to help them relax.. they are so jumpy.. is there a noise or grooming movement I can do to try to mimic mom to help them relax... I know they see me as a bad guy.. just want them to have a good experience.. but they are sooo gosh darn tiny.. thanks.. 
Betsy


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## massie777 (May 2, 2009)

just when you are holding the babies hold them real close to your body and just keep petting over and over. thats how i get my babies to start liking to be petted. sometimes it takes them a little while to get used to it. they are also still really young and you will see when they get older that they will get more used to you and more friendly.


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## BlueGiants (May 3, 2009)

Have patience. They have been through a lot in their short life. You have to be the third home they've been through in 3-4 weeks! Give them a few more days to settle down. I agree they are not 7 weeks old...

Besides pellets, you can also give the a bowl of dry oatmeal (plain cooking type Quaker Oats). Or mix it in with the pellets. As mentioned, do not bottle feed them. If momma weaned them, or is starting to wean them, reintroducing formula can throw their gut (digestive tract) out of balance. 

Thank you for taking them in. It's so nice to know they are in a good home.


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