coffeegirl
New Kit
Hi I'm new here and new to bunnies. I found a bunny a few weeks ago and it seems she was pregnant because she gave birth last Friday.
There were 6 or 7 babies, I was doing a panic so didn't do a proper head count and by the time I calmed down, rang the Vet for advice, she had made a nest and covered them up. The next morning I saw 3 of them on of the nest and she was busy attending to them so I was worried about where the others were. I did some Googling so after I gave her a good pat, we had a look around the outside of the nesting area where we last saw the others. I found one dead, two stone cold but still alive. Long story short the other two are no longer with us.
Mum had the other three bunnies well hidden in her nest under her fur and I have seen her going in there. I'm not sure if there is a seventh unaccounted for and I was reluctant to go interfering anymore. I have read some people saying you have to check them, others say leave mum alone to take care of them, this was the Vets advice too to just leave them be.
I ended up having another look last night and found two bunnies that appeared to be growing and getting some fuzz but I was worried about the third (which was a lot smaller last time I looked) so I kept hunting around determined whilst I was in there to find the third and I did, under the others and it seems he was very warm but dead. I think he died a while ago because the size, no fur etc. and was just warm because the others were sitting on it. So now I'm down to 2 bunnies which is a sad but also happy because I hope we can keep these ones alive.
They are inside the house, mum has made a beautiful nest. There is shavings in the home which I made out of coreplast and C&C cages (guinea pig style). Because I own pigs and not rabbits, the rabbit was being housed in there until I could come up with a better housing situation. Now I've moved the pig out for now.
I'm reading online people dont use shavings for rabbits but rather than pull the home apart I think I'll leave it until the babies grow. The nest has lots of hay and fur, the shavings are under. How do I keep things clean for them? I have done a spot clean around the other side of the cage where the pig had been living and dirtied. Do I need to clean the rest or should I just leave it? When will they start to move around? When is a safe stage where the babies are no longer at risk of being abandoned by mum? When can I pick them up? Should I be doing anything? I would just appreciate some general advice on what I can expect to happen from here. I've heard/read contradictory information and especially about when to separate to avoid reproducing. Some say 6 weeks, others 3 mths./...that's a big difference but I dont want any more accidents.
I have never had an animal that has had babies so this is all a very new and unexpected experience for me. And not having owned rabbits before either it's all a learning curve but I think I'll keep the new additions.
There were 6 or 7 babies, I was doing a panic so didn't do a proper head count and by the time I calmed down, rang the Vet for advice, she had made a nest and covered them up. The next morning I saw 3 of them on of the nest and she was busy attending to them so I was worried about where the others were. I did some Googling so after I gave her a good pat, we had a look around the outside of the nesting area where we last saw the others. I found one dead, two stone cold but still alive. Long story short the other two are no longer with us.
Mum had the other three bunnies well hidden in her nest under her fur and I have seen her going in there. I'm not sure if there is a seventh unaccounted for and I was reluctant to go interfering anymore. I have read some people saying you have to check them, others say leave mum alone to take care of them, this was the Vets advice too to just leave them be.
I ended up having another look last night and found two bunnies that appeared to be growing and getting some fuzz but I was worried about the third (which was a lot smaller last time I looked) so I kept hunting around determined whilst I was in there to find the third and I did, under the others and it seems he was very warm but dead. I think he died a while ago because the size, no fur etc. and was just warm because the others were sitting on it. So now I'm down to 2 bunnies which is a sad but also happy because I hope we can keep these ones alive.
They are inside the house, mum has made a beautiful nest. There is shavings in the home which I made out of coreplast and C&C cages (guinea pig style). Because I own pigs and not rabbits, the rabbit was being housed in there until I could come up with a better housing situation. Now I've moved the pig out for now.
I'm reading online people dont use shavings for rabbits but rather than pull the home apart I think I'll leave it until the babies grow. The nest has lots of hay and fur, the shavings are under. How do I keep things clean for them? I have done a spot clean around the other side of the cage where the pig had been living and dirtied. Do I need to clean the rest or should I just leave it? When will they start to move around? When is a safe stage where the babies are no longer at risk of being abandoned by mum? When can I pick them up? Should I be doing anything? I would just appreciate some general advice on what I can expect to happen from here. I've heard/read contradictory information and especially about when to separate to avoid reproducing. Some say 6 weeks, others 3 mths./...that's a big difference but I dont want any more accidents.
I have never had an animal that has had babies so this is all a very new and unexpected experience for me. And not having owned rabbits before either it's all a learning curve but I think I'll keep the new additions.
