• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.
  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

My rabbit has just had babies ....

smokeysmum

New Kit
I have two rabbits, Montey (was lucy) and Smokey - i bought them believing they were two females (sisters) only to find out later down the line that they were brother and sisiter. I had Montey previously known as lucy castrated 2 weeks ago, as soon as i found out she was a he. However i've been to the cage this evening to find baby rabbits. There was one out in the open which had clearly died which i removed and then one wriggling around next to it - there was a nest of fur in the corner with another live baby under it so i put the wriggling one under the fur with that and covered it back up. I've removed the father as i believe they can cause problems with new borns and i was just wondering if i should do anything else?

Mum has food (which she has been eating), hay and water the only problem i have is that they are ready for a full cage clean out - i know that i shouldn't touch the nest anymore than i've already had to but the bottom tier of the cage really could do with a clean...... would i be okay to do this as long as i didn't go near the top tier bedroom compartment?

Also i'm a bit worried about the mum as shes only young herself (about 5-6 months) do i need to check her out or just leave her to it? I saw a couple of drops of blood on the bedding after i discovered the babies but i'm guessing this is normal.

The last thing is the daddy...... how long do i have to keep him seperate? I don't want them forgetting each other as they are the best of friends and normally unseperable..

Sorry for all the questions but i really don't know what to do! xxx
 
ok, i'm not an expert but i'm awake at this time of night! people who know more will come along later, i'd guess.

don't clean or disturb the home today -leave it until you're sure mum and babies are settled together.

dad should stay separate until at least six weeks after his neutering, whether they have babies or not. then mum and dad will need re-bonding - perhaps this is something that could wait until after babies are separated from mum, after eight weeks?

sexing young rabbits is difficult, so its not a surprise that your two girls turned out to be a girl and a boy!

don't worry if mum doesn't seem to go to the babies much, its a defense thing, she'll call round on them when they need feeding but doesn't want to attract attention to the nest.

people here check the babies for full, round bellies, after rubbing their hands in the rabbit's usual nesting material so that they don't put a human smell on the babies.

keep an eye on mum. she might need to see the vet but i wouldn't drag her off there just yet. if she's eating and producing waste.

good luck with your bunnies! what are mum and dad's names?
 
I would have thought the vet would have told you that the male buns remain fertile AFTER neutering, I have read between 4 and 6 weeks, so to avoid a further pregnancy you must must keep them apart, atleast for that period (as happy bun said). Could you set them up next to each other so they can still speak through the bars?

It can be confusing as if the female is spayed you can rebond imediately or 2 weeks after depending if the female will interfer with the wound or not
 
Last edited:
Dutchess - yes i was trying to PM you to ask for a copy of the leaflet - i'll send you an email with my email address :)

The vet told us to keep Monty (Male) seperate from Smokey (Female) for 2 weeks after he was castrated which we did but working out the dates Smokey was already pregnant before i found out they were male and female and not sisters.

Both bunnies were at the vets again last week for their injections and a health check - this was a 6 days before Smokey gave birth so i'm surprised that the fact that she was pregnant wasn't picked up then as the vet felt all around her tummy.... least it wouldn't have been as much of a shock then!
 
hi
ok, leave the nest alone apart from checking for dead kits, and only if the mum is ok with it.

Keep kits with mum until they are 8 weeks, they then can be sepereated and go to new homes (thought i like to keep the litter together for a while before homing).

She may be pregnant again, some vets say 4 weeks, some say 6 weeks. But I know they can still get the doe pregnant after neuter
 
Thank you. I'm leaving mum to it, i just check for the nest moving when i feed mum. I noticed today that she'd pulled more fur and topped up the nest which i'm thinking is a good sign that shes looking after them.

As for rehoming we have homes with family members for both of the babies so luckly that isn't a problem.

Thanks everyone for your help so far, really appreciate it
 
Back
Top