very odd behaviour

I have a himi mini lop, currently got 2 very nice babies, first time mum. Now, when they were about 2 weeks old and just getting a good coat she started plucking the fur out of one of the youngsters. At first it was a small patch and we thought the baby had rubbed it off on the ramp as she was constantly squeezing her self through the small gap at the side. So, I relocated the ramp. It was only when i went back in the rabbit shed i saw mum tugging on the other babies fur. Not just licking it clean but pulling on it. I also think she is eating it because there was never any fur loose on the floor of the hutch. The babies are now 4 weeks and the choc point baby is missing a big band across her back and shes pulled the fur just on the one side of the other.

Has anyone ever come across anything like this before? any clues on why she is doing it ? It is not just bordum, she has many toys to play with, different levels to climb on and goes out to grass regularly. Its not parasites and mums not missing any fur. Ive never seen anything like it, and would not like it to ruin the coat of the baby for showing

That, to me, sounds like a mum who was not ready to be a mum and does not have the skills necessary to be a mum. She may have had a bad mum herself and it would be important not to breed from her again. It sounds like she may be trying to groom them, but going too far.

Another possibility would be that she knows there is something wrong with the kits internally, and wants to sort it, but can't. You can often see that happen in adult rabbits that are bonded when one of the pair gets ill, the other may over groom the area where the illness is (such as the kidneys).

What does the skin of the babies look like?

Ideally you need to keep the babies with mum until 8 weeks but there are so situations when it is better for the babies to be removed earlier, and this may be one of the cases is mum is starting to harm them.

Can you give her time out and about away from them?

No she had a fantastic mum and babies are fit as a fiddle. A few days after I twiged on to what she was doing, I started putting her out on the grass during the day and as a result the babes are improving but i think she has a bit of a pull in the evening. Babies skin is pretty and pink and she has done no harm to them. Apart from this she has been a fabulous mum.