• 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.

Baby advice please

Ok, you know that I have rescued Daisy and 2 babies, Taz and Maisie. From the first day, I have noticed that Taz and and Daisy were quite thin. Well a week and a half later, Daisy is fattening up, and Maisie is also growing well. Taz is however not growing as well. They all have access to plenty of food (changing over from their mix to pellets), hay and water, some oats too. I have observed many times that Daisy and Maisie push Taz out of the way from the food. I have made a point to feed him by hand (he eats from my hand, pellets and oats). I am getting a bit worried, as I have seen this behaviour on many occasions, and when you pick him up he is obvioulsly much thinner than his sister. My question is should I carry on hand feeding him, or should I take him away from his mum and sister?? I have spare hutch so no problem with that. They are now 4-5 weeks old.


Please any advice gratefully recieved


(ps planned to take them to vets in 2 weeks to confirm sex and get jabs)
 
hi

I don't think baby rabbits are weaned until 6 weeks old - should stay with mum till 8 weeks I think...Maybe he's just not the fittest baby in the litter - he may always be smaller than his sister - hope he's OK and someone can help better than I can :)
 
apparently there were 6 in the litter, only these 2 survived, but judging by their condition I dont think there was enough food for mum and subsequently babies. Maybe they didnt know she was preggers, I'm not sure, but mum was very thin when I got her, you could feel every bone in her body, so I dont think her milk was up to top notch. Maisie, the brown one, can be very vigourous in makeing sure she gets to the food first, even biting her mum sometimes, so thats why she is ok I think.

I know that you wouldnt normally separate for a few more weeks, but I'm worried about the little chap, and whether his long term health will be compromised if his nutrition is poor now :?
 
hi

I would try supplementing his milk then - you can feed kitten milk or goats milk - he's probably big enough to lap it up or you could soak his pellets/ oats in it maybe? There's a recipe for rabbit milk on this page:
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html
bearing in mind she's talking about newborns - you might find he's less problematic with it - hope so anyway :)
 
anyone got any other ideas before I bite the bullet and seperate them?? Got home from work tonight and hand fed the little chap some oats and pellets, he practically bit my hand off, so I think hes been pushed out again. Havent been able to get any kitten or goat milk, butwill try that tomorrow.
 
its not a good idea to seperate him from his mum just now as he is a bit too young but on the other hand its also not a good ides to keep hand feeding him as this may become a habit with him as well , its really a two sided argument isn,t it ? I take it that they are on fresh hay and the pellets etc are all in a bowl , how about supplying 3 bowls of pellets and also scattering some around in the hay , that way he will find them whilst foraging , you can also sprinke some oats around the floor of the hutch as well as it will fall in amongst the hay etc and again , it will give him a chance to find it , really tho , you will find that he will benefit from you hand feeding him but this may also make him a bit lazy , if you find that despite trying more food bowls etc then you may have to continue hand feeding him and then in 2 - 3 weeks seperate him from them if its getting no better . My two are 11 weeks old now and gismo used to always get pushed out the way by bailey , they are growing quick tho and although I was always making sure there were two bowls and loads of pellets etc sprinkled through the hay , I have now found that gismo has now started sticking up for himself and gets to the food bowl now .
Good luck .
 
they have 2 bowls of pellets one of oats and a hay rack, when I watch them when Taz gets anywhere near any food Maisie in particular pushes him away :cry:

will try scattering it about, not thought of that :)
 
Got some kitten milk, Taz has had about 2ml, is that enough, how often should I offer him it??

I have scattered the pellets about, but I dont think he has eaten many, he has eaten oats from my hand hungrily.

I'm so worried about him, but rechecked his age and he is 6 weeks next week, so have booked him and his mum and sister into the vets for vaxies next Tuesday, so will keep them togother and see what the vet suggests on Tuesday next week.

I was cheeky and asked the vet for a discount for bulk buying (Bunny and Flossie are due too) so they have given me a fiver off each one :D (still £75 in total though :( )
 
Back
Top