Post by Gabrielle Brunner on Oct 14, 2010 14:50:18 GMT 10
If your rabbit gives birth and you are found with a litter of kits she can not care for (wether mum dies, or rejects the babies), it is very important to act quickly. Baby rabbits are incredibly vulnerable, and can go down hill very quickly. In some cases, if the mother has rejected the babies, you can force her to feed by placing her on her back and placing the babies on her belly to feed. I have done this succesfully before, but it takes a very tame mother, and some food bribery 
If this fails, the next option is to try and find a suitable foster mother for the babies, wether this is another rabbit, or perhaps yourself. Rabbits who are handreared on formula have a very low (10%) chance of survival. So it is important that all other options are exhausted before considering hand rearing yourself. IF all options have been looked at and hand rearing on formula is your only option, then there are a few important things you need;
-Colostrum powder; made by Wombaroo (only needed for new borns who did not recieve their mothers colostrum)
-Rabbit Milk Replacement Formula; made by Wombaroo
-1mL syringes (best to use a completely new one each feed)
-Heat pack
- Polar fleece/Lambs Wool (something really insulated to keep them warm)
-Oxbow Critical Care (great for putting weight on bunnies old enough for solids)
-Gram Sensitive Scales
-Sterilizing equiptment
-Tissues
-LOTS of time
So you have all these things? Great
One of the most important things to know is that baby rabbits inhale milk VERY easily, so you must feed very slowly until they understand that food will be coming out of the syringe. If any milk goes near the nose, you need to clean it off quickly to stop it from being inhaled.
You also need to make sure buns is kept nice and warm! A plug in heat mat (a reptile one works well) is the easiest and safest option as you dont need to be concerned about reheating it often as you do with wheat bags. One thing you do need to be aware of is over heating; ensure there is space for the baby to get away from the heat source.
All things must be sterile before use. Baby rabbits gain important bacteria and antibodies from their mothers milk that they just dont get from formula, so it is very important that we try to reduce the risk of infecting the baby/ies with harmful bacteria by using sterile instruments.
When mixing up the formula, make sure you follow the directions carefully. From memory, the mix up is 3.6mLs of water per gram of formula (for Wombaroo formula).
When feeding for the first time, the rabbit will reject the syringe. You need to carefully place one drop of formula on the lips of him/her and allow him/her to lick it of themselves. NEVER EVER EVER force feed!!!!!!!
At a young age, the stomach of the rabbit is quite small, only holding 2-3mLs of liquid. So dont be too concerned if they dont seem to be drinking a lot for the first week or so.
They will need to be fed every 2-3 hours in the first week, gradually reducing as they age.
Baby rabbits will nurse on their mother only once a day, but, because the formula is so different from the mothers milk (it is very hard to replicate rabbit milk), they need to be fed much more often.
Weighing the rabbit daily is also essential. If their is any weight loss it is important that it is noted, and if it does not improve, the rabbit will need to see a vet asap.
For rabbits under a week old, they will need to be manually toileted as they are unable to do it themselves. Take a tissue dosed with body temperature water and rub it around the genital area of the rabbit and that will stimulate them to go to the toilet. This needs to be done after each feed until they are able to do it themselves.
Start introducing solids (oxbow critical care mixed with milk formula) around the time the rabbit opens its eyes. Also introduce Lucerne hay at this time. Lucerne hay is good for growing rabbits.
Any questions please post them on here and I will try and help. If you dont feel as though you will be able to hand rear the baby/ies, please contact me or your local rescue and I am sure they will be able to help
Checkers, my hand reared bunny;
If this fails, the next option is to try and find a suitable foster mother for the babies, wether this is another rabbit, or perhaps yourself. Rabbits who are handreared on formula have a very low (10%) chance of survival. So it is important that all other options are exhausted before considering hand rearing yourself. IF all options have been looked at and hand rearing on formula is your only option, then there are a few important things you need;-Colostrum powder; made by Wombaroo (only needed for new borns who did not recieve their mothers colostrum)
-Rabbit Milk Replacement Formula; made by Wombaroo
-1mL syringes (best to use a completely new one each feed)
-Heat pack
- Polar fleece/Lambs Wool (something really insulated to keep them warm)
-Oxbow Critical Care (great for putting weight on bunnies old enough for solids)
-Gram Sensitive Scales
-Sterilizing equiptment
-Tissues
-LOTS of time
So you have all these things? Great
One of the most important things to know is that baby rabbits inhale milk VERY easily, so you must feed very slowly until they understand that food will be coming out of the syringe. If any milk goes near the nose, you need to clean it off quickly to stop it from being inhaled.
You also need to make sure buns is kept nice and warm! A plug in heat mat (a reptile one works well) is the easiest and safest option as you dont need to be concerned about reheating it often as you do with wheat bags. One thing you do need to be aware of is over heating; ensure there is space for the baby to get away from the heat source.
All things must be sterile before use. Baby rabbits gain important bacteria and antibodies from their mothers milk that they just dont get from formula, so it is very important that we try to reduce the risk of infecting the baby/ies with harmful bacteria by using sterile instruments.
When mixing up the formula, make sure you follow the directions carefully. From memory, the mix up is 3.6mLs of water per gram of formula (for Wombaroo formula).
When feeding for the first time, the rabbit will reject the syringe. You need to carefully place one drop of formula on the lips of him/her and allow him/her to lick it of themselves. NEVER EVER EVER force feed!!!!!!!
At a young age, the stomach of the rabbit is quite small, only holding 2-3mLs of liquid. So dont be too concerned if they dont seem to be drinking a lot for the first week or so.
They will need to be fed every 2-3 hours in the first week, gradually reducing as they age.
Baby rabbits will nurse on their mother only once a day, but, because the formula is so different from the mothers milk (it is very hard to replicate rabbit milk), they need to be fed much more often.
Weighing the rabbit daily is also essential. If their is any weight loss it is important that it is noted, and if it does not improve, the rabbit will need to see a vet asap.
For rabbits under a week old, they will need to be manually toileted as they are unable to do it themselves. Take a tissue dosed with body temperature water and rub it around the genital area of the rabbit and that will stimulate them to go to the toilet. This needs to be done after each feed until they are able to do it themselves.
Start introducing solids (oxbow critical care mixed with milk formula) around the time the rabbit opens its eyes. Also introduce Lucerne hay at this time. Lucerne hay is good for growing rabbits.
Any questions please post them on here and I will try and help. If you dont feel as though you will be able to hand rear the baby/ies, please contact me or your local rescue and I am sure they will be able to help
Checkers, my hand reared bunny;
. Thanks for the advice I have been to the vet and got formula, bottle and syringes. How many mls per feed should they be having??