Is my rabbit feading her babies?

Question

my rabbit gave birth last night to 10 babies i have separated her and the babies in to their own cage but she does not seam interested in them i have not seen her feed them she just sits away from the nest should she be sitting with them and how often should she feed them

Answer 1

hi there!! this is normal not to see mum feeding them i have loads of rabbits but have only seen a mum feed them once!!! she has a very large litter! do u have any more baby rabbits of the same age that u could foster some to a diff mother?? but u will have to rub the babbies in the rabbits poo so she dont know that there not her own!!!!!!!!! hope everything goes ok with them!!

Answer 2

Have a look in the nest (but dont touch the babies), if the babies look like they have swallowed a golf ball then they have been fed, if they are cold and skinny then they need to be fed. If you dont see the mum going to the nest often then you should get her and the babies out and keep her content whilst the babies have a feed.

If you need anymore help then you can email me at [e-mail]

Good luck!

M

Answer 3

Keep an eye on her, and if she does not seem to be feeding them ask your vet for help. But whatever you do, DON'T touch the babies UNLESS you rub your hands with the nest/fur to give your hands the smell of the nest. She will reject her babies if she can smell you on there (as it wouldn't be familiar). Good luck!

Answer 4

The mother will only feed her babies at night,you wont see her doing this,dont worry she will be fine

Answer 5

Rabbits sometimes do not feed their babies for the first 24 hours as it can take this long for the milk to start flowing.

Rabbits feed their young once (sometimes twice) a day. You may not see her do this but you will be able to tell as the kits bellies will stay plump and not sag.

When a doe gives birth you should not move her and her kits but remove the buck. In fact the buck should of been removed a while ago. By moving her you have cause her some stress and this can put the doe off from attending to her young.

For now keep an eye on her and her young, do not touch the kits unless really necessary as you do not want to cause more upset, and make sure the doe has a good diet of lactating pellets and veg. Put a rabbit multivitamin drop in her water like vitasol by keeping her food level up you will be helping her to produce good healthy milk for her kits  if you are still worried or if something looks wrong speak to a rabbit vet.

Answer 6

my rabbit appeared to ignore her babies i never once saw her feed them i came to the conclusion that she just wouldn't do it with anyone watching. leave her alone for a while then have a look and if the babies are warm and wriggling about then they should be fine but if you are still worried then contact your vet  

Answer 7

she should start feeding them soon, i strongly recomend u keep a very watchful eye on her and if she doesn't feed them soon i would ask a vetenarian, she could've fed them last night too sometimes it takes a while for a mothers instinct to kick in