Will a mother rabbit move her babies in the middle of the day ?

Question

We found 2 newborn bunnies in our yard. Their eyes were closed and they had no fur. One was about 1ft from the nest. The other was poking through the fur on top of the nest. I took both babies and put them back in the nest and covered it with moms fur. I went back about 2 hours later to check on them. Everything was as I left it. The nest had not been disturbed. I took out the fur and they were gone ! I looked all over. Will a mom move her babies during day time ? Can rabbits move their young ? Please get back with me. I'm so concerned.

Thanks, Joann

Answer 1

Yeah,she moved them.don`t worry.

Answer 2

Yes sir they can.

Answer 3

She most likely moved them, I saw the rabbit that had babies in my yard move them in the middle of the day with kids around.  They are very bold

Answer 4

I'm sure you already doomed the babies by leaving your scent on them. If so, the mother could've left them and abandoned their nest and let a cat, raccoon, or anything else get a hold of them. But It could've taken the babies to a different nest seeing as how the former one was compromised. Hope for the latter.

Answer 5

Yes, a mother rabbit or almost any wild creature will move their babies if they feel threatened.  It was probably your smell from when you touched the nest and the babies that caused the mother alarm.  She would have moved them some place else, I'm sure they are fine, happy and healthy.  Good luck, with your new neighbors.

Answer 6

She will feed her kits at dawn and dusk, she stands over the babies and they come up to feed.

Answer 7

yeah she moved them just so she can watch closely

Answer 8

If the mother rabbit feels that her nest is threatened then she will move her babies to a spot she feels safe. So every thing is probably cool, you did a good job

Answer 9

yes

i was outside one day and i saw some baby rabbits hiding by themselves.i watched them for a while and they eventually hopped away with another rabbit.

Answer 10

We had baby hares for awhile that were orphaned because the local dogs tended to catch the mothers and babies.

If the nest is above ground then it is generally a hare but if the babies are born naked then it is a rabbit or a rabbit hare mix as hares are generally born with fur and open eyes.

Babies that are without any fur generally cannot move enough to get out of the nest at first but they may wiggle out. Chances are they were being carried out by some little woodland animal that found the nest and wanted them as a snack which I found out was happening with small wood rats from my outdoor cages such that I am closing them up with smaller cage wire. At a certain point in time baby bunnies are still helpless but too big for a little wild mother rabbit/hare to move them around so either they wiggled off. Mother Rabbits/hares do not tend to be able to carry babies around but the mother pushes them somewhere safer if possible I have watched mine do this. Possibly some small woodland creature had a baby bunny meal. Wild rabbits tend to be small so it is difficult for them to move around babies. But if you find a nest it is best not to handle the babies with your hands as the mother may abandon or even kill the babies because they no longer smell like her. Clean your hands and pick them up with clean gloves to decrease the chances of them being killed or abandoned. Wild rabbits and hares can be very vicious when protecting their babies so be very careful if you find any because I had some wild hares we found orphaned and as they got older they got very mean very shortly and a rabbit or hare bite really hurts badly and can go right to the bone.  There is also a probability as they were wiggling around alot which they do when they are hungry that they were orphaned or the mother was detained somewhere in a safe place hiding from a would be predator and wiggled off because they were hungry as when they are full they tend to stay in their nests and nesting boxes clumped together in a small pack for warmth.

No matter how cute everyone thinks rabbits or hares are a wild animal is a wild animal such that as they get older they will show such inherent traits to the point they may be dangerous to keep even if they are small rabbits or hares. The orphaned hares we had got so vicious in a short period of time I was afraid to keep them around my older nice male I had raising them for fear they would begin attacking and biting him also.  They are very jumpy, not cuddly like domesticated rabbits, and tend to bite ALOT so use every  bit of caution when dealing with anything wild. My kids in my family wanted to keep them because they were so adorable so petite with such big eyes but I told them they are too mean and I let them go in the woods where they  belonged when they were eating grass adequately on their own.

My father saw a video of a rabbit that killed a fairly large snake and he said well I understand where that Monty Python killer rabbit came from to this I replied a mother rabbit can be very aggressive when protecting her babies. I have been bitten by my own very tranquil nice bunnies when they first give birth to thier babies such that I have learned a great deal of respect and caution when handling them because bunny bites hurt reallly really bad. Think about it they can chew through wood easily.

Hares and rabbits generally have 3 or more babies such that I am somewhat concerned since they push their babies around you may have interrupted the mother in the middle of a slow pushing to another place she found safer. Mine do it occassionally when they do not like where they first gave birth to them at. When they go in labor often if they are not experienced they stay where they are at even if it is a bad place to move the babies later on. An experienced bunny will make a nest by pulling out her fur prior to giving birth whereas an inexperienced often will have her fur drop out where she is at giving birth. It is not much different than a very young human female who has no one around with experience to help her out in regards to going into labor. The first time they may be running around saying what is this contraction stuff and they look so amazed when they look down and see babies coming out of them the first time usually it is like Oh my goodness what is happening? I caught one doing that with a first time having babies like she could not figure out what was coming out of her at first. They do not understand often the first time.

Usually they give birth in the very early morning hours so my guess is this bunny while running around eating as it was hairless gave birth while eating with a first birth then went and dug herself a place that was safer nearby and pushed them over there probably as they go out and eat at night and it was a long arduous task for the bunny. If they were very very small newborns the probability is that this is the case.