PorschaLei

Today went to go downstairs to clean my little Luna (hollan lop) and Ezios (dutch) cage well one is a male and one is a female so I make sure they are in separate enclosures but amongst cleaning today I found two little weeklings. Now I dont know how (we had another female holland lop whom Luna lived with before I adopted her out. And I checked her twice no sign of male parts) so nontheless this is a bit of a how the but I need help I want to make sure these little guys get all the care they need but I am clueless on how to raise bunnys granted Im doing some online research etc. but does anyoe have experience tip? Here are some pics





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dobermama

Right now the most important thing is to keep the momma bunny from getting stressed- so limit how much you access her cage and don't mess with the babies. It is a shame you didn't know she was expecting, or she should have had a nest box. At this point I would think it is risky to try to make one and have her accept it- so you will need to just stick with what she has made. Am assuming they are indoor bunnies? That should be okay if so, as bunnies don't thermoregulate well and are very susceptible to cold if outdoors.

Up her feed intake, to be certain she is getting enough nutrition for her and the kits- free feeding a high quality (min. 14% protein) ration along with alfalfa hay is good.

As to the "how". Are the cages completely separate, or are they side by side? I have had does & bucks breed through a wire cage before I realized it was possible and they needed to be entirely separate cages with space between them...

Bunnies really aren't that hard to raise- the mom will do a majority of the work for you until they are weaned. BUT, many does do NOT make good moms, and either abandon (or even eat) the young. So, if these two don't survive please don't beat yourself up about it- especially since you had no idea she was bred.

PorschaLei

They are indoor rabbits theyre cages are on the other side of the room to prevent these events but some how i dunno. They are kept in a warm stress free area so im happy I could give her that I am going to check on the babies every so often just to make sure she is feeding them. I believe her diet we just switched up but it is Sun Seed rabbit food it seems to have a bunch of goodies lots of protein according to the bag.


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MeadowCat

I'd send a PM to RedFawnRising - she's the bunny expert. Good luck with the babies!

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PorschaLei

Thank you will do


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RedFawnRising

1. Disturbing them as little as possible, and without moving or bothering that nest, get them off that cedar ten minutes ago.

Cedar is toxic, releases phenols, and causes short term/acute respiratory and skin irritation, and long-term...liver failure.

2. Sun Seed sucks. Sorry, but it does. Try to find a plain pellet feed (no sunflower seeds or colored bits or other junk) that does not have grain by-products, corn, wheat middlings or any crap like that up front (meaning it's a large quantity of that formula).

3. When you do switch her, do it slowly over a week or so at least.

4. She needs constant access to a good quality grass hay. That means Timothy, or Orchard Grass, or a blend. Legume hays, like alfalfa, can be given in very small quantities as a treat, but are too rich and high in carbs for her staple diet. Ditto on grain hays, like oat hay. Only as a treat.

5. She should be getting a fresh salad every day. If you already do that, great. If not, get her accustomed to it slowly, but she needs those nutrients.

6. Not an expert on baby buns, because I have never bred them, nor will ever, but those babies look over a week old to me. How were they not discovered sooner? Are you sure there's only two and no dead dudes covered by any debris in the cage? (Sorry to be gross, but I'd rather throw it out there, to prevent disease and infection, just in case, as I'm sure you're trying not to disturb Mama.)

7. This site, while some of the articles badly need updated, is still by far the most informative I've ever run across, in years of rabbit rescue. Change the drop down menu at the top of the page for whatever you're looking for--medical or care or housing, etc.

Rabbit References - Health and Medicine

8. If you can get 'em to talk to you, and are ready to do some serious "mea culpas" for the accidental breeding, you could contact a House Rabbit Society chapter near you and get more advice. They often have pregnant rabbits come into rescue, and may have an experienced foster who can guide you and advise you.

http://www.rabbit.org/chapters/index.html

9. Your "other girl" Holland Lop was likely mis-sexed, and is the babydaddy. But, that said, make 217% sure you don't have any flaws or loopholes in your bunny segregation system, as your girl can become pregnant almost immediately following the birth of these babies.

I think that's enough to throw at ya for now, but you're welcome to ask more questions as they arise

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PorschaLei

Thank you very much in contacting my sister whom now has her previous cge mate she was indeed missexed an is a he so I know how it happened in the first place. I have been giving her carrots but will up the salad greens etc. i also replace her hay and water daily. My boyfriend did a cage cleaning without stressing mama an disturbing the nest and he was lucky to poke around no dead guys (thankfully). Since the nest and bunnies are in one of igloo style enclosures which is dark blue. Since we clean the cage every two weeks we didnt spot them until we saw movement within the igloo.


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RedFawnRising

Okay, well at least the mystery of the Bunny Immaculate Conception is solved

I am saying this, not to be rude, but in the same way we often give care advice here about Dobermans--but every two weeks is not near often enough for cage cleaning.

Buns really like to be clean animals, and they can really feel miserable if they're stuck in a messy stinky cage.

I do my cages for a thorough clean at least once per week, with a spot clean here and there as needed, between "big cleans." My guys are also litter trained (although Haywire still sees litter training more as "litter suggestions") and so that helps with keeping their living and exercise areas neater and cleaner.

Please do get rid of that toxic cedar (I hope in my lifetime to see it banned for animal supplies sales).

If you want to use shavings, you can use either kiln-dried pine (make sure it really is kiln-dried), aspen (spendier), or you can otherwise use hardwood stove pellets (not soft on bun feet) or Yesterday's News kitty litter made of recycled papers.

There are pros and cons to every safe litter--you just kinda have to find what works for you.

I just have blankies and kitty beds/pillows down for my guys, with litter pans in their preferred potty area in the cage, and I use hardwood stove pellets in that--safe and cheap and since my guys aren't using litter for bedding, it works fine.

I would say your rabbit kits are about two weeks-ish, then, and that makes more sense, with them being fully furred already.

Bless their hearts--they and Mama are just trucking along, without human intervention, huh?

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PorschaLei

Well we normally do weekly cage cleaning but i had finals and i was getting really crammed and i do take responsibly for not keeping my bun buns environment clean. We do not use cedar we use aspen, no human intervention thats the golden rule. Anyone who wants to see the little guys will just have to endure with pictures the only ones who are going to be handling the cage is my boyfriend and I and that is without disturbing the nest and im going to do proper nest checks to make sure she is feeding them daily.


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RedFawnRising

Hmm, Aspen comes in different colors now? I didn't know that, sorry. I've only seen the light colored aspen shavings--on my monitor those chips have that reddish/purplish hue that cedar shavings have.

And yes, I am sure folks here will love watching them grow up, in pictures

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