First time having babies! Some dead and injured. Help!

[WhenInRhome]

My daughter (9) got 2 bunnies from a feed store several months ago. They were supposed to both be girls. I should have known something was wrong from the start. They were sold as "mini lops" but they grew quickly to a large size and they have tall very straight ears. I asked the woman at the feed store a few weeks ago about it. She said "oh well most people do not understand that mini rabbits are not really that little" and when asked why they did not have lop ears she said "well you have to push them down to train them to be lops". I admit, I do not know much about rabbits anymore but I know she is full of crap. I did raise holland lops when I was a kid and in 4H. I never had to push their ears down lol

So we have a male and female. I noticed them going at it one day so I started working on a second cage but it was too late. I was not sure when to expect babies so I put a plastic tub in the cage with some pine shavings. It was just something I had on hand because I use them for my chickens nest boxes. The two kept flipping the box over.

Yesterday I went out to put some ice bottle in the cage because it is crazy hot I saw 2 babies on the wire. The two big rabbits were running around the pen in circles like they do every time I approach (they expect treats) and were trampling them One just had a small nick on its shoulder but one had a pretty deep cut on its leg. We brought the mom and two babies inside. We warmed the babies and then I googled and saw to hold the mom on her back so the babies could nurse. We kept them in a separate cage inside. Overnight I guess she figured the motherhood thing out. She pulled her fur and made a little nest beside the box I had inside. There were 6 babies but 3 were dead. She had spilled her water in the cage and they were wet and cold. The three babies that were alive were cold so I grabbed a warm towel from the dryer and heated them up.

We took all 5 that were alive and held her to nurse them. Then we put a new bigger nest box in the crate with her and covered them with her fur we had saved from the first nest. I know they do not need to nurse often so I planned on just leaving her to it and checking them in the morning to make sure she fed them overnight.

What should I do about the injured baby? It is feeding and wiggling around. Seems healthy except the foot. Yesterday I cleaned it with peroxide but did not want to put antiseptic on it because the smell. I had to clean it though, the blood had dried and caused both back feet to stick together. This morning it looks like the foot is crooked and twisted and dried out a little. Will it lose its foot? Will it live? My daughter cried herself to sleep last night begging me to take it to the vet We had to have a long talk about how sometimes nature is not fair and not all babies survive. We actually just rescued a wild baby cottontail 4 days ago from my cat. It had a wound on its back. It was big enough to be on its own but still very young. I treated the wound and we had it in a hamster cage in my closet (dark and quiet). It was eating strawberries, corn, lettuce and a little chicken scratch. We woke up yesterday and it was dead. So my poor girl has had a bad week. She wants to start in 4H soon and learn more about rabbits. She loves animals!

 

[Dood]

If blood supply to the foot has been cut of it will dry up like a scab and eventually fall off - do not rush this and let it do it in its own time.

There is a possibity the foot will get infected, then turn into septicaemia and the rabbit will start to go down hill and eventually die so prepare your daughter for this possibility.


If it lives a rabbit with only one back foot will need additional care. The remaining foot will be more prone to developing sore hocks since it is bearing the majority of the bunnies weight and I'd recommend keeping him a solid floor with a secure litter box that he cannot accidentally topple over

 

[katiebear]

Welcome to the forum. .I hope your experience improves. There is a lot of information here..please spend some time educating yourself. .you will feel better. ..if you post some pictures we can help you figure out what breeds may be in the background...

 

[MaggieJ]

Cottontails seldom do well in captivity. The diet you were feeding it was not what it would have been eating in the wild and it may have died from that or from the injury or simply from stress.

Domestic rabbits are a whole different challenge. For starters, it is best if at all possible to let the mother rabbit feed the babies herself. They must be warm before they nurse or they will not be able to digest the milk. It is good that you put them in a box and left them with her.

Nest boxes, unless too heavy to tip, need to be anchored to the side of the cage. Drill holes and use wire or zip ties to fasten them to the cage wire.

Male rabbits left with the female when she is kindling (giving birth) are often relentless in their efforts to rebreed the female. This can happen even while she is still popping out kits. You may well end up with another litter in 28-31 days from when she kindled.

I would give the injured kit a chance and just monitor it. If the foot gets infected, you may need to euthanize it, but foot injuries are not always serious and it may do very well even if the foot is misshapen. A vet visit is not very practical under the circumstances, but I understand your daughter's feelings.

Have you had time to give thought to what you are going to do with possibly two litters of young bunnies? It may be a challenge to find homes for them all.

I hope I don't sound harsh. The feed store person lied to you about the sex of the rabbits, about the ears and the breed. They will often say just about anything to move the rabbits.

Even full-sized rabbits can make good pets. Just no more play dates for them unless you have plans for the babies! Stick around RabbitTalk for awhile and you will soon learn all you need to know about rabbits and then things will be less stressful for you and your little girl.
:good-luck: and :hi:

 

[WhenInRhome]

Cottontails seldom do well in captivity. The diet you were feeding it was not what it would have been eating in the wild and it may have died from that or from the injury or simply from stress.

Domestic rabbits are a whole different challenge. For starters, it is best if at all possible to let the mother rabbit feed the babies herself. They must be warm before they nurse or they will not be able to digest the milk. It is good that you put them in a box and left them with her.

Nest boxes, unless too heavy to tip, need to be anchored to the side of the cage. Drill holes and use wire or zip ties to fasten them to the cage wire.

Male rabbits left with the female when she is kindling (giving birth) are often relentless in their efforts to rebreed the female. This can happen even while she is still popping out kits. You may well end up with another litter in 28-31 days from when she kindled.

I would give the injured kit a chance and just monitor it. If the foot gets infected, you may need to euthanize it, but foot injuries are not always serious and it may do very well even if the foot is misshapen. A vet visit is not very practical under the circumstances, but I understand your daughter's feelings.

Have you had time to give thought to what you are going to do with possibly two litters of young bunnies? It may be a challenge to find homes for them all.

I hope I don't sound harsh. The feed store person lied to you about the sex of the rabbits, about the ears and the breed. They will often say just about anything to move the rabbits.

Even full-sized rabbits can make good pets. Just no more play dates for them unless you have plans for the babies! Stick around RabbitTalk for awhile and you will soon learn all you need to know about rabbits and then things will be less stressful for you and your little girl.
:good-luck: and :hi:

I did not know what to feed the cottontail so I guess based on what I saw them eating in my yard and garden :lol: The wild rabbits area always eating the chicken scratch that my girls drop before throwing in the chicken run. They decimate my strawberries and lettuce. I am sure they eat more than that but I figured it was better than trying to feed it rabbit food pellets. I knew that trying to rescue wild bunnies was hard but I wanted to try. Poor thing would have been eaten for sure if I had not taken him. I had already gotten 3 away from the cat over a week and the day I took it in my cats were eating one baby in my garage. I thought it was a rat at first but it was a bunny. Not sure of its age but they were out without the mom often. Here is a picture of it

-- Mon Jun 29, 2015 12:53 pm --

Here is the mom and dad. Not the best images of the rabbits but the best I have right now.

the dad is brown

and the mom is white with spots. She has developed a big double chin thing recently lol The picture, my daughter noticed tiny grass gnats over her and freaked and ran.

<br /><br /> -- Mon Jun 29, 2015 12:55 pm -- <br /><br />

If blood supply to the foot has been cut of it will dry up like a scab and eventually fall off - do not rush this and let it do it in its own time.

There is a possibity the foot will get infected, then turn into septicaemia and the rabbit will start to go down hill and eventually die so prepare your daughter for this possibility.


If it lives a rabbit with only one back foot will need additional care. The remaining foot will be more prone to developing sore hocks since it is bearing the majority of the bunnies weight and I'd recommend keeping him a solid floor with a secure litter box that he cannot accidentally topple over

Thank you!! I was not sure if it was humane to keep it if it was lame. When I was in 4H as a kid I bred my mini rexes and one was born with a deformed foot. It stuck straight out to the side. My dad said it was inhumane to keep it alive so when it was maybe 3 weeks old he put it down. I remember crying a lot!

My daughter said she wanted to do anything to save it. I am sure she will love it if it is missing a foot! We are in the process of building a few rabbit tractors so it can live on the ground vs wire.

 

[alforddm]

Wow! Those are gorgeous photos.

You've gotten some really great advice and I have nothing more to add except congratz on the little ones.

 

[Dood]

Because of their incredibly fast growth rate, baby rabbits often recover from such traumatic injuries - as a kid I had a NZ missing a front leg (tore off by an aggressive doe in my colony when 4 days old) and she healed fine and of course was one of my favourites

I do hope the little one makes it and as long as he seems well fed I think you should give him a chance. If he does seem to be fading (less active, not gaining weight) then he likely has an infection and id put him down

 

[the reluctant farmer]

Even though Feedstore Lady is a big fat cussidy-cuss liar, those are still really cute rabbits. Beautiful daughter, too. They seem to be very comfortable with her, too!

 

[WhenInRhome]

Even though Feedstore Lady is a big fat cussidy-cuss liar, those are still really cute rabbits. Beautiful daughter, too. They seem to be very comfortable with her, too!

Thanks! They are pretty attached to them Problem is now when we go to the feed store for chicken feed she sees little fluffy lop eared babies and wants more!! Bunnies are like crack. You just cant stop! :bunnyhop: She had wanted lops from the start. They are morons there, they sold my neighbor some broiler chickens as "layers". They didnt have the heart to slaughter them. One already had a heart attack. One is barely alive. She cannot walk more than a few steps. When I asked about my rabbits not being what they were supposed to be she did not have to lie. If she really believes you have to hold their ears down to make them lop eared than she does not have any business selling animals!

 

[Susie570]

I love that picture with the gnats! Great shot! I don't know how you captured it so clearly!

 

[Zass]

1: Bunnies addictive, but are actually much better than crack. Since crack doesn't fertilize the garden, or provide soft fluffy happiness therapy.

2: Do not buy feed-store rabbits if at all possible. Instead it would be in your best interest to find a breeder who specializes in mini or holland lops. Try your best to make sure health and temperament are important considerations if you want them as pets.

3: Learn to sex rabbits. Males and females kept together may make a litter every 31 days or so... Does easily become pregnant while nursing newborns. Young males left with their mother past 8-12 weeks may re-breed her. Some bucklings mature early as 8 weeks, but some take 5 months or so. It's a gamble.
Hmm..
I just dressed and packaged 5 meat birds that were sold as layers from my local feed store. The owner couldn't stand to do the job either, but could see the birds were suffering.

I feel terrible for people who have this happen.

-- Mon Jun 29, 2015 9:52 pm --

also

I love that picture with the gnats! Great shot! I don't know how you captured it so clearly!

:yeahthat:

It's a 1 in a million shot!!! The fact that the offending gnats actually show up!!!...her expression.. :lol:

 

[akane]

Mini lops actually aren't that small. I was quite surprised but they are more of a medium size breed. They are nowhere near the size of hollands and only the smaller ones are close to mini rex. A mini lop can be up to 6 1/2 lbs and a mini rex is in the 3-4 1/2 range. I found them to be rather fluffy compared to other rabbits too. It makes them seem even bigger. The ears though should lop with no help so they are still a cross of something. I wouldn't rely on a feed store employee to tell gender. They probably do whatever the breeder says and breeders mess up. Many on here have seen the sex change fairy strike. :lol: I doubt any of the misinformation was the fault of the feed store employee unless she's breeding the rabbits. It was probably all an accident and then they had no idea how lop ears work or were lied to by the breeder about it.

Most don't count on the litter from a first time doe even under good circumstances. Having a few kits come out of it is actually a good outcome. I did have a 3 legged kit once. It was born with it's backleg unusable. He actually found a home faster than all my other kits. The people already had a 3 legged dog and decided to add a 3 legged rabbit. They said they would amputate if it became necessary. It had a little trouble with poop and pee getting on the leg even in wire cages and probably couldn't be kept in wire cages as an adult which would make it harder to keep clean. It's definitely not a death sentence though. If the leg doesn't get infected or necrotic you can wait to see how it moves around when it gets closer to 2-3weeks old. Like others said rabbits breed immediately after kits are born so sometimes a buck can cause the death of kits if he's overeager. They also frequently get pregnant the day they give birth. I would think it a little less likely since she still went on to have more kits but possible. Be ready for that. Any kits that survive from this litter will be weaned early at around 4 weeks to allow for the next litter to come and be fed.

A few things on rabbit food since it may be very important for the kits being weaned early. Absolutely don't give rabbits chicken feed. It is very poor quality feed full of stuff that is not good for rabbits and can cause major digestive tract problems. The wild rabbits are eating a lot of high fiber foods like old grasses, brush, tree parts... and only a little of your chicken feed and garden food. Strawberry leaves aren't bad (along with most berry plant parts) but vegetables like corn or lettuce are too high in sugar and low in fiber that can cause bacteria populations to explode in the digestive tract, produce too much gas (bloat), and slow the intestines down (stasis). It's a death sentence if not reversed fast. A cottontail would do better since they are already eating fresh foods. Domestic rabbits used to dry foods can suffer from rather small amounts of vegetables so if they aren't eating fresh food as soon as they start mouthing foods they will need to be adjusted very slowly. You also want to provide hay. The fiber is healthy and reduces the risk of such problems occurring if the digestive tract gets upset by something. I think it greatly helps lessen the young rabbits that get upset digestive tracts at weaning.

 

[WhenInRhome]

I love that picture with the gnats! Great shot! I don't know how you captured it so clearly!

I love the gnats too :lol: They just happened to be in the right focal plane and made it in the shot. I am a photographer too

-- Tue Jun 30, 2015 8:30 am --

1: Bunnies addictive, but are actually much better than crack. Since crack doesn't fertilize the garden, or provide soft fluffy happiness therapy.

2: Do not buy feed-store rabbits if at all possible. Instead it would be in your best interest to find a breeder who specializes in mini or holland lops. Try your best to make sure health and temperament are important considerations if you want them as pets.

3: Learn to sex rabbits. Males and females kept together may make a litter every 31 days or so... Does easily become pregnant while nursing newborns. Young males left with their mother past 8-12 weeks may re-breed her. Some bucklings mature early as 8 weeks, but some take 5 months or so. It's a gamble.
Hmm..
I just dressed and packaged 5 meat birds that were sold as layers from my local feed store. The owner couldn't stand to do the job either, but could see the birds were suffering.

I feel terrible for people who have this happen.

-- Mon Jun 29, 2015 9:52 pm --

also

I love that picture with the gnats! Great shot! I don't know how you captured it so clearly!

:yeahthat:

It's a 1 in a million shot!!! The fact that the offending gnats actually show up!!!...her expression.. :lol:

I will definitely not buy feed store rabbits again. I knew the deal. I knew not to buy chickens there. I bought pure Ameraucanas and Buff Orpingtons from a breeder I could trust, especially with the flu going around. I told my daughter we should wait till she joined 4H and found a good breeder but she did not want to wait. I did know how to sex rabbits many years ago. I just did not trust myself. I had also just fallen and dislocated my knee and ripped up some ligaments so I was in a brace and on crutches :x That is the main reason I went ahead and let her buy the bunnies at the feed store. We were already there to get feed and it got her off my back. She is a really good kid, since my injury she has been letting the chickens out in the am and putting them up in the pm. She goes out several times a day to hose down the run to cool them off, and give them mealworms and watermelon. I call her the chicken whisperer. They all love her and will only let her catch them. She still loves these rabbit mutts but does want to do 4H and show. She would never get rid of these though. We will get them fixed and keep them

-- Tue Jun 30, 2015 8:37 am --

Mini lops actually aren't that small. I was quite surprised but they are more of a medium size breed. They are nowhere near the size of hollands and only the smaller ones are close to mini rex. A mini lop can be up to 6 1/2 lbs and a mini rex is in the 3-4 1/2 range. I found them to be rather fluffy compared to other rabbits too. It makes them seem even bigger. The ears though should lop with no help so they are still a cross of something. I wouldn't rely on a feed store employee to tell gender. They probably do whatever the breeder says and breeders mess up. Many on here have seen the sex change fairy strike. :lol: I doubt any of the misinformation was the fault of the feed store employee unless she's breeding the rabbits. It was probably all an accident and then they had no idea how lop ears work or were lied to by the breeder about it.

Most don't count on the litter from a first time doe even under good circumstances. Having a few kits come out of it is actually a good outcome. I did have a 3 legged kit once. It was born with it's backleg unusable. He actually found a home faster than all my other kits. The people already had a 3 legged dog and decided to add a 3 legged rabbit. They said they would amputate if it became necessary. It had a little trouble with poop and pee getting on the leg even in wire cages and probably couldn't be kept in wire cages as an adult which would make it harder to keep clean. It's definitely not a death sentence though. If the leg doesn't get infected or necrotic you can wait to see how it moves around when it gets closer to 2-3weeks old. Like others said rabbits breed immediately after kits are born so sometimes a buck can cause the death of kits if he's overeager. They also frequently get pregnant the day they give birth. I would think it a little less likely since she still went on to have more kits but possible. Be ready for that. Any kits that survive from this litter will be weaned early at around 4 weeks to allow for the next litter to come and be fed.

A few things on rabbit food since it may be very important for the kits being weaned early. Absolutely don't give rabbits chicken feed. It is very poor quality feed full of stuff that is not good for rabbits and can cause major digestive tract problems. The wild rabbits are eating a lot of high fiber foods like old grasses, brush, tree parts... and only a little of your chicken feed and garden food. Strawberry leaves aren't bad (along with most berry plant parts) but vegetables like corn or lettuce are too high in sugar and low in fiber that can cause bacteria populations to explode in the digestive tract, produce too much gas (bloat), and slow the intestines down (stasis). It's a death sentence if not reversed fast. A cottontail would do better since they are already eating fresh foods. Domestic rabbits used to dry foods can suffer from rather small amounts of vegetables so if they aren't eating fresh food as soon as they start mouthing foods they will need to be adjusted very slowly. You also want to provide hay. The fiber is healthy and reduces the risk of such problems occurring if the digestive tract gets upset by something. I think it greatly helps lessen the young rabbits that get upset digestive tracts at weaning.

The feed store woman was probably just going by what she was told. She was very defensive and rude when I told her they were nor mini or lops. I guess that is what pissed me off the most. I know better now

Thanks for all of the info!! Cottontails are so hard to help! If I find another I will take it to a professional for sure. There is a woman I found who took in rescues, but she was over an hour away and I had to work over the weekend. I was planning on taking it to her on Monday but it died Sunday night It was so cute! Nothing like a domestic rabbit. It had very petite feet and a longer looking face. The rabbit feed I gave it was scratch grain, so mostly grain but some corn. I had no idea that was bad. Mostly what I gave it was the berries because they always attacked the berries outside so I thought it was like their favorite. There is not a lot of info on what to feed a weaned baby rabbit out there on the internet. Everyone I asked on facebook said to just let it go and let nature take care of things. I know that rabbits are prey, but I could not bear to see my cat toying with it like he was. Terrible way to die <br /><br /> -- Tue Jun 30, 2015 9:11 am -- <br /><br /> We took the mom out of the cage after she delivered two babies on the wire. They were still somewhat warm. Could they have rebred that soon? She delivered 6 more babies that night.

 

[Zinnia]

We took the mom out of the cage after she delivered two babies on the wire. They were still somewhat warm. Could they have rebred that soon? She delivered 6 more babies that night.

Good question. I would provide a nest box in case. I had a similar occurrence which resulted in a litter 27 days later. I was blown away by their efficiency!