Nutrients for new rabbit Mommy

[breezewind]

Hi Everybody

What should I feed a new rabbit mommy to keep herself and her babies healthy?

I got two rabbits for my little daughter. Today, we had a surprise. The girl rabbit had babies.

As this is the first time for us. we had mixed emotions. excited, nervous and scared, (yes, scared. because we saw blood)!

We clean the cage everyday and feed them with pellets, hay, and natural green from the garden.

Just wonder whether the mother needs better food

Are there anything we should watch out for?

Any input will be appreciated.

Thanks

breeze

 

[Zass]

Very likely, your rabbit doesn't need anything more than she is already getting.

If the litter is a large one though, you might consider supplementing her diet with some black oil sunflower seeds. Just a small spoonful a day would be plenty.

The female can become pregnant shortly after giving birth. So unless you want another litter in 31 days, it's best to separate the male and female.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Hi Breezewind!

:hi: to RabbitTalk!

What type of pellets are you feeding her? If it is a mix with lots of colorful bits of fruit and vegetables in it, I would strongly recommend getting her a strictly pelleted feed. The mixes are made to appeal visually to rabbit owners, but are not really healthy for the rabbits because they have too much sugar.

Other than that, her diet sounds healthy. You might give her some old fashioned kitchen oatmeal as well. It is also a great first food for her kits.

What type of rabbits are they? Do you have plans for the babies?

The female can become pregnant shortly after giving birth. So unless you want another litter in 31 days, it's best to separate the male and female.

Often times the buck will try to breed the doe while she is giving birth or shortly after, so I would assume she is already pregnant again.

Gestation is between 28 and 40 days, with most does giving birth around day 30 or 31.

You will need to wean her current litter at 3 to 3-1/2 weeks and put them in another cage before she gives birth. The kits will already be eating pellets, hay, and greens at that point so will do just fine.

 

[breezewind]

Thank you so much

I really appreciate your helps.

I already separate the father from the mother. Our plan is to buy another two cages and we had friends which already show interest on the small bunnies. my daughter is so excited about the small bunnies. I guess we are going to keep the rest!

The babies caught us by surprise! As my daughter and I don't even know the doe is pregnant. We still consider them small rabbits.

The hay we feed the bunnies are timothy hay from the priaries. pellets had a greenish tube look, and they are timothy and alfalfa based. I am from Toronto. We bought the foods from pet shop and bulk and barn.