Will the runt still get fed?

WVForestGirl · May 31, 2017

My first litter is 2 weeks old, three of them are venturing out of the box, they are curious and coordinated. The runt has made it this far but looks developmentally about a week behind, eyes still closed, very uncoordinated. Will the doe keep feeding him in the box if the others are chasing her around to feed? What should I do to maximize his chances? Thanks!

Blueeyedrex · May 31, 2017

you could always bottlefeed "eyedropfeed" it, its really simple they only need feed twice a day, , Baby rabbits should be fed Kitten Milk Replacer (KMR) or goat milk, which you can buy at pet stores, or sometimes even a local veterinarian's office. Because rabbit milk is the most caloric of all mammals, we add in one tablespoon of 100% heavy whipping cream (no sugar) to each can of KMR.

MaggieJ · May 31, 2017

I think it might be easier and more effective if you can get the doe to feed the runt once or twice a day. KMR is not always well-tolerated by rabbit kits, though the addition of whipping cream should help.

Sit down with a towel spread over your lap, making a hollow between your legs. Set the doe across your lap and slip the kit under her so it is safely in the hollow. If it's viable at all, it should take the opportunity to nurse. If you can get it through until its eyes are open and it is perky, I'd say it has a chance, but it does sound like it is very far behind the others and I doubt the doe will feed it in its box if the others are nursing elsewhere. You can check its belly to see before you start other methods.

It's been quite a while since you've visited us, WVForestGirl, and since then Homer has developed an outstanding recipe for hand-feeding kits.
updated-hand-feeding-formula-t27372.html

Nice to see you back.

And please do post an update so we know what you decided to do and how it turned out.

WVForestGirl · May 31, 2017

Thank you, I haven't be able to log in for a while but I've been doing a good bit of lurking.... :blush:

In the first couple of days little mister runtypants was very wrinkly so I flipped Anastasia a couple of times to help him get some food. She really didn't like it and I was afraid to stress her out too much so I stopped when I saw that he seemed to have a full belly in spite of his small size. He also tunnels around the box like a little blind fright train so there's definitely energy there.

Thanks for the lap nest idea, I did that tonight and Anastasia was much more willing. However, runtmonster just frantically rooted around and really didn't seem to latch on or get much out of a pretty lengthy session. So, in anticipation of her not feeding him once the others are out of the box (all 3 were out this morning), I ran out for some goat milk and made him some formula. I guess he took about 3ml, we'll try that for a while.

Thanks much for the help, I will let you know how he is.

macksmom98 · Jun 1, 2017

Maggie J has given good advice, I would actually do the same thing. Most of the time my runts are just as eager to eat and will do ok on their own. It just depends on the litter size tho, may be harder for them in a big litter.

Lowstorm · Jun 13, 2017

I wish I could give advice. My Runt was the first out of the box. She finally caught up in size to my holdback does about 2 weeks ago, they're all 5 months old now.

WVForestGirl · Jun 15, 2017

Unhappy end to the story, unfortunately. I kept him going for another 10 days. His eyes were open and he was kind of on and off, still shaky and uncoordinated at times but seeming happy and perky at others. Then he had a seizure right after a feeding and I had to put him down. Putting everything together im thinking he had some sort of neuromuscular disorder. Next time hopefully I'll recognize it and know better. Thank you all for the help!