Whoops! Just got accidentally pulled into rabbit raising...

[homelesszombieapocalypse@]

I thought I had two female rabbits. But went out this morning and found a nest in the rabbit pen with 5 newborns in it. So one of my "females" turned out to be a male.
My dilemma is that I know nothing about raising newborn bunnies.
I have found some articles online....eg https://www.unusualpetvets.com.au/hand-raising-baby-rabbits/
One issue that seems important at the outset is that the Mom may not know how to be a good Mom and feed her babies. In which case I would need to do that. I need to figure out how to determine if the newborns need feeding....thus far, it seems the Mom isn't paying much attention to her babies. I created a nest box for them, put her in it, but she just stepped on them, munched a bit of the hay in there, hopped out again. What do I need to watch for or do?

In this article I found, it's suggested to use Wombaroo Rabbit Milk. Should I order some and get ready to feed the newborns?

I'd be grateful for any tips!!

 

[secuono]

Pull (read that as literally rip it out) fur from mom's underside, a lot of fur. To line the nest under the kits and to fully cover them.

Rabbits feed as little as once a day. Newly kindled moms may feed several times a day for a couple of minutes for a few days, slowly increasing how long they nurse and decrease how often they feed, until it is done only once or twice a day.

Unfed kits will be hollow bellied and after a couple of days, skin will stay tented when you check it for dehydration.

Nest should be tall enough that kits cannot easily climb or roll out and long n wide enough that mom can fit inside to feed them.

Are they in your house or outside?
If outside, nest should be in an area where wind won't blow on them, nor will rain/snow fall on them.

You only need to keep food and water filled.

Kits will start exploring around 2wks old. If outside, you may have to add a brick in front of nest so they can go back in at night qhen it's cold. At 3wks, you can tilt nest on its side or wait until they're 4wks old and remove nest entirely.

At that point, again, all you need to do is keep food and water full.

At 8wks old, you can start weaning and sexing the kits. Males should be removed by 12wks. Does can stay as long as mom accepts them. Can sell after 8+ weeks old.

If you feed treats, I'd hold off on giving any to the kits until they're 5wks old. Then only give them tiny amounts. Rabbits love to bloat and die when you add new food.

 

[homelesszombieapocalypse@]

I thought I had two female rabbits. But went out this morning and found a nest in the rabbit pen with 5 newborns in it. So one of my "females" turned out to be a male.
My dilemma is that I know nothing about raising newborn bunnies.
I have found some articles online....eg https://www.unusualpetvets.com.au/hand-raising-baby-rabbits/
One issue that seems important at the outset is that the Mom may not know how to be a good Mom and feed her babies. In which case I would need to do that. I need to figure out how to determine if the newborns need feeding....thus far, it seems the Mom isn't paying much attention to her babies. I created a nest box for them, put her in it, but she just stepped on them, munched a bit of the hay in there, hopped out again. What do I need to watch for or do?

In this article I found, it's suggested to use Wombaroo Rabbit Milk. Should I order some and get ready to feed the newborns?

I'd be grateful for any tip

Pull (read that as literally rip it out) fur from mom's underside, a lot of fur. To line the nest under the kits and to fully cover them.

Rabbits feed as little as once a day. Newly kindled moms may feed several times a day for a couple of minutes for a few days, slowly increasing how long they nurse and decrease how often they feed, until it is done only once or twice a day.

Unfed kits will be hollow bellied and after a couple of days, skin will stay tented when you check it for dehydration.

Nest should be tall enough that kits cannot easily climb or roll out and long n wide enough that mom can fit inside to feed them.

Are they in your house or outside?
If outside, nest should be in an area where wind won't blow on them, nor will rain/snow fall on them.

You only need to keep food and water filled.

Kits will start exploring around 2wks old. If outside, you may have to add a brick in front of nest so they can go back in at night qhen it's cold. At 3wks, you can tilt nest on its side or wait until they're 4wks old and remove nest entirely.

At that point, again, all you need to do is keep food and water full.

At 8wks old, you can start weaning and sexing the kits. Males should be removed by 12wks. Does can stay as long as mom accepts them. Can sell after 8+ weeks old.

If you feed treats, I'd hold off on giving any to the kits until they're 5wks old. Then only give them tiny amounts. Rabbits love to bloat and die when you add new food.

Thanks!
When the Mom rabbit gave birth, she already pulled out a lot of her own fur so that is available for the nest.
The rabbits normally live in a pen outside, but at times I've found rats have made their way into the pen to eat the rabbit food, so I created in indoor pen using pet fencing, and brought Mom and babies indoor into it, to prevent the babies from being killed by rats who might get in.
I made a nest out of a plastic dishwashing basin and put some hay in it, then set the fur down, babies on the fur, then more fur over the top of them to keep them warm. Should I cover them with the fur or not?
Is it common for new Mom rabbits to ignore the kits and the nest? Mom seems to be ignoring the nest. When I put her in it she jumps out. She doesn't seem to show much interest in it. I moved the nest closer to where she was sitting

 

[Mini Horses]

Feel kit bellies to see if full or hollow tummies. Rabbits are private and fast at feeding. They won't stay with kits like a cat or dog.

 

[secuono]

She will not go near the nest except to feed. That is normal and how she protects them from predators.
Yes, put fur on top. They will then scratch the fur around as needed. Fluff for cold and mush it down when warm.

 

[homelesszombieapocalypse@]

Thanks! These are all things I would not have guessed about...so based on what you're saying it would be difficult for me to know if she was feeding them or not except by examining them physically, because it sounds like I am likely not to see her feeding them.

 

[Mini Horses]

You got it

 

[secuono]

Thanks! These are all things I would not have guessed about...so based on what you're saying it would be difficult for me to know if she was feeding them or not except by examining them physically, because it sounds like I am likely not to see her feeding them.

Correct.
Unless you have a little wifi camera to record her, you'll never know without taking a peek at the kits.

 

[Grizzlyhackle]

Bodies feel warm, wiggle when you touch them, bellies don't feel empty, then you are good to go. Every answer you got above is spot on.
Quit moving the nest, she doesn't want to be near it until she has to be. It's a prey thing.
Check once or twice a day, do a head count, see if everybody's alive.

 

[Tiny Tails Rabbitry]

You can tell if she is feeding them by flipping the babies over and if they look fat and have white tummies then she has fed them. If you need any help with raising them please message me and I will help you! If you send me a private message I can give you my email (I check it every day). I currently have a litter of 5 4 week old lionheads.