Hi I found a litter of 3 rabbits they are wild ones My dog got 2 of the babies and I know from having tame rabbits the mom wont come bk to the remaining baby I have no idea how old this baby is except very very young eyes are still closed My vet has given me the stuff to feed but not how often or for how long I do want to allow this bunny to return to the wild after he is old enough Any suggestions?
Kitty: You might want to check out another post on this Board under \"Rabbit Health\" which was posted by Heather who also has a young rabbit (although yours sounds younger). Some good info was passed along, and it may help you in your situation.
Good luck!
Well, Kitty, you\'re in for a tough job. With eyes still closed, the kit can be anywhere from a few days (I\'m assuming it is furred out) to just under 10 days of age.
Assuming that the vet gave you the proper formula, you should feed warm, fresh formula twice daily and let the kit eat as much as it wants. Feed with a syringe, eye dropper or doll bottle. Throw away any unused portion after 8 hours.
It is important to stimulate urination at each feeding by using a damp cotton ball to wipe the genital area. This mimics the dam cleaning the kit and should cause urination.
Important: Do not over-handle the kit or try to feed too much, too frequently. Initially feed a very small amount every four hours and gradually work up to twice daily feedings (morning and night) when the kit seems to be eating well.
The greatest dangers to watch for are aspiration (forcing liquids too fast and causing fluid to enter the lungs), pneumonia (a result of aspiration), hypothermia (low body heat), and diarrhea (often caused by overfeeding or bacterial infections).
Continue the bottle feedings until the kit is five weeks old. At three weeks, provide access to water (preferably through a hanging waterer), and pellets mixed with about 20% uncooked old-fashioned oatmeal. Provide a good grass hay free choice.
I wish you luck.
Charlcie Gill
Zodiac Rabbitry
Astoria, OR
http://www.zodiacsatins.com
He is about 4 or 5 days old now you can still see where the umbilical cord was attached so far hes eating ok the first day he only took about 2 ml\'s the whole nite and day today he took about 7 ml\'s all total hes very active and wants to nuzzle as for the feeding after the formula I would prefer to feed him what he will be eating in the wild simce I am going to try to keep him as a wild cottontail rather than a pet so he\'s only handled at feeding time my kids want to name him and I keep telling them hes not ours to name we dont want him too tame to release bk out when hes older one problem I am having is I have to force his mouth open to get the nipple in and I really don\'t like that once in though hes a greedy little guy still gets tired easy and takes lots of rests in between sucking
New issue with baby he don\'t want to stay in his box he wants to be close to me how do I keep him from needing me so much his box is nice and warm I got some of the stuff his nest was made of outside plus I put a towel in there he sits on my computer tower it is warm and makes noise so now what do I do I dont want him too humanized so he can be released bk out in the wild