HELP baby bunnies with dyeing mom

[tielie135]

Foster the babies, get mom to a vet if you want to save her. Put her down if you can't. Dripping blood and not eating or drinking after birth suggests internal issues above our paygrade.

If mom's having trouble with the fostering, you will wanna look at force nursing and bottle feeding. You have your hands full.

yeah, i think i am going to put the first mom down, the other doe is doing great at fostering, i just cant bring the box to her or her babies will play in the nest, i have tried moving her to a dark quiet room and she will happily nurse them there. hopefully it will all work out.

 

[NatJ]

yeah, i think i am going to put the first mom down, the other doe is doing great at fostering, i just cant bring the box to her or her babies will play in the nest, i have tried moving her to a dark quiet room and she will happily nurse them there. hopefully it will all work out.

I just noticed this thread, but it sounds like you've got it figured out.
Bottle feeding bunnies does not work well, so I'm very glad you've got a doe willing to nurse them!

You can probably wean the one set of bunnies when they are 4-5 weeks old, and then hopefully you could have the younger ones live with the foster mother from that point on. That would reduce how many weeks you spend carrying rabbits back and forth

Edit to add: or would it work to assign each litter to a cage, and transfer the doe every morning and evening for the next week or two? So she'd spend half her time with each litter, until the older ones can be weaned and then she'd just be raising the younger ones.

 

[MissE]

Foster mom will be happier with the new kits than her obnoxious 3 week olds that won't leave her alone. Wean the older ones in a week or two if you can, but them in a cage next to mom, and leave the little ones with mom. Good luck. I've fostered ones close to the same age, but like you already found out, a big age spread doesn't allow all the kits in the same box.

 

[tielie135]

I just noticed this thread, but it sounds like you've got it figured out.
Bottle feeding bunnies does not work well, so I'm very glad you've got a doe willing to nurse them!

You can probably wean the one set of bunnies when they are 4-5 weeks old, and then hopefully you could have the younger ones live with the foster mother from that point on. That would reduce how many weeks you spend carrying rabbits back and forth

Edit to add: or would it work to assign each litter to a cage, and transfer the doe every morning and evening for the next week or two? So she'd spend half her time with each litter, until the older ones can be weaned and then she'd just be raising the younger ones.

that is a great idea! i have a cage free right next to her! i will try that.

 

[cassie]

I didn't read your post as carefully as I should have. When fostering it is important that the babies all be about the same age. Little ones cannot compete with the bigger ones.

I have never tried this and I have absolutely no idea whether it would even work. You could divide the litters in half. Meaning have each litter in its own nest box and put one nest box in and remove the other. Leave each box in half the time. As I said, I have no idea if this would work or if it would end up causing worse problems than the one you are trying to solve. When I was raising rabbits I bred several does at once so if I needed to even out the litters and foster some it was never a problem.

 

[RosemaryDuck]

Just wanted to add here, if you cull the first mother you may want to open her up and see what happened internally. If she had issues birthing the kits it could very well be something genetic the kits could carry on in future breeding. You don't want to end up with a bunch of females who all have the same problem the mother did. It's better to look and see what went wrong.

 

[tielie135]

Just wanted to add here, if you cull the first mother you may want to open her up and see what happened internally. If she had issues birthing the kits it could very well be something genetic the kits could carry on in future breeding. You don't want to end up with a bunch of females who all have the same problem the mother did. It's better to look and see what went wrong.

yeah i always do an autopsy on strange deaths. i didnt even think about if it could be genetic.

 

[tielie135]

been trying to get the babies fed but things are not going well. tried both of the does nursing the babies and none of them got even a remotely decent meal, tried force nursing BOTH the does on the litter and they together were producing very little for them that only 3 got an adequate meal. they are getting very weak and you can see ribs protruding. haven't put the mom down yet as she is producing some milk and if the babies have any hope they will need it. i tried leaving them alone with the foster mom but not only is most of her milk gone to her older babies but the young ones are not working well with her and they end up scattered if i leave them alone together. she will not feed them of her own will. i am getting desperate now, what are the options for milk replacers? tried getting raw goats milk but it is illegal's to buy trade give or even transport raw goats milk here. trying to get pasteurized but IDK.
some of the babies are getting to weak to nurse well :'(

 

[RosemaryDuck]

been trying to get the babies fed but things are not going well. tried both of the does nursing the babies and none of them got even a remotely decent meal, tried force nursing BOTH the does on the litter and they together were producing very little for them that only 3 got an adequate meal. they are getting very weak and you can see ribs protruding. haven't put the mom down yet as she is producing some milk and if the babies have any hope they will need it. i tried leaving them alone with the foster mom but not only is most of her milk gone to her older babies but the young ones are not working well with her and they end up scattered if i leave them alone together. she will not feed them of her own will. i am getting desperate now, what are the options for milk replacers? tried getting raw goats milk but it is illegal's to buy trade give or even transport raw goats milk here. trying to get pasteurized but IDK.
some of the babies are getting to weak to nurse well :'(

I don't know that it would arrive in time, but you could order fox valley rabbit formula. It's formulated perfectly for them. The guy who runs fox valley is really sweet and he'll overnight it for you. You'd have to hand feed them all, but at this point that's likely what you'll end up doing anyway.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

been trying to get the babies fed but things are not going well. tried both of the does nursing the babies and none of them got even a remotely decent meal, tried force nursing BOTH the does on the litter and they together were producing very little for them that only 3 got an adequate meal. they are getting very weak and you can see ribs protruding. haven't put the mom down yet as she is producing some milk and if the babies have any hope they will need it. i tried leaving them alone with the foster mom but not only is most of her milk gone to her older babies but the young ones are not working well with her and they end up scattered if i leave them alone together. she will not feed them of her own will. i am getting desperate now, what are the options for milk replacers? tried getting raw goats milk but it is illegal's to buy trade give or even transport raw goats milk here. trying to get pasteurized but IDK.
some of the babies are getting to weak to nurse well :'(

You need kitten milk replacer with added heavy cream.

https://www.mybunny.org/info/caring-for-newborn-baby-rabbits/

GO SLOW while feeding.