Help!!! Found newborn rabbit. What do I do???

[Thomas423]

I know-- first off, I should leave it. But I'm not.
It's very young. No fur, eyes closed. I looked around to see if I could see any signs of a nest close by. Nothing. We're thinking that maybe the mama was moving it to a new spot and got scared off. The problem is that we are going to be in the yard all day making alot of noise (we're hanging siding on the house). Also, we have two dogs. I'm sure that the little one won't make it till night if I leave it alone.
So what do I do?
I put it in a little shoe box with shredded paper towels and moved it to a warm spot. My chicken "nursery" is empty until Friday so I can move it near the heat lamp, but what should the temp. be?
I have syringes to try and feed it. Will milk be okay. I can go to TSC in a bit. Should I get anyting there. Milk replacer, vitamins, etc???

Help!! I know it's best to leave it, but I'm pretty certain that it won't make it if I do nothing. I also know that it might not make it anyway, but I need to try. Help!!

 

[Thomas423]

I'm on my way to TSC to get milk replacer and a small bottle.
I put a few drops on milk on the end of the syringe and it eagerly drank them.
It seems cold. What temp should it be?
I added a washcloth to the box for now and he is sleeping under it.
Any suggestions on what to do?
I'll do my own research later but for now, I'm counting on fellow BYCers to help the little guy out.

 

[ashleylancaster]

THE BEST PLACE TO GO IS BINKYBUNNY.COM. ITS LIKE THE BYC BUT FOR RABBITS. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET PLENTY OF INFORMATION THERE. GOOD LUCK~

 

[dainerra]

milk replacer might help short-term but it's not good for rabbits. This link contains a step-by-step to feeding a baby bunny, recipe and how-to.
an important note: baby bunnies only eat once or twice a day because rabbit milk is so rich in fat. That's why they can't live on puppy/kitten replacer

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=57630&forum_id=8

ETA: don't forget to stimulate the bun's bathroom habits!

 

[annageckos]

Do you have a rehabber around you? That would be my first option if I couldn't find the nest. Or do you know someone with a nursing rabbit that would take it? Baby bunnies are one of the the hardest animals to raise. They need special food, and only eat once to twice a day. Kitten milk replacer is ok temporarily, but won't work long term. When I worked at the wildlife rehab we tube feed all bunnies. They stress too much, too fast. You need to keep them away from activity and noises.

 

[Thomas423]

Quote:
Thanks for the link. Much helpful info.

Update: After I took in the 1 baby, my dog found the whole nest about 200 feet from the lone one. She dug out the nest and 1 was still in the nest, 1 was moving around about 1 foot from the nest, and 1 was not moving and still covered with placenta also about 1 foot from the nest. So I locked the dogs inside and left them alone while doing research. I decided to get rid of the dead one and I brought the other 2 inside with the first one. We're trying to decide if there is anyway to keep the dogs away from them while still allowing access for the mother. I read that if we put them back tonight, we can put twigs over the nest to see if momma comes to take care of them. I would really like to put them back, but I really don't see anyway to keep the dogs away from the nest.
I did bottle feed them, and all 3 drank from the nipple.

 

[SilverPhoenix]

Call a wildlife rehab group immediately. Baby bunnies are very fragile, and it's better not to try and do anything with them yourself. I've seen many of them die because of well-meaning people trying to help them. Look one up! If you can't find one near you, call your local Fish & Game and ask who to call.

 

[manybirds]

I'm curently hand raising a baby rabbit. We had to put the doe down. If it's that young it probably won't live. We started with 7 on 1 week old rabbits and only ones alive. Unless it's already at least 1-2 weeks it's pretty close to imposible. If you still want to try hears what to do.

It should be getting 1 part kitten formula 1 part goats milk, and you'll still nead to add colostrum. It should be fed twice a day. From 1-2 weeks 3ccs from 2-3 weeks 5-7 ccs and from 3 weeks to weaning 7-13 ccs. It's very easy to drown them at this age. You should hold them firmly uprite and give it formula very slowly. You will be able to sex it at 3-4 weeks, and it should be weened at 8 weeks. You can start offering pellets and water and hay at 3-4 weeks.

Like I said it probably won't live so if it does die don't get to tore up because you did all you could. Good luck!

 

[manybirds]

Oh ya and the milk should be about 105 degrees

 

[manybirds]

One more thing it's very important to track weight at every feading.