You need to keep him warm. Put him in the cage covered with hay and cotton to keep him warm.

You will most likely not see her nurse him though. Rabbits being prey animals don’t respond in the same way to things that we do either.

I thought your rabbit was a single rabbit though!

oh no.  just one baby?  i thought you got your rabbit a few months ago?  rabbits are only pregnant for about a month, so it must have happened recently.  who has an unaltered rabbit that she is running around with? 

oh no! but just one? thats unusual, yes keep warm and if mom still doesnt want to know you would probably be better going to a vet to find info

maternal instincts are strong for the most part. if any species turns their back on their young it could be from inexperience/immaturity or she knows something is wrong with the baby.

baby bunnies are very hard to care for. i hope you have a good vet around you that knows rabbits. i’d have your new momma examined to just to make sure that there aren’t anymore babies inside.

Yeah, my guess is that the daughter wanted to see if they’d all be friends and put them all together one time.  Although returning a bun isn’t the best thing, at least you’ll hopefully find someone who can raise the baby – although it is more likely that the baby won’t survive.  I suggest next time, you get yourself and altered bun so this doesn’t accidentially happen again.

Like everyone else is saying though, just one baby is unusual. Keep an eye on mom and make sure she’s acting normally and that there isn’t trouble with possibly any other babies.

Oh no! I’m surprised the humane society didn’t spay the rabbit before adoption. It would be sad if she had to go back there.

it would be a shame to take both back, remember it isnt the bunnies fault that she got pregnant, its the person whoever left them together

It is but laying the blame isn’t the issue here.  The issue is finding someone who is experienced enough to help the baby bun become a big bun.  If there is anyway to have professionals raise the kid until he can be weened off mom, you could then have mom come back and the baby could be put up for adoption.

The last time we were in the Edmonton Humane Society they had 2 bunnies (in separate cages) in the foyer. I peeked in to look at one and thought hmmm I think I see some red by her hind foot – managed to get her to move and sure enough it was blood and there was what I would say was a very deformed baby bun underneath her. Just the one, and it was BIG – looked to be almost half her length. How on earth she managed to birth that I have no idea. I managed to get the attention of one of the staff and told them they had an urgent situation with one of the buns and should attend to it ASAP. I have to say that I’m really glad we were the ones that saw that and not a child. I had the feeling that the mamma bun was pretty young, which could be why it was just the 1 and deformed. They took her off the adoption list for about a week but I see that she’s back on there now.

As for shelters spaying/neutering the buns, I haven’t found any standard between locations yet. In Edmonton rabbits are altered at the Humane Society if they get time to do it – they focus on the cats and dogs and if they have time after those to do work on the buns then they do. In Winnipeg the Humane Society includes altering as part of the fees.
– Annette

A clarification by Scooter here.  The deformed baby bun was already dead by the time we saw it.  They were just packed with animals–normally they don’t put cages even in the foyer–and overworked, so I understand why they didn’t notice earlier.

It’s possible! Poor bunny. Have you looked all over her cage for other babies?

It could be. Why she gave birth BEFORE the nest, I dunno. Maybe that one just wanted out earlier. Yes, she is nesting and you can probably expect more babies.

I am sorry that this has happened to you. Where are you located again? Maybe we can find a rescue that will raise the buns.

I’m going to send you an email about this…

And it will too. Once mom settles down, try putting the baby next to her belly where her teats are. Make sure to put it as close as possible. Also make sure the nest has plenty of stuff to keep the buns warm.

Sorry if I am sounding a little callous but when it comes to baby buns, I prefers blunt and direct conversations so that there are no misinterpretations. 

Keep us posted Mocha

i figured that might happen.  that must be why she seemed to ignore the first one… she knew more were coming & her nesting instincts kicked in.  did she pull out enough hair to make a nest that will keep all the babies warm?  is the first baby now with the rest?  if they’re all together i think they’ll help keep eachother warm.

keep posting if you have any questions or with updates on how you’re doing k?  ((((((hugs to you, bun & bubs))))))

I hope Mama and the babies (and you too) make out alright.

10 babies! Wow – keep us posted.

Oh dear another unexpected litter.  I am very sorry to hear that this happened however you said she was with the male rabbits in January?  It is now the middle of March and the gestation period is only about 28 days so that would mean it happened around the middle of February.

Keep her and the babes warm and give them a quiet space to be in.  Separate them by sex from the mum at 8 weeks (after weaning), if not a male rabbit can impregnate all the females when they are as young as 3 1/2 months old. Be sure that when they become mobile they cannot get their heads stuck in the cage.

Here is a bit more info:

Pregnancy/Babies – Uh Oh, Surprise Litter?:

• http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html
• http://www.rabbit.org/care/babies.html
• http://www.rabbit.org/care/newborn.html
• http://www.mybunny.org/info/newborn.htm

There is a rabbit rescue in Ontario, although I do not know how far/close it is to you:

http://www.ontariorabbits.org

Here is a listing of Canadian rescue organizations throughout the provinces in Canada:

http://www3.telus.net/raisinghouserabbits/rescue.htm

yelpot10 had a similar situation a few weeks ago (a surprise litter) and her Post is this:

Subject: yelpot10 needs help oreo had babies

When you can find a minute, read through her thread, especially the beginning. She had very good advice for weeks and it may come in handy to read it right away in caring for your new babies. Glad the first one can join the others so the mother is less likely to reject it now.

Oh my goodness, now that is a lot of babies. I think this site should be called the surprise litter forum. 🙂

Oh my 11?  That is a large litter.  Glad to hear they are all doing fine.

They open their eyes 7 to 10 days after birth.  Once their eyes open, they will start wandering around.  Soon after, maybe at two weeks, they will begin to nibble on mom’s food, particularly hay and greens.  They will still need to nurse until at least 6 weeks, preferably 8.

I would take the fluff off, especially if it might potentially hurt the bunny as a choking hazard.

how are they all doing?

I”m sorry about the babies – I was going to say that a litter of 11 was going to be a LOT for one bun to handle.

I’m sorry those 3 didn’t make it but I agree that 11 is a LOT for a young mom to handle.  I hope the others do well – you MUST chare pictures with us!

I would recommend getting a snuggle safe – they are warming discs that you can put into the microwave and then put in with the babies to help keep them warm. Places like petsmart sell them.