Care of recently pregnant bunny

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 5sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 10 years ago by guineapig724.

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- 04/10/2016 at 11:33 AM
  mehrsee
  Participant
  3 posts
  Hey all! I’m adopting a 7 month old mini rex within the next week who is currently pregnant. Her due date was on Friday (the 8th). I’ve been in contact with her caretakers and she still hasn’t delivered (kindled?). They told me that for a bunny’s first pregnancy, they can sometimes run over the expected 31 days by a day or two, so fingers crossed for today! The plan is to foster her babies to another mother when she does give birth. I’m wondering what I can do to take care of her once I have her safe at home. I’ve been going through all the bunny literature I can find, but there isn’t much information on how to take care of the mother if the babies aren’t around. How soon after delivery can I spay her? Does her diet go back to normal right away? Are there any extra accommodations she’ll need? I also saw somewhere that after giving birth, the mother’s life expectancy is shortened significantly. Is that true? I’m simultaneously very excited and very anxious. Any extra advice is very much appreciated!
- 04/10/2016 at 12:14 PM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17033 posts
  Thank you for adopting this rabbit!
  
  The Binky Bunny forums is not the best place for questions bunny mothers though, since we have no breeders here and very few of our members are experienced with new mothers and babies. As much as we’d like you to stick around, there is a better forum for your questions, Rabbits Online
  
  They have a section called The rabbitry and Showroom, which seems suitable for your needs.
  
  I’m leaving this thread open on the off chance that someone here has some advice to give you. I wish you the best of luck with this new adventure!
- 04/10/2016 at 3:27 PM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17244 posts
  Why not keep the babies with the mother? Foster them, allow the rescue to adopt them out when they are old enough, and then have the bunny spayed. I would think that would be better than trying to have a surrogate raise the babies. Has the rescue had much luck with this in the past?
  
  As for what happens when there are no babies, I assume it would be similar to a false pregnancy. Eventually the mother realizes there are no babies and pregnancy-related hormones go away.
- 04/10/2016 at 9:58 PM
  guineapig724
  Participant
  108 posts
  I rescued a rabbit(Molly) who recently went through this. I spayed her a week after her kits had been weaned. Her diet was slowly changed back to normal a few days before she was spayed. She’ll need a nest box, I used an excellent website explaining this, I’ll find and post the link. It is a farm rabbit website, but still covers the basics. I haven’t heard about the life shortening, I do know it reduces the risk of cancer, but I’d still get her spayed.
- 04/10/2016 at 10:02 PM
  guineapig724
  Participant
  108 posts
  http://www.raising-rabbits.com/rabbit-nest-box.html
  
  I used carefresh instead of shavings. This website has some pretty helpful info. Good luck with the kindling, keep us updated!
- 04/10/2016 at 10:07 PM
  guineapig724
  Participant
  108 posts
  Geez, three posts in a row! I’m forgetful! I would let her raise the kits, Molly did a great job, she was a first time Mom as well. She did abandon one baby(Kiwi) but I raised him myself on a syringe, as I didn’t have another intact doe. He survived, but it took a ton of hard work. I kept two of the kits, Kiwi and Smurf. I had boughten some sort of organic towel for the kits, Smurf used ro lie on it all the time, but it dyed his fur blue! It is an organic dye, with nothing harmful to him. I didn’t bathe him or anything, but the dye still hasn’t come off, so he is partially blue. No one adopted him, and he is bonded to Kiwi, so I kept him.
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