Don’t Ask Me How Many Baby Bunnies I have.
Really.
Don’t ask.
We started with 8 naked, bald, earless, eyeless rodents that came out of a rabbit.
Then we lost 2.
Which I handled really well.
When the 3rd one died I was sad but consolable. We still had 5 spunky, alive baby bunnies and life was good.
Then Friday happened.
How many baby bunnies do I have now?
FOUR.
1 – 2 – 3 – 4
We found ANOTHER baby bunny thrown out of the nesting box on the metal grate….. and left for dead. This seems to happen at night when we are not awake or around or otherwise aware that we should be saving a baby bunny.
These guys are tiny, helpless newborns who can barely work themselves around the nesting box to find the bunny pile. They aren’t exactly mobile yet.
They must be intentionally picked up and removed from the nice, warm nest.
Guilty Party #1: Nash – the mama bunny.
I’ve decided our Doe is a Serial Killer.
UPDATE 4/18/16
Our Doe isn’t a murderer after all…..
I am oh, so teachable… I have had 2 Rabbit Raising Experts who notified me what is going on with my Doe/ Dead Baby Bunny situation… Here is what is probably happening:
Mama Bunny hops into the nesting box, feeds the babies, cleans them, helps them go to the bathroom, etc. Then she hops out. If one of the baby bunnies decides that dinnertime is not over yet, and is still attached to her teat when she hops out – he goes too.
This is more than likely how our baby bunnies keep ending up on the metal grate.
So, Natasha is not a serial killer after all, and I need to go check on the bunnies more often to make sure no one has taken a ride out of the nesting box.
Yes, we are going to keep the bunnies and continue learning. I may not be the brightest chicken in the coop, but I can learn!!
Thanks to everyone out there who is helping me and not chastising me. You guys are awesome!
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love,
Candi
Liz
04/18/2016It is very likely that she’s not throwing them out, but they are still hanging on trying to nurse when she decides nursing time is done. As she gets out, they get drug along and end up outside the nest. We breed rabbits and have this happen occasionally. You can minimize it by making sure the nest box walls are high enough that when mamma hops out, her belly drags on the edge, thereby scraping off any persistent nursers. I know it is common folklore, especially in the pet rabbit world, that you cannot touch babies, but it is not true. We handle our babies daily from birth and have had no issue with any of our does rejecting babies. Also, just like humans, some mammas are just not good mammas and others are awesome. Sounds like your doe is jut new and she’ll get things figured out. Make her nest box deeper next time. Hang in there!
Candi
04/18/2016That makes so much sense. Thanks for the information.
You realize that you just made my children the happiest people on the planet and there will be 4 baby bunnies who never knew so much love!