Baby rabbit maybe 2 weeks old.

Question

Baby bunny.   I found this baby rabbit in my back yard all alone, he is dirty and I was wondering how long before I could give him a bath and what I should use when bathing him.

Answer
Hi Elyse:

Based on the photo, I'd say the rabbit is about 3 weeks old.
Wild rabbits advance far more rapidly than domestic rabbits and often leave the den as soon as their eyes are open.  He wasn't abandoned - he was just starting his life in the real world.

I'm sure you thought you were saving him when you took him in, but just the opposite is true.  He was at a critical age to learn how to protect himself from predators and how to seek out food and water in the wild.  Don't let his size fool you - as soon as a rabbits eyes are open they are fully self-supporting.

You don't need to bathe him, you need to release him so he can live out his life.

He might seem calm and friendly now, but if you keep him, his wild instincts will still kick in.  By 5 months of age he will be aggressive and any attempts to enter his cage will result in a kick or a bite - or both.

Underground rabbit warrens are very well concealed and chances are he was very close to the den he came from when you found him.  I suggest putting him right back where you found him; he will go back to the den if he chooses - or he may simply go on his own.  Rabbits are solitary animals in the wild.

I don't advise keeping him.  If you do, please don't bathe him.  He will clean himself just fine.  You can use a slightly damp washcloth (NO SOAP) to lightly wipe the surface of his coat, but don't get him wet to the skin.  Also, he needs unlimited timothy hay or orchard grass and rabbit pellets with 18% protein.  15%, 16% or 17%  protein is not enough for wild cottontails - it must be 18%.  He will need unlimited water at all times and needs to be in a cage with a wire floor - not a solid floor.

While you should let me go immediately, if you don't, you can let him go at any time.  His wild instincts will never leave and you will see as time passes (if you keep him) how wild he gets.

Wild rabbits just don't domesticate, even if found as a newborn.  Please let him return to the life in nature he was born to have.

Lisa L.
Wild rabbits begin to leave the den for several hours a day as soon as they reach two weeks old.  Chances are, he has a mom and an entire litter of brothers and sisters close to where you found him.  The best thing would have been t