2nd litter

Question
hi
my rabbits gave me a surprise litter almost 5 weeks ago i split them up once i found them but have been told they have probably mated again mother and babies doing really well but i have noticed this last week she has been a bit edgy and also re-arranging her bedding and she is also looking rather plump im concerned as ive been told she is likely to kill the new litter or possibly the existing litter? please any advice would be grateful

Answer
Dear Terri,

She is not likely to kill anyone, as long as she has a stress-free environment and plenty of room to care for all the babies.  You might have to step in and help the littler ones, since they will be unable to jockey for position at feeding time. They need the colostrum in mother's milk more than their older siblings do.  So it might be wise to try and remove mama to let the littlest ones suckle before the older ones, at least until they get a start.

For information on how to feed an "orphan" bunny, please see:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html

and for general information on the care of the bunny family, please see:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html

For now, make sure papa stays separate, and have him neutered ASAP:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/spay.html

You can find a good rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Once the babies are weaned, mama can be spayed to prevent her very high risk of uterine cancer.

I hope this helps.

Dana