Rabbit nest mysteriously lost fur overnight

Question
QUESTION: My rabbit has two litters; one litter is now 4 weeks, 2 days old and the second litter is 1 day old.  We thought we had two females until we found the first litter, immediately separated until we got the male neutered, but she had already gotten pregnant again.  So now she has two young litters.  She made a great nest for the second litter, very furry yesterday, but when I checked them today almost all the fur was gone.  Was this the mother's doing, as it has been hot here (we live in Iowa), or are the bigger bunnies pulling it out?

We haven't separated the first litter from the mother as she's still nursing them, too, and our vet recommended leaving them all together and letting nature take its course.

ANSWER: Dear Andrea,

Sorry for the delay.  I was away for the weekend, and only now able to answer questions.

The mother may be so stressed by this "blessed" but too-soon event that she's overgrooming the new babies.  I would separate the new ones, because they will not be able to compete for food with the older ones.  Allow mama to feed them first, and only then let her in with the older litter for seconds.  She may not have enough milk to feed them all, but at least this will give the littlest ones a chance for survival.  "Nature taking its course" will most likely mean that the new litter will starve to death or be severely stunted, depending on how many kits there are in each litter.

The four week old babies are starting to eat solid food, so even if they get a *little* bit of mama's milk, that will help them make the transition in their GI flora.

If you see that some are not thriving, you may have to intervene with extra feedings, and you can find instructions for that here:

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

I hope this helps.

good luck with the babies and enjoy the cuteness!

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------


All 14 bunnies   QUESTION: There are 5 kits in the older litter and 9 in the younger (there were 10, but 1 died already).  Will I be able to wean the older litter at 6 weeks (which is next Tuesday), or should I let them continue until 8 weeks?

I know ideally they would nurse till 8 weeks, but with the younger litter so close I'm not sure how to handle it exactly.  I don't want to harm any of the kits, but I don't want to put too much stress on my mama bunny, either.  Thanks for the help!

Answer
Dear Andrea,

That is a great question, and there's no easy answer.  The younger babies appear to be round and healthy, so mama is apparently able to feed them pretty well.  She deserves a medal and ALL THE FOOD SHE CAN EAT.  :)  Unlimited food and lots of fresh water will keep her milk production up.

As long as all the babies are thriving, you might be able to leave them together. But it is also probably safe to try to keep the older babies away from mama for longer periods to encourage weaning.  Six weeks is probably safe for them, especially if mama is nursing another batch of wee ones.

If you need a copy of an adoption form to help you screen potential adopters, please ask me directly at dana@miami.edu and I'll be happy to send you one you can use.  It's best to try and adopt them in pairs or small groups--not alone.  Since they are already a family, you can see which ones hang out together the most and try to keep the most closely bonded ones together.

Hope this helps!  Good luck!

Dana