Re: How often do the bunny babies have milk?

Question
QUESTION: Hi Patricia,
I have a female dwarf bunnies (6 months old)and 2 male bunnies (1 is one yr old and the other one is 9 months old).I got these 3 bunnies in the pet stores. I think the female one is so cute and want her to hv babies. I had put her in both male bunnies' cages for several months, once a day. She just escaped from them and she didn't get pregnant even the males one have mounted on her. I am just wondering whether she has been sprayed or neutered. I am quite sure the male ones have not been sprayed or neutered.
Thanks for answering my questions!

ANSWER: Hi Michelle. First, if your female bunny is just 6 months old, she is just now getting old enough to breed. So she would not have willingly bred with the bucks before. Also, you said that your female is a dwarf but you did not mention if your bucks are dwarf also. You would not want to breed your dwarf doe to a full sized buck. Your little doe will have big babies and might have trouble when she goes into labor. You could loose the babies and maybe even your doe. She should be bred to dwarf buck. I wouldn't think your doe has been spayed. Most people who sell rabbits to pet shops do it to make money and they would not go to the expense of having a rabbit spayed before selling it. Dwarf rabbits are very cute. You might want to consider getting a dwarf buck and finding a home for the other two bucks, if they are not dwarf, and just keep the dwarfs. Do think about your little doe though, before breeding her and possibly putting her in danger. If I can help further just contact me.    Pat

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QUESTION: Hi Patricia,
Thanks for answer my question. One of the buck is also a dwarf bunny and the other one is a regular size lion head rabbit, so I should put her only in the male dwarf bunny's cage. What symptoms will show that my female bunny has been pregnant? I thought my female bunny was pregnant last month because her size became 4-5 times bigger, she was not active, always sat in the cage and I could feel some marble like things around her stomach and along 2 sides of her body, however, after 4 weeks later, I suddenly found her returned to her original size after I came back from outside one day. She became active again. Do you think that she had been pregnant before and if yes,why there were no babies born?
Thank you very much!
Michelle

ANSWER: Hi Michelle. Yes, I would only breed her to the dwarf buck. You can always get a Lionhead doe to go with the other buck. It is possible that your doe was pregnant I suppose, though she would have been quite young. A doe which is in a cage with other rabbits and no nest box will often eat their babies as soon as they are born. The whole process could have been done in 30 minutes to 45 minutes and there would have been nothing for you to have noticed when it was finished. Be sure to keep your doe separate and mark on the calander the day that you breed her to your buck. Mark the calander for the same day the next month and your doe will have babies within a day or two of that date. Be sure she has a nest box at least five days before she is due to kindle (this is the term for rabbit birthing). You should fill the box half full of hay or straw, and she will pull some of her fur and build a nest in the straw. Feel free to contact me again if there is anything else I can help with.  Pat

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QUESTION: Hi Patricia,
My dwarf doe finally gaves birth to one kit, it is fat and big and it walks around all the times with its eyes closed 2-3 days after birth. The doe doesn't seem to care it much and it makes some sounds too.How do I know if the doe feed him with her milk or not? I really want to keep this only baby.
Thanks,
Michelle

Answer
Hi Michelle. If your baby is fat I would think that mama is taking care of it. A mother rabbit only feeds her little ones once or twice a day and usually when you are not around. As long as the little one is plump I would not worry. You did mention that it walks aroumd all the time. If it has a nest box and straw and fur it should be down in the nest, covered with fur and it should not be walking around so that confuses me........   Pat