NEED ANSWERS!!

Question
I recently got a bunny from a friend and she turned out to be pregnant. She had her babies a little less than a month ago, a total of 9 however only 5 are left! The babies are showing no sign of sickness and no external problems. They are starting to eat carrots with the mother and she is still feeding them. They are a good size and LOOK healthy. However when the babies are about to die they lay still on their side and when they are picked up they twitch their back feet and have the head limp back. I have tried to feed them water to bring them back but nothing is working!! They end up bitting their tongue and dying!
I have never had babies bunnies in my care before. They have a big cage and their is plenty of room so I see it very hard for the mother to be killing them or injuring them and they are not held often.
Any Answers??
PLEASE HELP!
Sarah

Answer
Dear Sarah,

I am sorry about the loss of the babies.  Without seeing them, however, I can only make a guess about what could be wrong.  

Are you certain that the mother is feeding the ones who get sick?  Check to see that they are round and warm, and not wrinkly-skinned, as this can be a sign of dehydration.  Do you see any sign of runny stool?  If so, please read this:

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

You say the babies are not handled often, but be sure whoever does handle them washes and disinfects any skin that comes in contact with the babies.  Even mother's antibodies can't completely protect them from a large dose of E. coli bacteria, which is harmless to us (and all over us), but potentially deadly for baby rabbits whose immune systems are not yet up and functioning.  

A critical time for the babies is now, when they are starting to eat solid food.  They need mother's milk more than ever now, and if she is not feeding them, you may have to supplement them with colostrum-enriched formula.  Instructions can be found here:

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

and more information here:

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/orphan.html

You may need the help of an experienced rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets

who can do a necropsy on one of the babies who died.  This is the only way to ascertain what could be going on.

Rabbits are very cryptic about illness, and often show almost no sign of problems until they are really, critically ill.  This is especially true of babies, and it's not your fault that they seem to be dying without warning.  It's an instinct that evolved to help them avoid attracting the attention of predators that seek weak, sick prey.  :(  Please also see:

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

Keeping babies warm and well hydrated is critical, and if they have respiratory infections (not uncommon in babies), they will need antibiotics from a good rabbit vet.

I hope some of this will help you get the remaining babies safely to a stage where they are healthy and can be adopted (preferably in pairs, with one staying behind with mama!).

Good luck!

Dana