Orphaned baby

Question
Hi Dana. We discovered 5 baby rabbits in our shrub bed. Kept an eye on them; never a sign of mamma. When we discovered a couple had died, we picked up the ones we found (1 was never accounted for)- one would not feed and died a couple hours later. One successfully fed and is thriving now, 9 days later. I estimate he is almost 3 wks old, basing it upon when the eyes opened. I have been feeding him infant formula, which he seems to be doing well on. He takes 5-8 ml 3x/day, and he enjoys dandelion and clover leaves, clover flowers, and carrots.  I have not done much research, and am wondering if this is all ok to continue? We have grown attached to him, and he is not afraid of me - the feeding hand.  Must we release him? Will he survive in captivity? When would he wean? Then what do we feed him? Any help / advice you have to offer will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.  ~Kim

Answer
Dear Kim,

Many a baby cottie adopted by humans ends up living with the human family.  Though it's technically not legal to keep wildlife without a permit, this is not a law easily enforced when it comes to cottontails.

If the baby is fearless and friendly, he may just decide to stick around.  But I'd give him a choice and at least let him outside to play in the fenced yard with human supervision/protection.

You can gradually wean him off the formula by the time he's about 8 weeks old. A healthy diet can be found here:

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

Pretty much the same for cotties as for domestic rabbits, though any rabbit will do better with as much fresh grass as possible (no pesticides or fertilizer, of course!).

If he grows wild and fearful, which does sometimes happen, then he should be released.  But only time will tell.

Good luck!

Dana