how t hand rear babbie rabbits

Question
my rabbit has just had 4 baby,s but like the last litter she is not taken care of them, how do i feed them and how often. i wuld be most grateful if u cud get back as soon as possible. thank you helen

Answer
Okay first you need to make sure they are not being taken care of. Mother rabbits generally only nurse about 1-2 times in a 24 hour period and do not pay attention to their young the way dogs/cats do.  They stay away and seem to ignore them, it is a carry over from being wild where the rabbits stayed away to keep predators away from the nest.  This doesn't mean she is being a bad mother, just a rabbit mother.  Hand rearing babies isn't always successful but it can be done.

Short version is to buy kitten replacement milk and get an eye dropper or small syringe without the needle and hand feed them, about every two hours (kitten milk is not as rich as rabbit milk hence the need to feed more often) until they are about 2 wks old then you can slowly start decreasing their times feed until they are about 4-5 weeks old when they can be weaned.

Also check out this website for more detailed information on hand rearing baby rabbits

http://www.islandgems.net/handfeeding.html
http://www.welshrabbitry.com/birth.html#feeding

Good Luck
Amy