rabbit after having more rabbits

Question
my rabbit had 4 kits 4 weeks ago this morning she had another 8 what do i do? do the 4 week olds still feed from her do i leave them with her. the kits that are 4 weeks old are nibbling solid food and they are drinking from water bottle. HELP!!!!!!!!!!

Answer
The first thing you need to do is to get the buck away from her if you haven't already done so.  

Take the whole nest box away from her and keep it in the house in a safe area.  Bring it back to her twice a day and make sure she nurses the babies.  Once the other babies are weaned (between 7 and 8 weeks) you can give her the new babies full time.  You are going to have to watch the new babies to make sure they are getting enough milk.  If they seem extra skinny and are failing to thrive then you may have to supplement their feedings.

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

Yes the 4 week old babies still drink the moms milk.  They need it to help develop their GI flora.  Their GI systems don't develop the necessary immune responses until they are between 5 and 6 weeks old and they rely heavily on the milk from their mother.

If you still had the buck with the mother then don't be surprised if in another 4 weeks you have another batch of babies.  Rabbits can become pregnant almost immediately after giving birth.

If you want to bond the mother and father then you are going to need to at the very least get the buck neutered.  Technically you should get them both fixed so that the doe doesn't end up with uterine or ovarian cancers.

Here is a web-site to read when considering if you want bonded rabbits and if you make the decision to bond it tells you how to do it properly.

http://www.freewebs.com/hgrabbitry/howtobondmybunnies.htm


Good luck and I hope all the babies are ok

Pam