3 week old baby rabbit, acting strange

Question
I have been hand feeding a baby mini rex for over 3 weeks now. She is doing
very well, getting big, very active. I started to put her in with the mother and
father's cage a couple of days ago maybe for an hour at a time. They did not
hurt her, it was not extremely hot and everything went fine. Today, I put her
in the cage for maybe a half hour, when I brought her back inside she wasn't
moving around as much as she usually is and she is breathing heavier. She
has started to nibble on timothy hay while still drinking formula. I was
curious as to what could cause this? Is there something wrong that I need to
take the baby in for? She is pooping fine, no diarhea. However she is making
random squeeking or grunting noises like a sneeze just louder. Please help-
this is the only rabbit out of 4-5 litters that has survived and I don't want to
to lose the baby bunny!

Answer
Dear Justine,

As you've already discovered, it can be difficult to hand raise a baby rabbit.  One of the biggest dangers is aspiration pneumonia, if the baby accidentally inhales a drop of formula.  It's not hard for him to do, and it can have very serious consequences.

If he's breathing hard and making squeaky noises, please get him to a good rabbit vet immediately:

www.rabbit.org/vets

If the baby has a respiratory infection, he will need antibiotics, nebulization, and probably supportive care such as subcutaneous Lactated Ringer Solution.  I can relate to your worry.  I just lost a baby jackrabbit to pneumonia, and am devastated.  I hope I can help you save your baby.

If you can't find a vet who's experienced with rabbits, then please share the following information with a vet who is willing to help, even if not experienced with rabbits.
We do the following for a rabbit with pneumonia:

1.  Nebulize 1-3 times per day for 5-10 minutes with the following mixture:
5 cc sterile saline solution
1 cc Amikacin (50mg/ml)
0.5 cc aminophylline (to open the airways)
0.1 cc Mucomyst (acetyl cysteine, to loosen mucus)

In addition, injectible Baytril or oral ciprofloxacin are helpful.  Since there's probably not time to get the results of a culture and sensitivity test back in time to help the baby, the vet may just have to guess on the right antibiotic, and the fluoroquinolones are safe and effective.  We have not seen any cartilage issues in baby rabbits given cipro or Baytril, in case the vet is concerned about this.

I hope this helps!  Please write back if you have any other questions.

Dana