pregante

Question
Hi
My rabbit got neutered a couple of days ago and star my other rabbit is coming up for 4 months of age. So liquorice who has just been neutured excaped into stars run and you can guess what happened next. So i wondering will i have baby bunnys? Because he has just been neutured and shes quite young. please help
many thanks
emily xx

Answer
She could still have gotten pregnant. It takes a little while for the sperm that is still in the testicals to leave after being neutered. 4 months is plenty old enough for a female to get pregnant, too.

Mark the date on a calendar, and put a nestbox with nesting material (Hay is good, and shredded black-ink newspaper will also work...fill it all the way up, as a lot will end up outside of the cage and/or eaten while she is making a nest) in her cage 26 days from that day. If she is pregnant, she should have babies between 28 and 32 days after the male got in with her. That way you will be safe if she does have babies.

Here is some information about rabbit birth and baby care, too, in case she did get pregnant.

The female should make a nest, usually including fur she plucks from herself. However, she may not start making the nest until right before she has babies, or even just after (i.e. she might make the nest around the already born babies).

Mother rabbits are rarely seen with their babies. They only nurse once or twice a day for a few minutes at a time. This is because if a wild rabbit were seen going in and out of a nest all the time, a predator might notice it and go in to eat the babies.

The mother should not have any increased food until after she has babies. Then you can give her all the pellets she wants. Make sure she has all the fresh grass/timothy hay and water she wants all the time, though.

When the babies are around 3 weeks of age, that is when the drain is the heaviest on the mother. Her milk is richest at this point, and the babies eat a lot. It is a good idea to have some food supliments around, in case she starts to get a bit thin. Calf Manna or horse sweet feed is excellent, and it can be found at almost all feed stores. Nutri-Cal (also known as Vita-Cal) is also an excellent suppliment, though it may be a little harder to find.

The mother will start to wean (not let them drink milk) the babies around 5 weeks of age, but they should be left with her until at least 6 weeks. If the litter is large (5 or more), I generally take the largest two and take them away from the mom them at 7 weeks of age, giving the smaller ones an extra week with the mom. I always take them away in at least pairs, though, so the babies don't go from being with a whole group to suddenly being totally alone.