2 wild baby rabbits

Question
Dear Dr. Krempels,

   I have a question for you about a couple of wild baby rabbits which I think are cottontail rabbits. The first time I saw them they were with their mother, it was on Easter morning, and I was pretty sure I had seen them right after they were born because the mother was in a funny position and the babies and the mother were all wet.
   I should tell you that I live in an apartment complex in Colorado, just south of Denver. I was out on my porch on the first floor when I first saw the rabbits, the were in what looked like a nest type area about 10 feet from me.
   So, the second time I saw the rabbits was a week later and there were two little babies and they were out on my porch. When they were frightened they scampered quickly under the door to my storage unit which is right off of my porch.
   I have since then seen them a number of times and every one of the past 3 days I have seen them. There is only ever two of them and I haven't seen the mom since. The babies seem to have taken up residence in my storage unit. The space underneath the door to the storage unit I am fairly sure is too small for a full grown rabbit to fit under.
  I began to get concerned about them about 4 or 5 days ago and started by putting a couple of small carrots out on the porch for them. The carrots quickly disappeared. Since then I have placed a small bowl of water on the porch and have continued to place small carrots out there everyday. Today was the first time I actually saw them eating the carrots, so now I know that they are. I also have a hamster and put a little of the food that I feed her out for them to try.
   The reason I think that these babies were not born on Easter now is because they both have a good coat of fur and have their eyes wide open. And they are obviously eating solid foods. If I had to estimate they are probably at most about  6" in length each. (I have photos if that helps).
   My question to you, after all that info, is what would you suggest I do? I am starting to think that mom has abandoned them, as I have seen no sign of her and I am actually usually up very late at night and haven't seen her around at that time either.
   Would you suggest that I continue to feed them, and if so what would you suggest that I feed them? I am also a little concerned about the idea of having them living in my storage unit because I don't think it's probably very warm in there and we have been have nights that went way below freezing recently. There are a large number of cardboard boxes in the storage unit and I'm not sure if it is good for them to try to eat cardboard.
   Well, I know this isn't necessarily a life and death rabbit situation, but I want to make sure I am doing the right thing. I am concerned about getting them to depend on the food I bring them and not venturing out to find their own food, but at the same point they are still so small I don't know if they would be able to find enough food on their own to stay alive.
   Thanks for your time. I would appreciate any advise you might have to give me in regard to dealing with these little guys.
   Thanks again.

Answer
Dear Nancy,

At the size you describe, the babies are probably just about weaned, which is probably why you rarely see the mama.  Rabbist normally stay as far away from their babies as possible, so as not to attract predators, and feed them only twice per day, usually when there's no one around.  So it's not surprising that you haven't seen the mama.

I would not continue feeding the babies the hamster food; it's not healthy for a rabbit (which is not a rodent), and they might indeed become too dependent on it.  Carrots won't hurt as a treat, if you're wanting to "play" with them.  But wild rabbits should eat natural forage.

Don't worry about it getting too cold for them.  Generations of cottontails have evolved to withstand freezing temperatures, and the storage area is probably their idea of a cozy shelter.  As long as you don't mind them being there, it's probably very safe for them, since it protects them from wind and direct exposure.

Hope that helps.  Please write back if you have any other questions.

Dana