My kids found a baby rabbit,in the dog's mouth! I gave in to the "Can we keep it" song. We haven't had rabbits for a couple years now and we always let the does raise their own. It looks to be about 4 weeks old. Does anyone have suggestions on food? Thanks so much. Barbara

-- Barbara Ternes (lbfarm@hit.net), September 27, 2000

Answers

We just gone done bottle feeding some tiny kittens, whose Mom was run over. At your local pet store, in the car isle, they sell a MILK REPLACER. It says on the label that this can also be used for baby wild animals. Its a powder, you mix and the instructions are on the can. Kind of expensive. Hope this helps, And Good Luck! Carrie in Wis

-- Carrie Wehler (carriew@ticon.net), September 27, 2000.

If it is 4 wks, it probably can eat on it's own. However, if you do need to bottle feed it, remember that rabbits nurse on their backs. The mothers only feed two times a day and they do not need to be stimulated to "go" after feeding. Offer fresh greens often. Dandelions, clover, grass, make sure it has not been treated with chemicals. You can keep it warm with a light directed at the container. Bunnies can jump high, and can get out of open boxes. Sometimes, if you feed them for a while but leave the box open outside, the rabbit will leave on it's own when it is ready.

-- Dee (gdgtur@goes.com), September 27, 2000.

If its a wild rabbit , it could be much younger than 4 weeks. They are born with all their fur and eyes open and can run very young. Sometimes the nests are just under the leaves and easy for a dog to stumble on. Wild rabbits can carry a disease, I think its called tulermia? Make sure the kids wash hands well after handling bunny just to be safe.

-- Kate Henderson (sheeplady@catskill.net), September 27, 2000.

I raised a clutch of cottontails from the time they were approx 3 days old -- no hair, eyes and ears still sealed shut, etc. I nursed them on a formula of 1C. whole milk, 1 egg yolk beaten in, and 1 teasp. corn syrup. Rubbing their tummies and genital region with a warm wet wash cloth stimulates elimination (mandatory). Gradually they started to take formula off a spoon with some pureed baby-food carrots added, then out of a shallow dish. By 2 1/2 weeks they started trying green food as well. I kept offering formula w/carrots when they were eating green foods to make sure they were getting enough, until they ignored it. Good hay makes snuggly & edible beds.

I released them at 4 weeks. I had transferred them to a wire rabbit cage outside and they wore their noses bloody trying to get through it. Raising wild rabbits to self sufficiency is rewarding, but try to be prepared that you will have to release them when they're big enough -- they just aren't the same as domestic rabbits.

-- Julie Froelich (firefly1@nnex.net), September 28, 2000.

Thank you so much for your answers. After much heated discussion and a vote, the kids decided that the rabbit was old enough for food and water. They gave it some hedge hog food and some water. This morning all the food was gone. They decided that if it could eat that well, it was old enough to be free. It was released a mile away from our home. We didn't want to see the dogs bring it back up.

-- Barbara Ternes (lbfarm@hit.net), September 28, 2000.

Glad to hear that you were able to return this rabbit back to the wild. When I lived in the mountains in AZ my cats would bring things home if it was alive I would take it away from them and try to return it to the wild. I did end up keeping one as the cat brought it home carrying it by his left front leg which was dislocated and never did allow the rabbit to walk right. Even though I was told you can't keep it alive I did for 5 1/2 years. One thing I found was that almost as important as food and water is make sure you provide a place for the animal to hide. I used a lot of boxes inside of cages to allow the animal to feel he was in a safe place. gail

-- gail missouri ozarks (gef123@hotmail.com), September 30, 2000.