Feeding

by Spencer

My rabbit had 8 kits and I left her alone with them all day. When I came home she hadn't fed them and many were dead. What do I do?

*Moderator Note:*
Spencer, you did just fine, from what we can tell. Does only feed their babies once a day, usually. So we aren't surprised that the doe hadn't fed the babies. She'll feed them in the evening.

We're sorry about the dead bunnies! Sometimes that happens, and the causes are many. Perhaps something startled the doe...your dog or cat, perhaps? Frightened does have been known to trample or even eat their babies to minimize the risk that a predator should find and kill her. This way, she lives to make another litter in one more month.

What to do? Just remove the dead babies, and hope the doe will feed the remaining live kits overnight. If she does, this is good. If not, you may need to bottle-feed the babies. See our Feeding Rabbits page for the links to information on feeding orphan bunnies.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes, okay?