Found Rabbit Now Building Nest

by Nicole

I rescued two rex rabbits and a giant british rabbit from the side of the road. I had them checked at the vets and it turned out 1 of the rex rabbits was male. We separated them as soon as we got home as the vet said none of the female rabbits were pregnant.


Today I awoke to find my female rex has started building a nest but I am not completely sure when she may be due. After reading the article I relise there have been a lot of clues indicating that she was pregnant. I have never had rabbits before, is there any advice you can give me on caring for my rex. Thankx

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Apr 11, 2016
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starstarstarstarstar 		rescued rabbit showing signs of pregnancy
by: mfc

On 3/26/16 rescued a socialized rabbit that was apparently dropped off on my father-in-law's property. Took it home, gave food, shelter, water, hay, things to chew, a box in a large hutch etc. Urine was very dark, discolored at the beginning. She won't drink out of a bottle so she drinks out of a bowl, we wanted to make sure she became hydrated again. Considering trying to figure out how to make her drink from the bottle but now will wait if she's having babies.

I had my suspicions a while back because of the amount of food she was eating but, I am new to the whole rabbit as a pet thing, lol, so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Yesterday, 4/10/16 she pulled out lots of fur etc. So not only am I learning about a rabbit, I may also need to learn about care for the babies. There is no way that we would be able to keep any of them also.

***** Karen Sez *****

Yeah, time will tell whether this is a true or a false pregnancy, since they pull fur for both. My money is on a true one, given your story and the time of year. You'll find most all the info you need here on the www.Raising-Rabbits.com website.

A tip on getting the rabbit to drink from a water bottle: put a dab of honey or molasses on the valve or nozzle. It should figure it out fairly quickly.

More info here:
Rabbit Raising Problem Solver

Rabbit Reproduction E-Book
Feb 12, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Rescued rabbits
by: nicole

Hi, it's Nicole. My rex has given birth in the early hours of this morning. Both mother and babies are doing well. x Thank you for your comments x

**From Moderator: Thanks Nicole for letting us all know! We're glad everything's okay.
Jan 31, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		RE Found Rabbit Now Building Nest
by: Silver Desert Rabbitry

When your doe starts to build a nest, it means that she is very close to giving birth to her litter.
There is not that much to worry about when your doe has her litter. Every day, check for any dead babies. Next, keep the next box warm and dry. Also make sure that the doe is being a good mother, if not, you may have to foster them out to another doe with babies (if you have one) OR hand raise them yourself.
Jan 31, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Re your rescued rabbits
by: Moderator

Hi Nicole,
If your rabbit is building a nest, there's a good chance she could be on the verge of having baby rabbits. On the other hand, we've seen rabbits in the throes of a false pregnancy that build nests like crazy. Her hormones make her think she's pregnant when she's not.

Without knowing for sure which is the case, our best suggestion would be to provide her a nest immediately. We would expect the rabbit to give birth within a couple days, but if she doesn't, leave the nest box with her for up to 2 weeks. It won't hurt, and you'd sure like it to be there when she does have the babies, in case she's acting maternal very early.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes!
Moderator

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