The Town of Imagination for Rabbits 

New Born Kit, Orphan and Surrogate Mom Care Guide

Background.  For over 15 years, we have been the Baby (Kit) and Orphan Site for several 501(c)(3) nonprofit Rabbit Rescue Groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, providing care for hundreds of kits/orphans.  We specialize in the care of newborn and high-risk kits and orphans; and are well known for this specialized care amongst Exotic Rabbit Veterinarians and 501(c)(3) nonprofit Rabbit Rescue Groups. The purpose of this guide is to share our knowledge in an easy-to-understand format to help you save the lives of very young rabbits.  The guide has 3 main parts: New Born Kit, Orphans and Surrogate Mom Care.  All of the pictures are from our newborn, high-risk and orphan fosters that we have cared for in the past.

New Born Kit Care

The first 72 Hours of the birth of kits (Rabbit Babies) are critical. The kits may have enough food at birth to provide for them for the first 48 to 72 hours. The kits must be kept warm. Once the kits become cold it takes a lot of energy to rebuild their body temperature. It is important to provide for their health and safety. There are times when we find that rabbits have had an “unexpected” birth. The Mom may have been just rescued from a difficult situation. The Mom may have given birth at a local shelter.  It is also important to help care for them during the first 72 hours while you seek the aid of a local Rabbit Rescue Group or Shelter.

Mom Prior to Giving Birth. 

It is very difficult to determine if a female rabbit is pregnant short of doing an ultrasound. Palpation should only be done by an experienced person as the process can harm the fetus. If she was near an unfixed male, she may experience what may be called a “false pregnancy.”  There are certain things that she may actually do prior to giving an actual birth.  She may feel more agitated as she is about to give birth and may start to build her nest. Rabbits unlike cats cannot move their babies. Rabbits will pick a spot where she feels safe and start to build her nest. She will build her nest using hay that she will carry to her nest. She will pull her full and place it in her nest.  Once you see this behavior you have 0 to 2 days before she may deliver.

Melody (our foster) building her nest with hay and her fur that she pulled from her stomach area.

If you wake up in the morning and find that your Mom delivered you MUST removed the Dad. The Mom can become pregnant again immediately after giving birth. Melody was our foster who was rescued with her kits from a local shelter via a 501 (c)(3) Rabbit Rescue Group. Melody, our foster, had back-to-back litters. We knew the signs of her preparing for another birth and acted quickly to allow her to give birth to Solo.

Delivery. A Mom will tend to deliver late at night or early in the morning and can have from one to more than ten kits. Her entire delivery can span over several days, but the delivery of each kit can only take but a few minutes. Note that you will see blood.  She will eat the afterbirth after she delivers and will clean up her kits after giving birth.

911 The most important thing to know about new born kit care is that they must be kept warm. Once they become cold it takes a lot of energy to rebuild their body heat. They cannot digest Mom’s Milk if they are cold. You should ONLY touch them to either move them or do a health check. Each time they are away from their warm nesting box they are losing body heat.

Mom has 8 nipples. Prime area is the 4 on her stomach. She has 2 near her legs and arms. Ms. Muffet did a great job of removing her fur for kits to access to her Live Saving Milk.

Disclaimer You need 2 people to do this. One to hold and one to trim using a Wahl Mini or a blunt end scissor.

There are times when the Mom did pull her fur around her nipples for her kits. Her fur may prevent access to her milk. It is a judgment call on how the kits are doing. If there are gaining weight and nursing them nothing should be done. If they are losing weight and you see them trying to nurse you may to remove some fur around the 4 stomach nipples. You will need two people to do this one to hold and the other to trip. BOTH people need to feel that they can do the job. If not DO NOT ATTEMPT.  The person who trims must find know where the nibble is located. The person will then trim only AWAY from the skin the fur near the nipple. The person can also use a blunt end scissor by pulling the fur away from the stomach and trim. If the bunny moves or you are too close you can cut the skin. Each person MUST talk with each other. Use a simple key word stop .  It is best to take Baby Steps on this process.

Nursing Mom will nurse 2 times a day. It takes 12 hours for her to rebuild her milk. She will tend to nurse late at night and early morning when it is quite and safe for her. You can feel at times her milk supply with your hand on her stomach. Kits will nurse on their backs. The Prime Nursing Area is the middle of her stomach. The harder to reach areas are below her arms and above her legs. The smaller kits tend to be pushed out towards the arm and leg area. 

The Dad. You wake up in the morning and find out that you have kits. The first thing to do is to remove the Dad. Mom can deliver again in 28 days after the initial delivery. You MUST pick up each rabbit and look at their private parts. It will be apparent who is the Dad. The Dad can also cause Great Harm to Newborn kits. You may need two people, one to hold and the other to look.

Housing. The Mom and Kits should be kept inside of your home. If she gave birth outside you cannot control the environment. At once, you should move the Mom and kits inside of your home.

Pets The Mom and kits should be kept in their own room or area away from other animals. Mom would be become very protective of her kits. The added stress might lead her to not making enough milk for her kits. Mom needs to be in a quiet and calm area with her kits inside of your home.

Check List Mom, Dad and her kits.

1. You need to move the Mom and kits to same space inside of your home.
2. You need to separate the Dad away from the Mom ASAP.
3. You need to move the kits to a safe nesting box with the Mom.  You need to do all of this before you ask for help from a shelter or rabbit rescue group. Each minute is critical on the life of the Mom and her kits. 

Create Nesting Box for kits.

You should see a lot of fur that the mom had pulled and put over them. If she pulled a lot of fur it tends to be a sign that she is an experienced Mom. The loss of body heat can cause great harm to the kits. She will have her kits and build her nest using what she has. She may have her kits on the floor, in your garden, at the shelter or many other places. 

You will need to move them to a safe place and them build their nesting box. The critical item to know is that being cold can cause great harm to them.  If they were found on the cold floor, cold metal of a shelter cage floor or outside they will be cold. Rabbit’s body temp is 101 to 103F. The kits should feel warm in your hand.  When the kits are cold they cannot nurse and or digest their Mom’s milk.

Find a small box, cat litter box or similar (we will go over several options) The box should be large enough for the mom to hop in and nurse.  Place a soft material on the bottom of the box and along the sides (if possible). You can next place her litter or her nesting material just enough to cover the bottom. Place her kits in the center of the nesting box. You will next place the fur that she used for kits on top of them. Her fur is critical. Her fur will help keep them warm. We use a two door Marchioro Cage (out of production)  or Prevue Pet Products Ranch Universal Small Pet House for the mom. She is only there during the night.  The cage is large enough for her nesting box and litter box. It has a solid side. I place it on top of a table and cover the top and 3 sides to allow her privacy when she nurses. I place a heating pad set to low at the bottom of the cage.  Mom has a water bowl. The water bowl should be placed away from her nesting box. She might pull kits out during after nursing. When the kits out you should change to a water bottle.

Mom is out (inside) for playtime during the day.  You may need to do one on one nursing prior to putting her back with her kits. You can do the same setup with an X-Pen on the floor. You should place card board or similar on the sides of the X-Pen. You want to make sure that the kits cannot get stuck between the bars of the X-Pen as they hop around. The Mom should have playtime during the day away from her kits.

The larger kits will tend to push the smaller kits away for her during nursing if they have 24/7 access. 24/7 access will prevent you from doing one on one nursing of the smaller kits.

Melody gave birth to her son Solo in her litter box.  We moved her to her Marchioro Cage (Prevue Pet Products Ranch Universal Small Pet House) along with her nesting box. She had noting to do with the nesting box. She wanted to give birth in her litter box. She built her nest and gave birth.  We then changed out her nesting box with a new litter box.

We rescued Brook and her kits from a difficult outdoor situation when they were about 10 days young. We used a litter box for their nesting box with fleece at the bottom. We used all of her material that her mom used for their nest into their new nesting box. We then placed the nesting box and a new litter box into her Marchioro Cage.

You can place Mom and kits on the floor if you do not have a Marchioro Cage or similar.  We use a “Baby X-pen” which has ½ the bar spacing of an X-Pen You can also place cardboard on the inside a few inches high to prevent the kits from getting trap between the bars. Mom would have playtime in a X-Pen next to the baby pen.

We helped rescue a Mom and her 7 day old kits. We then helped with the setup for the Foster Mom who helped us rescue the kits. We observed that the Mom was unable to hop into the litter box based nesting box. We then removed the litter box and fleece with some of the sides raised. Cardboard will be placed around the X-Pen  just a few inches high to prevent the kits from leaving the X-Pen.

We weighed the kits in grams with the date and a description of each kit.  The kits were born outside but they were warm. It is not as critical for the kits to have the fur from the Mom on top. The foster Mom felt how warm each was as she did a health check of their stomach. You can place the kits back together in the center of the nesting box. You can then place you hand just above them to feel their body heat. If they lose body heat you will then have to use a heating pad set to low under the nesting box.

Food for Mom.  Because Mom is nursing, she will need unlimited Alfalfa Hay and Young/Baby Pellets. I like to use Oxbow or Sherwood Pet Health pellets. Also, I offer the Mom Romaine Lettuce, Spring Mix and Carrot Tops. You should not offer parsley to the mom for her greens as it will sour her milk or dry up her milk supply. I have not tried other greens since I have been using these for years. We give the greens to the mom away for the kits. The kits should not have greens until they are about 12 weeks. The kits cannot digest green until then. The greens might also cause poop butt at his early age.

Playtime for Mom. Mom will need her indoor play time away from her kits during the day as she needs to hop around and to relax in order to reduce her stress. It will also give her time to rebuild her milk supply. She can go back with her kits at dinner time or when you go to bed. It’s important for Mom to have her “alone” time away from heir kits in a different area during the day.

* You may need to do one-on-one feeding with her and her smaller or critical kits. They will have first access to her life saving milk.

* She needs to exercise in order to produce a large amount of milk.

* If she is not away for her kits they will nurse her during the day. The biggest ones tend to push out the smaller ones during this time.

Mom Nursing Her Kits. When the kits are hungry, they will let out a high pitch sound.  If it has been 12 HRS then Mom should be put back with her kits. Mom will arch her back to allow her milk to flow when she is nursing and then the kits will nurse on their backs or any way they can to receive her milk.

Melody cleaning Solo’s private parts

Mom will clean groom her kits private parts and stomach while they are nursing.  The Grooming is critical to help them digest her milk. The grooming on their stomach will also stimulate them going to bathroom.

Itsy Bitsy Critical 911 3-day old kit Itsy Bitsy looking for her forever home.

Daily Health Check. It is important to establish a baseline value of the kits’ weights starting on Day 1 using a scale that measures weight in Grams.  It is important to weigh the kits at about the same time each day and record the value. You can record the weights by the size, color or any possible marking on the kits.

You may see that each kit may weigh at different amounts, however, you should see that each kit would make progress and gain some weight each day. During the first few days, it may be just a few grams, but then you should see 5% to 10% weight gain as the Mom’s milk is produced. You should not see a weight loss and if you do notice one, and/or skin or stomach that is “folded,” this is a medical 911.  At this point, you must do one on one nursing with the kit and Mom. If the kits weigh less then 30 grams you must do one on one -on -one nursing.  New born kits tend to be at least 35 grams. The following kit was a two- day old orphan.  We would like to see a weight of at least 35 grams at birth. 

Ms. Muffet was our nursing Mom of 5 3-day old kits. Ms. Muffet took in 5 most critical kits who had 13 – 3-day old kits. Itsy Bitsy was the most critical at 20 grams. You can see the folded stomach fur. We received all 5 at 11PM. Ms Muffet our foster was held off of nursing her own kits who were healthy to help nurse the 5 critical kits. Itsy Bitsy was hours away from passing away.

One-on-One Nursing with Mom.  You cannot replace Mom’s Milk as it is very rich in nutrients and will provide everything that her kits will nutritionally need.  It may also be very difficult to hand feed kits under 5 days young with formula or similar.  There are times when the smallest like Itsy Bitsy needed one-on-one nursing with Mom.

One-on-one nursing should be performed at dinner time after the mom has had her playtime during the day. She should have plenty of milk by this time. The one-on-one nursing will allow her smallest kits to have first access to her milk.  Place the mom on a chair or couch as you should sit on the floor to allow you to place her kits under her stomach or near her nipples. It will be hard to see the kits with her if you are sitting above her. You can also place her with the kits in a top opening carrier.

Baby Hops

You MUST remove the Mom’s water bowl with water bottle once the kits hop out of their nesting box. The kits can hop into her water bowl and pass away.

• If Mom is with kits at night as we do change water bowl with a water bottle.
• If the kits are with the Mom you can place her water bowl on a place above the kits.  Mom will need to hop on to something to gain access to the water bowls.
• We use a “baby water bowl” for the kits. The kit should not be able to hop into it. They should only be able to drink.

Mom and Kits Time Line out to 1 Year

4 weeks

Mom’s kits should be weaned (stop nursing) at about 4 weeks (28 days). The kits will continue to nurse if mom lets from until about 7 to 8 weeks. They may nurse for a short time when mom is eating. There are of course smaller kits who may need to nurse until about week 5 or 6.  The first look at their gender can be done at this time. You will confirm as they get older.

7 to 8 weeks

The kits at this time can become very hormonal which can lead to fights. They can cause great harm to each when they fight similar to adult rabbits. The kits need to be split up who fight. The gender can be confirmed at this time. The boys and girls should be split up now at different foster sites.  Mom can stay with the females.

12 weeks

The males can be fertile at this time. You will need to exam to if the one or both testicles have dropped. If they did you must remove any unspayed female that have not been removed at this time. Males based on your Exotic DVM can be neutered at this time. We do like to see that the rabbits are at least 2 lbs and both testicles have dropped. Your Exotic DVM should exam the kits prior to being neutered for size, age, weight and overall health.

Mom 12 weeks

Mom can be at 12 weeks if she has not been nursing her kits for 2 weeks. She needs to be away from nursing her kits as it can affect the Anesthesia during her spay. It is understood that we are not DVM. Your DVM should know that she was a nursing Mom and when did she last nurse. We use 12 weeks to allow Mom private time to recover from having kits.

Mom’s Diet after kits and or spay

Mom was unlimited Alfalfa Hay and Baby Pellets. You will need to move her to Adult Hay and Pellets over a 3-month time period. You will need to start off with a small portion of adult hay over this time period. You will need to slowly change from unlimited baby pellets to adult pellets. The portion of pellets need to be scaled back to adult portion during this time period.

Female Kits 6 months

Female Kits can be spayed at about 6 months if they are at least 2 lbs.  When they are at about 6 months their organs are more fully developed for the major operation. The operation should be done by an Exotic Rabbit DVM who has done a pre-spay exam.

Kits food up to 10 months to a year

We don’t give kits greens until about 12 weeks. They need to start out small just a leaf or too. If you give too much they might get poopy butt. They can adult size at about 10 to 12 months. Remember to start out small introduce a new one weeks apart.

Kits Pellets are unlimited until about 8 to 10 months. You can start to move them to adult pellets and portions from 10 months to a year. Each kit is different of course. Please contact your Exotic Rabbit DVM or host 501(c)(3) Rabbit Rescue Group for exact details.             

Orphan Kit Care

Nibbles was a 2.5 week old “Easter Bunny Orphan”.

Purpose: The purpose of this guide is to go over how to care for orphan rabbits. It is understood you should contact a Rabbit Rescue Group, DVM or shelter.  The Guide is not to be used in place of a Surrogate Nursing Mom. The Guide will be in three parts: Kits Eyes Close, Eyes Open (can hold in the palm of your hand) an older kit.

Part 1: Kits Eyes Close

Kits (baby rabbits) are born with their eyes closed. They open their eyes at about 10 to 16 days.  Orphans at this age are critical. You must find a Nursing Mom who can assist feed them. Kits at this age will lose the ability to nurse in a few days. Kits are born with no fur as they get older you can see their fur grow and change in color. Kits with no fur are Day 1 to Day 3 and are critical.

Body Heat for the Kit is Critical. You should only touch / hold the kit when needed. Each time the kit is exposed to air it will reduce the body temperature. It will then take more food/energy to rebuild their body heat. The body heat of an adult rabbit is 101 to 103 F as a reference.  

Step 1.

Weigh the kit using a Gram Scale or take a picture (place nesting fur on the scale / cloth, zero the scale and then weigh the kit)

You should weigh the kit each day or take a picture at about the same take each day. The kit should gain weight each day. It might take a day or two to establish a baseline. Kits tend to gain 10 to 20% each day with a Nursing Mom. You should take a picture of the kit from the top view and side view. The first day picture and weight would establish a base line. You should not see the kit is losing weight. Once the stomach or skin starts to sink in or their skin folds it is a 911. You may a day to turn things around.

Step 2: Place the kit in a small nesting box. The nesting box can be a small card board box, large hat, small plastic box or similar.

1. Place a soft material like fleece or similar at the bottom.
2. You can place rabbit fur (if you have access to one) on top of the soft material.
3. You can place a small amount of hay on top of the soft material.
4. Place the nesting box on a heating pad set to low and on 24/7.
5. The entire setup should be place on a table above the cold air flow of the floor.
6. Place the kit/kits inside of the nesting box at the center. If you have more then one place them next to each other in the center.
7. Place fur on top of the kit or cover the top with a soft material leaving a gap to all air flow.

S

Step 3 Feeding is critical for the ALL kits.  We only use Wombaroo Rabbit Milk Replace for the kits (made for rabbit kits).  Wombaroo does not cause gas or have a problem with sticking to their fur. We had these problems with KMR (PetAg KMR Powder Milk Supplement for Kittens). We have not used Goat Milk. KMR if given too much might cause gas in the kit. KMR will stick to their fur if not cleaned off. It can be very difficult to remove dried KMR from their fur. If you use KMR be aware the concerns. You must clean any excess off of the kits that might occur during feeding.  Wombaroo like KMR is a powder. We use a 1 to 1 ration of Wombaroo and warm water. You need to wisk it in a small bowl. You don’t want any clumps or have it too watery. It may take a few times to get the right mixture.

The delivery system is critical for kits with their eyes closed. The top is a FR 3 Feeding tube used for Tube Feeding. We were trained by a DVM on the process. The middle is a FR 3 Feeding cut to size or similar. You can get these from your DVM or online.  You can use a 1.0 ml syringe or a 0.5 ml syringe which has a slighter smaller diameter tip then then 1.0 ml. The Miracle Nipple may have a diameter is too large for kits less than 2 weeks.  The Miracle Nipple will be fine for kits who can nurse from it.

You need to wrap the kit in fleece holding upright. Start off with a few drops. It will take time for the kit to understand what is going on. You need to very slowly and allow the kit to breath. You should do this 2 times a day morning and night.  The kit weighed 44 grams. We were able to give 0.5 to 0.6 ml during her first time. We do lose some during the process.  We use 5 to 10% of the body weight each time during the feeding. It is not an exact science. You will lose some during the process. If the kit is fighting the process then the kit is expending valuable energy. It might be best to save the kits energy for the next feeding. It is not an exact process. The kit will lose the ability to nurse in about 3 days without a nursing Mom.

The next step after feeding the express their urine. Move the moist cotton ball (with a small amount of water) going over the top of their private parts. Use gentle pressure going from top down towards their tail. You can also use you’re a moist finger for this process. Mom will groom them in order for them to express their urine.  If you are unable to express their urine after a few tries you can wait until the next feeding. Mom’s themselves are unable to groom all of their kits after nursing.

Dehydration is a concern if the kit is going into 911. You can give Sub-Q Fluids to the kit. The process should only be done if you know how. You must use a narrow gauge needle with the syringe (top) . You have no margin for error with the kit. You have very little space when you pull up the skin for the tent for the Sub-Q Fluids.  Tube feeding (bottom) is used as a last resort.

The last resort is for Tube Feeding the Kits the kit is losing weight and the stomach is sunken in after hand feeding. You need to be trained by a DVM on this process. Tube feeding will allow you deliver several ml at a time. There are several downsides to this process. You needed to be trained by a DVM for this process and understand the risks. We only use this as a last option.

Part 2: Eyes Open but fits into your palm

You need to weigh the kit as before. Pictures of the stomach and skin are not important. The kit would have fur that would cover the area. You need to do a basic health check of the kit.

1. The nose should be dry.
2. No discharge around the eyes, nose or mouth.
3. Look for any wounds i.e. cat bites 911(seek a vet you must clean the wound)
4. Look at the bottom area for any signs of diarrhea 911(seek a vet your bunny may need Ponazuril)
5. Does the bunny seem active or maybe crashing

Nibbles (shown above) was number 5. Nibbles was crashing. Nibbles was saved and found a Great Forever Home and Friend. He was placed on a heating pad (as shown).  Nibbles was light weight and not active along with being dehydrated. He did not take to hand feeding. We then went directly to tube feeding.  He gave the scream of death and we went directly to tube feeding. He would have died that night if did not react. We did that for several weeks. 

Place the orphan in a secure area (indoor quite area) with a heating pad set to low and on 24/7. Place a low profile litter box along with a small water bowl. Place a small stuff rabbit or similar with the kit. The kit might find comfort with the stuff toy (Bunny Friend)

You should place small flakes of Alfalfa Hay and baby rabbit pellets with the kit.

You should give the kits Wombaroo Rabbit Milk Replace. You can use a 10ml syringe, Miracle Nipple or similar. The kit should gain about 10% of body weight each day once the kit starts to eat Wombaroo and or hay/pellets. You do not need to use a warm cotton ball on the private parts at this age. It is import for the kit to have “play time”.  The kit be in a “baby x-pen” or in a standard x-pen with the sides covered. The kit up to about 6 weeks can get through a standard x-pen.  You should not be giving any greens until the kit is about 8 weeks. The kit cannot digest the greens and it might cause soft poop.

We worked with a member of the community who rescued a 2.5 old kit. The kit was placed in a nesting box, heating pad and a secure housing. We provided the one-on-one kit feeding and deliver system. We taught her how to mix the items and to use a syringe to deliver the Wombaroo Rabbit Milk Replace for the kits. She was able to adopt the kit as her own daughter.

Nibbles Play Time

Playtime should have tubes that the bunny can hop through along with other “baby toys”.  Playtime is important for the bunny to exercise and have fun. You use this time to monitor the bunny for any problems with hopping or other things.

Daily Home Check Checks

1. Weight is important but you can tell if the bunny is eating and gaining weight.
2. It is important for you to check for diarrhea. Diarrhea is a 911.
3. Look for inactivity which can be a 911.  You will know after watching your bunny normal routine.

We fostered Flemish Giant Orphans who were 9 days young. Sadly their Mom passed away at Day 7. We will show videos from Tube Feeding to Syringe Feeding of these orphans.

Surrogate Nursing Mom Care

Purpose: The purpose of this guide is to go over how to care for orphan or high- risk kits using a Surrogate Nursing Mom. Surrogate Nursing Mom is different from using the mom during one on one nursing with the orphan or high-risk kit. Surrogate Nursing Mom is defined in this paper as the mom adopts the kit as her own. She will care for the kit the same way as her own. The kit will be accepted by the mom and her kits as one of their siblings. There are several reasons why you would introduce the kit to the mom and her kits. The following are a few of the main reasons.

• Their eyes are closed.
• They are in critical shape i.e. low body weight (less then 3 weeks young)
• The kit does not accept one on one hand feeding.

The critical age for a Surrogate Nursing Mom is when the kits are Newborn to 3 weeks. Mom’s tend to stop nursing at about 4 weeks. Mom’s kits and the possible new kits should be within 3 days of each other.  The kits should be around the same size. You don’t want to have the new kit to be 2X the size of the others. It is understood that Mom’s kits will be different sizes. The best time to use a Surrogate Nursing Mom when the kits are less then 2 weeks and about 3 days of each other.  It is very difficult to do one on one feedings for kits less then 2 weeks young.

Ms. Muffet’s 5-day old kits.                                                       Mom + 13 5- day old kits.                                         Ms. Muffet adopted the kits as her own the first night.

We were called upon a 501 (c)(3) rabbit rescue to visit a member of the community who found Ms. Muffet and her 5-day old kits. We rescued them on behalf of the rabbit rescue group. We took the 5 most critical kits from another 501 (c)(3) Rabbit Rescue Group who took in Mom + 13-5 day old kits. Ms. Muffet adopted the 5 kits as her own that night.

We did not know if Ms. Muffet would accept the kits as her own. We received the kits at 11 pm. We saw all 13 and picked the 5 most critical kits. The kits said “We Love You Mom” as we took them home. All 5 kits were saved by Ms. Muffet. Mom + 13 was able to care for Mom + 6. They are all looking for their forever homes after being fixed.

Ms. Muffet was away from kits since the rescue at 2 in the afternoon. They had missed their dinner time nursing. We did one on one nursing with Ms. Muffet once we got home. The 5 most critical kits needed a Nursing Mom. Itsy Bitsy was the smallest at about 25 grams and was crashing.

We have our hand on her head during one on one nursing to help protect the kits. Ms. Muffet did not accept them and attached them. We had our hand our her head to protect the kits. We tried later but this time using gentle pets on her head and ears. We talked with her letting her know what is going on. She was able to nurse them with out us holding her.

Mix the smell of the kits together. Rabbits are driven bye smell vs sight. We held all of the kits together to intermix their smell together. We put her fur from her nesting box on the 5 critical kits.  We then put Ms. Muffet back with her kits. She hop over to the nesting box. She did smell everyone and felt fine. We stayed up until 3 am watching them.

• Kits need to be within 3 days or similar size (reference only)
• Mix smell of kits
• Watch for a few hours for any signs of problems.

When you have older kits defined as eyes open and they can hop around the process is different. You should introduce the kit to the largest or most active kit one on one. We are not talking about bonding. The largest or most active kit may not accept the new kit or kits. If you have more then one you can introduce them in a larger group.

• Pet the new kits together prior to putting them together.
• Pet the new kits with the Mom together.
• Place some of Mom’s fur on the new kits.
• You want to make the new kits smell like the other kits.

Let the kits have playtime together alone with out the Mom. If the kits get along and you can try with the Mom. You need to be there at all times. The Mom will smell the new kits. She may not accept them. If she does not accept them you must move the kits out.  You need to watch them for several hours. The key point is when Mom is nursing. You will know at this time if she nurses the new kits.

One on one nursing with Itsy Bitsy and Ms. Muffet’s kit.

It is important to continue to weight and monitor all of the kits. Ms. Muffet went from 5 to 10 kits. We observed that some of her kits started to lose weight. We have been doing one on one nursing with Itsy Bitsy and the most critical of the 5 kits. We then added some of Ms. Muffet’s kits for one on one nursing.