My 1st Attempt To Blog @ Home

Last December 8 our rabbit, gave birth to 7 babies. Actually this is her 2nd kindling, her first one came last November 8, but sad to say, all 7 died before they even opened their eyes.

1st Time Mommy

All of us were not prepared for the additional members of our household. We didn’t even know that she’s preggy! We thought that she’s just fat because of too much eating. Then on November 8, around 2pm, neighboring children outside the gate were shouting “Baby rabbits!” My mother-in-law was at the house that time and she was curious why the children were shouting. When she came out and saw the cage, she saw tiny babies already on the ground amidst the feces. She immediately sought help from a neighbor who helped her get the babies and placed them on a box temporarily. She gave birth while inside the cage with the daddy “chi”. My sister-in-law text-ed me about it and as soon as I read the message, I felt all blood rushed to my head because I can’t believe it! 7 babies! How should they be raised?! So in a short span of time, I researched thru internet on how to take care of baby rabbits. But still we’re all in the dark on how to handle the situation. When Jimer and I came home, we found the rabbits in the box, 4 black and 3 pinkish in color. We were told the babies has not been fed by the mommy since birth, and maybe they are all hungry…etc. So we put the mommy in the other bigger cage then made a cardboard box nest with cloth diapers for the babies and put them all there. We were worried because the mommy just stomps on the babies, never minding if the baby cries. I just turned deaf with their cries and convinced myself that in their natural habitat, this will still be the situation.

In the morning when I checked on the babies, they were scattered all around the cage, maybe looking for their mommy. Their “nest” were soaked wet by mommy’s urine and so were the babies. This has been a round-the-clock situation that we have to change the nest and cloth every now and then. The babies were wrinkled and seems dehydrated and the mommy seemed does not care for the babies. So I asked around how to deal with the situation and was told to hand feed the babies with a baby formula. Then on the 4th day when I checked on them again, when I counted there were only 6 of them. The littlest one was trapped in between the cage floor. When we got it, its already stiff and cold. It was our first casualty. So I decided to remove the babies from the mommy and place them inside where they will be warm. We just get the mommy and helped the babies feed from her teats. In the afternoon, another one died because it seems that its hasn’t removed its bowel eversince because bowel area was purple/black. On the 5th day another one died which left us 4 only. We put them under soft light to give them warmth but still wasn’t enough. On the 9th day after birth, 6 of them died already which left us with only one. We really tried very hard for the baby to make it, but sadly, on the 11th day, it breathed its last breath. What happened to the babies gave me a sad feeling because they should have survived if we know what to do. We did not know any vet around, just asked people who already raised rabbits. After all babies died, I decided to let the rabbits pro-create again, but this time, I will be prepared, I put mama “chi” and daddy “chi” again in the same cage.

2nd Time Around

On the 28th day after I put them together, I insisted that a sturdy wooden nest box will be made. We noticed that when we let her inside the house, she just tear up any paper or cardboard, or made a digging motion. We assumed that she must be preparing for her babies. When the nest box were ready, we put it inside mama “chi’s” cage, place some shredded papers and wood shavings. Mama “chi” will just dig and dig and dig inside the cage, even though its the middle of the night. Good thing that the nest flooring were strong enough to withstand her diggings. Then last Sunday, December 17, when I checked on her again, I found that the cage were full of rabbit fur. Scattered all around and she just kept on pulling her furs. I told Jimer about it and when he checked, found that there is one baby born on the cage floor. He put it inside with the furs arranged and let her on her own. We thought that this time she’ll be having only one baby, but after sometime, I quietly checked again and noticed some pinkish color were inside the cage. And when she’s out of the nest already and looking outside as if asking for food, we assume she must be finished with her business. We gave her food and checked inside the cage. There were 3 blacks, 2 pinkish and 2 orangey. We’re all very excited, but very quiet about it. We’re just hoping that they will all survive this time.

View some of their photos: