# Holly HELP!!! ASAP



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Holly when you read this you can move it where you need to. Also if anyone else has experience please chime in.

I went to the pet store to get food for my snake and they had a rabbit (who I have been looking at buying for my sister) who just had babies and they were on newspaper with no bedding and no nest. They were cold and one looked really bad. I use to raise rabbits when I was a girl but it has been soooo long! So I know the owners and they said I could take them all and raise them, then bring them back to sell. Mom and the others now have a proper set up and are doing fine. However the runt is really cold and the others will not lay with her. I think she got too cold so when I left the pet store I put her in my bra on the top so she was warm (yeah, yeah, shut up) it worked and she was moving around more when I got home. She is dehydrated and really skinny, I want to try and save her because I think all is wrong is she is the runt. She (for now it may be a he) is 4 days old and I brought her inside put her on a heat pad to help with her temperature and now I just got her out and I am feeding her with a 1cc syringe and goats milk. I know you raise all kinds of critters am I on the right path? Anything else I can do? Thanks


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## gxkon (Jul 13, 2009)

i went threw the same thing 90% of hand fed rabbits dont live but its worth a try what you doin is the same thing i did if u can get em to eat your doin good make sure to wipe them the help get them to use the b room i read u only feed 2 times a day a bottel of warm water under a towel will help keep em warm good luck i had 6 and they all died


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## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

Can you try rubbing the baby on the others, maybe tae the mom out for a few minutes and put the baby with the sibs so it blends in, and then put the mom back in, and hope she doesn't notice? I think the reason why hand fed babies dont often live is that the moms reject them for a reason, they can sense something wrong and dont want to waste resources. However if it was really just the runt, she might take it back now that the danger has passed.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Thanks for the water bottle idea, I was worried about the heating pad since it said too much heat is bad. I did read 2x a day is all they eat. I don't mind putting her back after she gets a little jump start, but she is soooo dehydrated I was really worrying about her. She really got into the feeding and I think that will really help. She is moving around just fine and active so pray for her, k
If all else fails my snake will have rabbit for dinner.
I also had to do surgery on one already  One of the strong babies got his foot caught on a sharp point in the cage and ripped his little back foot open. Good thing I went in to check on them, I got him lose and cleaned it out real good and put some tissue glue (like they use in surgery for dogs and people) and put his little foot back together. It looked like no broken bones just a skin tear. MAN babies of any kind are stressful! I am such a mush puppy for little babies!!


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

How old is it? Water bottle and towel is perfect for heating. Try to get some baby rabbit formula. Rabbit milk is much higher in nutrients that just goat milk and that is why they only feed 1-2 times a day. Kitten or Puppy milk would be better. Rabbits unlike many animals don't abandon babies that are touched by people. Not often any ways. Try pulling a bit of moms hair out and rubbing it on the baby then placing it back with the others. They should have moms hair in the nest. Mom will lay away from the nest and doesn't lay with the babies so the other siblings are the only heat source. 


Quite often the runt will die off any ways. What breed are they? If they are Mini Rex, Netherland, or any dwarf breed mostly likely it is a peanut that will not survive, because it is smaller do to having a double dwarfing gene.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

This is mom and babies, the babies escaped and got out of the box I gave them








I love the split face one!!








Here is little girl

















ok Holly what I want to do is just supplement the baby to help her get stronger. It's not that the mom is rejecting her, she is just so weak the other can move around and she is always left by herself and gets cold. The other ones are strong and fat and I think just push her out of the way when they eat. Should I put her on the mom to feed or just supplement her once a day? I do not know what to do......
Right now I have her warm in a box with a bottle heater and then tonight I will bring momma inside and put her back in with the rest of the babies for the night.
Whacha think?


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

mom is big what breed do you think?


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## Indigo Bully Connection (Dec 21, 2006)

aww look at those little cuties! I hope she pulls through!


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## gxkon (Jul 13, 2009)

performanceknls said:


> Thanks for the water bottle idea, I was worried about the heating pad since it said too much heat is bad.


no prob you help me in a big way with my kilos hair loss and pointed me in the right direction


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

She looks lke a cross so breed could be anything lol. 


Mostly likely if you try to do it yourself she will die, however quite often the runt dies any ways .

You can supplement her and if you have someone that can keep close eye, make sure she goes where the others go. You can also add in a bit of pedialight like you would for a dehydrated pup. 

Best of luck, but sadly babies bunnies are not the easiest to keep alive when in trouble.

On a side note mom is gorgeous and those are some adorable babies!


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

You mean you cannot tell her blood line from the picture? I was thinking some RE..... lol
Great! Now I have to move the mom and cage in the living room so I can watch her all day! lol
Well we will give it a try if not like I said my snake will have rabbit on the menu. I hope she makes I'll let you know how it goes. Thank you!!


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Np! I hope she makes it to. You can make a box with a higher edge so babies can't escape, and carefresh bedding holds in better heat if you put baby back with the litter.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

She made it through the night and was with all the babies this am when I check on her. Now I think I know why she is not healthy..... I put her on mom last night to give her some milk and she will suckle for a bit then let go, it's not that the mom did not have milk but maybe she cannot suck hard enough to get much milk? Maybe that is why she was not doing good, she will not stay on any teat for longer than 10 sec, she is hungry and frantic but cannot seem to suckle for very long. I think the goats milk helped she had a total of 1.6 cc yesterday at different feedings. I do not want to over feed her but I do not think she is getting much milk when mom feeds the other one.

Oh well I will keep trying.


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## Indigo Bully Connection (Dec 21, 2006)

performanceknls said:


> She made it through the night and was with all the babies this am when I check on her. Now I think I know why she is not healthy..... I put her on mom last night to give her some milk and she will suckle for a bit then let go, it's not that the mom did not have milk but maybe she cannot suck hard enough to get much milk? Maybe that is why she was not doing good, she will not stay on any teat for longer than 10 sec, she is hungry and frantic but cannot seem to suckle for very long. I think the goats milk helped she had a total of 1.6 cc yesterday at different feedings. I do not want to over feed her but I do not think she is getting much milk when mom feeds the other one.
> 
> Oh well I will keep trying.


The same thing happened with Felony...she just didn't have the desire to suckle... It was 3 darn weeks before I ever got ANY sleep because I had to syringe feed her. Good luck Lisa. I know the way i got her to suckle at all from mom was to give her a jump start by scratching the back of her neck by the base of her head... it made her go wiiild on the nurp.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Holly
She is stronger today but still dehydrated, not as bad as yesterday but still enough to worry about. So if she was a dog I would do IV or subQ fluids but she is so little I could do Sub Q fluids. i could even warm them a bit to help with her body temp, I definitely do not want to give her ice cold fluids. I have small 25g needles I could do like a 1 or 2 cc bump on her back to help. Whatcha think?
Man what a lucky rabbit I just may save her yet!


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Do you have a small enough IV needle to give her an IV? If so you can do that and just give her a bit. Rabbit portion lol. I think 25g may be to big but you could try. 


You you can't get fluids in the good way, some pedialight via eye dropper would do.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Well I was going to do it Sub Q NOT IV. I could not imagine trying to get a vein on that small of an animal  When Leonard gets home we will do it. thanks


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

performanceknls said:


> could not imagine trying to get a vein on that small of an animal


Aww why not lol... Sub Q should work fine. My terms aren't technical lmao. I call everything IV whether its in the vein or not :hammer: lmao.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

alright we did .7cc of subq fluids and I warmed them a bit. The 25g worked ok but the baby was more dehydrated than I thought so good thing we did the fluids. I also made a better nest box with a lip on the bottom so the little babies cannot crawl out in the rest of the cage. Man they are really active and twice her size. So again fingers crossed and Leonard said I can keep her if she makes it!


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

I don't think she will make the night..... she has taken a turn for the worse.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

No wait! she is doing better! I stayed up and fed her every few hours and she is on a heat pad. I also have been giving her fluids. I found a rabbit breeder online who had a very good info page on hand raising babies. What I read seems to be working, for now anyway. Good thing I decide to give her another chance, she was almost snake food last night to ease her suffering.


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## Roxy_Nie (Oct 10, 2008)

performanceknls said:


> No wait! she is doing better! I stayed up and fed her every few hours and she is on a heat pad. I also have been giving her fluids. I found a rabbit breeder online who had a very good info page on hand raising babies. What I read seems to be working, for now anyway. Good thing I decide to give her another chance, she was almost snake food last night to ease her suffering.


Awwwwwww

So glad the little girl is doing better!


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## mygirlmaile (Mar 26, 2009)

GOOD TO HEAR!!!! God bless you Lisa!!! Yall are so nice and rescuing animals and what not....I gotta get on the stick! LOL.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

SHe died last night.


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

that sucks! poor bunny!


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## Indigo Bully Connection (Dec 21, 2006)

oh man, I was really rooting for her. I'm sorry lisa! :hug:


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Aww RIP lil hopper.


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## bluefamily (Aug 8, 2007)

well....... how are things???


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