# Crisis



## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

well i went out to the little runt earlier, he was sat on his own away from others and breathing heavily and rasping, his eyes were half closed so rushed him to the vets.

She isnt sure if he has soemthing wrong with him and thats why mum left him on his own at the botom, when i put him near the others he just wonders off again.

He is on antibiotics but vet said if he dosnt stay with the others and i think mum is rejecting him i should take him to be put to sleep as its unlikely ill be able to hand rear him, she offered to put him to sleep this morning but i said no, i at least want to give him a chance so please send your love and prayers for him that he survives.


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## frags (Feb 5, 2009)

awwww i hope he will be ok.
i had 1 that kept being thrown or wandering from the nest, i kept putting him back and he made it fine. but we didnt think he would as twice he was close to death with cold.

thinking of you little one, be strong and keep fighting.


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

This is the little guy


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## animallover111 (Apr 25, 2009)

Aww bless him......is there no way he can be hand reared?


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

aw hes so beautiful, put him back with the others bang in the middle so he cant wander off, maybe add more bedding to make a massive nest.

I'm sure if you hand reared him he'd be ok with formula milk and probiotics on top of mums milk hes looking pretty big already. In saying this I had one of 3 that suddenly seemed to catch a cold and sat himself in the corner away from the others, then i noticed the others seemed to push him around a little, took him to the vets straight away for antibiotics but he didnt recover.


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

My vet wasnt hopeful, i have done exactly as you said 

I cleaned out the bed completely, sorry if mum dosnt like it but it was disgusting and the amonia woudlnt be helping his chest and may ahve been the cause in the first place :-( really suprised by how dirty she is int he nest.

I bought the extra long type of hay that fluffs up really well and stays fluffed up and i put him right in the middle of the others ill go check in a min dont want to disturb hem to much though.

hand rearing is very very difficult, i tried with a day old guinea pig, got him to three weeks then he drowned on his milk, its not the same as a teat it comes out to quick and gets into their lungs, its very common.

he is only 16 days so sadly way to young not to feed from mum i can just try my best with him the rest is up to them


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

when i had to bottle feed i used a pet milk bottle (pets at home etc) with a teat on it and pushed a pin in it to make a small hole so that even when squeezing the bottle only drops of milk came out, very time consuming but worth it


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## animallover111 (Apr 25, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> My vet wasnt hopeful, i have done exactly as you said
> 
> I cleaned out the bed completely, sorry if mum dosnt like it but it was disgusting and the amonia woudlnt be helping his chest and may ahve been the cause in the first place :-( really suprised by how dirty she is int he nest.
> 
> ...


Good luck with him,your doing all you can for him.Please keep us up dated.Sorry i cant give you any helpful advice.


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## umber (Feb 15, 2009)

awwww I hope the little guy makes it! Sending lots of good vibes to you!

I cant see the photo


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## frags (Feb 5, 2009)

i posted this on the wrong thread lol

TBH im not convinced that his rate wouldnt be good. i was told that if baby gets to 2 weeks old where its eyes had opened and is moving around the survival rate is alot higher than if it hadnt been fed at all by mum.

im glad you gave it a chance, i do hope the littlen survives x


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## jaxb05 (Apr 12, 2009)

Poor little guy. I am willing him to live. x x


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## toddy (Jan 24, 2009)

Nature tends to be right and if this little fellow is leaving the nest it is usually for a good reason.If he was healthy he would not do that .
Sadly handrearing rabbits is not usually successful.
You are giving him every chance you can and that is all you can do really.
I hope against all odds he does do well for you.
Keep us posted.


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## xgemma86x (Feb 13, 2009)

Sending all my prayers for your little guy. Hope he makes it


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## SeaThreePeeO (Sep 15, 2008)

Sending positive thoughs and loads of healing vibes to you xxx


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

HELP i dont know what to do 

Twinkle is out of the nest again, this time snuggled up to mum and aunt on the top part of the hutch, gave him his meds which he hates bu he isnt looking good.

I cant keep him in the nest, if he comes out again in the night he will get cold, i have put hay on the bottom just in case but mum just collects it all and puts it in the nest box, was thinking of hanging a duvet down in front of the hutch so if he does get out again it will be a bit warmer????

If i bring him in he wont get fed and its very likely he wont survive plus i have nothing to feed him tonight....... oh i hate this thank the lord i dont breed.


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## umber (Feb 15, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> HELP i dont know what to do
> 
> Twinkle is out of the nest again, this time snuggled up to mum and aunt on the top part of the hutch, gave him his meds which he hates bu he isnt looking good.
> 
> ...


Is there anyway you can stop him coming down blocking up the place where the ramp is with a piece of wood card board?

Poor you!


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## DKDREAM (Sep 15, 2008)

I hope it makes it its lovley


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

no i dont really have anything to block it off with pus the top bit wont hold mum aunt and food bowl, mum has left the hay downstairs for now anyway and i have hung a duvet over the hutch so fingers crossed if he does leave the nest he will get to the hay or at least be sheltered from the wind and rain.

He is still in the nest at the moment so fingers crossed, probably be up and down checking all night.


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## Cavalierlover123 (May 27, 2009)

I hope he survives, you are doing all you can!! 
When my rabbit had babies i screwed in a bit of wood in the bed part so that the babies couldnt get out of the warm corner but mum could get in. Maybe try making a lil cardboard nesting box and put all the babies in it.. this would stop the lil one from escaping all the time..


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## frags (Feb 5, 2009)

Cavalierlover123 said:


> I hope he survives, you are doing all you can!!
> When my rabbit had babies i screwed in a bit of wood in the bed part so that the babies couldnt get out of the warm corner but mum could get in. Maybe try making a lil cardboard nesting box and put all the babies in it.. this would stop the lil one from escaping all the time..


this is what i did, i put a 4" high bit of ply that mum could hop over but babies cant get out of.
can you do this to the hutch?


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## Cavalierlover123 (May 27, 2009)

If you could get a bit of wood it would be brilliant to keep the babies in!!  because cardboard would soak all there urine but it would do for only tonight untill you got some wood.


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## toddy (Jan 24, 2009)

Pampered pets I just noticed you said he was on antibiotics.Did the vet give you any probiotics aswell.It is essential for you to give him probiotics aswell as antibiotics as they interfere with the natural balance of the gut and in a baby you will end up with big problems.
You can get fibreplex which is for rabbits.
It is difficult to know what to do for the best with him to be honest.If he keeps leaving the nest he will get cold and die.Like others have said is there anyway you can raise the sides of the nest to stop him getting out.
Good luck I think tonight will be a crucial night to get through with him xx


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

OMG no probiotics, oh no where do i get these?????????

He is on baytril, o.o3 twice a day with a bit of water.

Well folks he survived the night    little bugger was at the bottom with mum again but all babies were out, the others were still at the top dont think they could work out the ladders but this one is a smart little cookie, he just wants to be with mum all the time, before i coudl open the door to pick him up he ran back up the ladders and into bed, when i came back out with meds he was running back down the ladders ! so he certainly isnt stuck like i thought.

I covered the hutch with a thick duvet so it was warmer, Its a thistle hall hutch from pets at home, if anyone knows it how can i modify it?

Now just need to know about the probiotics. Stupid vet, she knew nothing had to look everything up on a web site.......cotton tails i think but she didnt read it all so must of missed the probiotic bit.


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## animallover111 (Apr 25, 2009)

Glad he survived the night....
Sorry i have no good advice i dont have a clue about rabbits......


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

vets can be annoyingly dumb call them and demand the probiotics!! dont pay for her to see him again they just love wasting money


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Some rabbits will reject a kit if they sense something is wrong with it.

I had a doe who rejected one out of a litter of 4. For love nor money she would not have anything to do with it. So i handreared little Wobble from just 1 day of age.

As she got older, it became apparent that there was soemthing wrong with her. Her back legs were fused into position, and she couldnt move them. I got her to 6 weeks, then decided to have her PTS. Even though she seemd perfectly happy, her quality of life was affected, as she would never be able to walk properly. I also didnt know if she was in pain or not. When i had the vet out to euthanise her, he said she also had a flat chest, and that he was amazed she survived as long as she did, and was as big and healthy as she was.

Fingers crossed you just have an active and adventurous baby.


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## SeaThreePeeO (Sep 15, 2008)

I'm so glad he survived the night. I still have everything crossed for you!


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## colliemerles (Nov 2, 2007)

i also have everything crossed for you, hope he makes its, he is so cute,xxxx


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

well the pet shop said to give probiotic yogurt like actimel is this right?

well what i now know is he stays in the nest during the day and comes out at night, he dosnt appear to have any physical problems apart from the wheezing and weepy eyes, he is very lively and can scoot up and down the ladders in the blink of an eye when even his brothers and sisters twice his size cant so i have hope.

can soemone let me know about the yogurt please.


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

I'm not sure about yogurt as cow milk molecules are to big for rabbits to digest? hense give babies either goat milk or kitten formula?.. i think this is right??

I would ask your vets for some rabbit probiotics or buy on line or contact a local breeder who may have some spare.

I found this website who sell the stuff PenstonePetStoreOnLine dont know how credible they are tho.


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

If its moving around that much then I'm hopeful


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> well the pet shop said to give probiotic yogurt like actimel is this right?
> 
> well what i now know is he stays in the nest during the day and comes out at night, he dosnt appear to have any physical problems apart from the wheezing and weepy eyes, he is very lively and can scoot up and down the ladders in the blink of an eye when even his brothers and sisters twice his size cant so i have hope.
> 
> can soemone let me know about the yogurt please.


No. Dont give dairy products.

Get some stuff from the vets. Fibreplex would be suitable, or you can get water soluble probitocs.

He sounds perky. Fingers crossed


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## umber (Feb 15, 2009)

Any news on the kit hope hes doing well!


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## frags (Feb 5, 2009)

umber said:


> Any news on the kit hope hes doing well!


i was wondering the same umber.

hope he is well x


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

hi, he is still a bit wheezy but his eyes were open today, well one was. 

He is still with us anyway which he woudlnt be if id listened to the vet 

still need crossed fingers, he is half the size of the others so i do wonder if he does generally ahve soemthing wrong or if they usually catch up later on in size?


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## umber (Feb 15, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> hi, he is still a bit wheezy but his eyes were open today, well one was.
> 
> He is still with us anyway which he woudlnt be if id listened to the vet
> 
> still need crossed fingers, he is half the size of the others so i do wonder if he does generally ahve soemthing wrong or if they usually catch up later on in size?


awwww poor little thing... I really hope he does pull through!


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

are you feeding him extra milk on top of mums?


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## Lemoney.Ellie (Jul 10, 2009)

Dont give up on him!/ her! At this second I am hand raising a baby rabbit, and he is 2 weeks today and is doing great! Nice and big! 
Unfortunatley he may die but it wont be hurtful or anything, its best to give them a chance. 
If mum has rejected him try getting a small bottle or syringe with warm goats milk and see if he takes it 5ml is a could size amount! 

I havent given up on this one and I wont ever, give yours a chance too! 

(look on my profile and you can see some younger pics of mine  ) 

Good luck xxx


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## Lemoney.Ellie (Jul 10, 2009)

Lemoney.Ellie said:


> Dont give up on him!/ her! At this second I am hand raising a baby rabbit, and he is 2 weeks today and is doing great! Nice and big!
> Unfortunatley he may die but it wont be hurtful or anything, its best to give them a chance.
> If mum has rejected him try getting a small bottle or syringe with warm goats milk and see if he takes it 5ml is a could size amount!
> 
> ...


Also the whole yogurt thing wouldnt really be good for them as they cant digest cows milk, goats yogurt would be great as when hand rearing you can feed them either a formula called Lactol or Goats Milk so here is a link for you

Sainsbury's online groceries

More good luck and best wishes! x


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

Thanks,

Mum is feeding him the vet said only to get involved with feeding if mum abandoned him otherwise leave her to it, just give the meds.

I thought kits only ate once a day and giving them to much can be dangerous?

Virtually all littes of any species has a runt, some die but most eventually grow to a normal size like their litter mates and you would never know they were a runt, i hope this is the case with him.

I picked up a tiny ferret kit yesterday, less than half the size of litter mates but i know he will be just fine, hopefully the bunny will to.


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

I believe buns only feed twice a day.


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

ahh right i was told once a day during the night.

he has a big tum and is active so apart from the chesty breathing i still think he is far beter off left with mum, if he survives im sure he will become a very handsome fully grown bunny


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> ahh right i was told once a day during the night.
> 
> he has a big tum and is active so apart from the chesty breathing i still think he is far beter off left with mum, if he survives im sure he will become a very handsome fully grown bunny


You could be right 

Im going to have to find out now.

The fact that he is still feeding, and is surviving, has to be a good sign. she hasnt rejected him, so i would hope there was nothing physically wrong with him.

He sounds like a little fighter.


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

Im fairly certain they only feed once lol


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> Im fairly certain they only feed once lol





> Rabbits feed their offspring only once or twice per day and will only do so when they feel safe, usually just before dawn and/or just after dusk. If humans and children are continually gathered around the cage, the mother may become too stressed to nurse the infants.


All mine have always fed twice.


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

I dont know as ive never seen mum go into them to feed them.

God news i think touch wood and fingers crossed but he has his eyes fully open today


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## frags (Feb 5, 2009)

mums only feed kits once and this normally occours during the night x


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## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

thats what i always thought.


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## Lemoney.Ellie (Jul 10, 2009)

Most only feed once, though sometimes it is twice and its when the doe feels safeest, at night! 

It seems your bunbun should be fine! Just keep checking on him and then soon one day he will grow nice and strong!  

Much luck to baby bun x


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## toddy (Jan 24, 2009)

Rabbits actually feed once or twice so no-one is right or wrong lol.
They will only feed when they feel safe and usually at dawn or dusk sometimes both.


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