What to Feed a Newborn Bunny

Newborn rabbits without their mother require special care in the early stages of life. In addition to a soft, warm bed, the baby will need proper nutrition to meet its high caloric needs. Special attention must be paid to feeding times to avoid giving the bunny stomach problems. It is possible to successfully provide a newborn bunny with these needs until the newborn is weaned and ready to transition to an adult rabbit's diet.

  1. Feeding Supplies

    • Feeding tubes are available for small mammals, but should not be used unless you know how to use them properly. The best way for someone without these skills to feed a baby bunny is with a small eyedropper or a sterilized syringe. The syringe resembles an eyedropper, though it is slightly larger, and comes pre-sterlized. Place the tips of these feeding instruments lightly against the newborn's mouth so it can suck on it to get the milk.

    Kitten Milk Replacer

    • The main part of a newborn bunny's diet consists of kitten milk replacement (KMR). Rabbits require more calories than most mammals, so add a tablespoon of cream to each can of -- this is enough to supply the additional calorie needs. A newborn will drink one teaspoon of KMR per feeding. At one week, the feeding amount goes up to a tablespoon. Increase the feeding to between two and three tablespoons for bunnies between two and four weeks old.

    Feeding Instructions

    • Newborn bunnies should only be fed twice a day. Under normal circumstances, a newborn bunny will only feed once with its mother because rabbit milk has a higher calorie count. Even with the cream added to the KMR, two feedings a day are needed to supply the extra calories. The feedings should take place in the morning and evening.This prevents the baby bunny from developing gastrointestinal distress.

    Acidophilus

    • Acidophilus is a probiotic. It comes in capsules and should be added to the KMR to help increase the odds a baby bunny will live. It helps keep the balance of bacteria in the bunny's stomach at the appropriate levels. Half a capsule should be used in the KMR for newborns. At two weeks, an entire capsule should be added.

    Weaning

    • Baby bunnies can begin weaning at four weeks, with a gradual reduction of KMR and the introduction of alfalfa pellets. When the bunny is fully weaned, you can feed it timothy carrot tops, parsley and dandelion greens, in addition to the pellets.