How to Make Sure Baby Rabbits Are Eating

To ensure that they are healthy, baby rabbits should be kept with their mothers until they are 8 weeks old. Mother rabbits' milk and cecal pellets are vital to establish healthy intestinal bacteria in the babies. For example, baby rabbits can only obtain an essential fatty acid through the mothers' milk. The problem is determining whether the babies are eating.

Things You'll Need

  • Baby rabbits
  • Clean hands
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Instructions

    • 1

      Pinch the rabbits' skin at the back of their necks. If it stands up like a tent and doesn't settle back within one second, the rabbits are severely dehydrated and should be brought to a rabbit-experienced veterinarian immediately. Another way to tell if the rabbits are dehydrated is if their skin is wrinkled and they don't respond much, or at all, to being handled.

    • 2

      Check the rabbits belly. If it looks sunken, they aren't eating. If it looks distended and full, they are eating well.

    • 3

      Gently pick up the mother or turn her over and carefully hold her in your lap. Touch her nipples, looking to feel that they are slightly swollen. Gently squeeze her nipples to see if any milk comes out. If the mother isn't lactating, see a rabbit-savvy vet immediately.