How to Nurture a Baby Rabbit

Baby rabbits can be cute and fun to raise but they also require dedicated care to grow up safely and in good health. In most circumstances, after a mother rabbit gives birth, she'll nurse her babies and regulate their body temperature. Remove baby rabbits from their mother only if you're sure she's ignoring them. Rabbits nurse their babies only once each day, so ensure that you didn't miss the nursing time before you remove them, since it's more difficult for them to survive without her.

Things You'll Need

  • Tissue box
  • Paper towels or tissue
  • Heating pad
  • Terrarium thermometer
  • Eyedropper
  • Kitten Milk Replacer
  • Cream
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Instructions

    • 1

      Prepare a nesting box for the babies. A tissue box is usually a good size. Cut the top off the tissue box so that only the base and walls remain.

    • 2

      Make a nest for the baby rabbits using clean tissues and/or paper towels. Fold one towel and place it in the box, and shred another paper towel or several pieces of tissue and place them on top of the folded towel. The babies will burrow to warm themselves and will feel safer because they can hide.

    • 3

      Place the babies in the box and cover it with a light towel. Leave a small gap about 1-inch wide so that air can enter and leave the box.

    • 4

      Place the box in a larger terrarium so that other animals can't interfere with the babies and so that they can't crawl away from their nest. Place the terrarium in a quiet room. Noise and commotion can cause trauma to baby rabbits.

    • 5

      Keep the temperature of the room between 68 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit. If your house is cooler than this, place a heating pad in the terrarium next to the nest box and set it on low. Place a terrarium thermometer inside the cage to monitor the temperature.

    • 6

      Sterilize an eyedropper. Add 1 tbsp. of cream to a can of Kitten Milk Replacer to increase its calorie content to match that of rabbit's milk. You can purchase both the eyedropper and Milk Replacer at most pet stores.

    • 7

      Feed several drops of this mixture to each baby rabbit twice a day. If the babies reject the food or stop eating after a short time, don't force it upon them.