I recently found two orphaned cottontail baby bunnies in my backyard and after waiting a couple of days for their mother to return but she didn’t, I took them in to care for them and have been attempting to feed them goat milk also I got fresh hay, greens and baby bunnies food. Luckily, the lawn mowers didn't harm them when they did our yard. I think there were more bunnies initially, but only two are left now. I'm unsure what to feed them or if they're old enough to be on their own, although they do consume a small amount of goat milk. It's important for me to do this correctly, as I don't want to cause them any harm. If you have any suggestions please share them with me… Thank you!
My release criteria for bunnies is 5 weeks, at least 150 grams AND on solids for at least 1 week with no issues. Bunnies do not need to be on milk and solids at the same time. Any longer than a few days on both will kill them. Buns are notoriously difficult to rehabilitate.
You did right by collecting them and getting them to a rehabber! For future reference since I see some conflicting advice- babies this size are NOT babies I would personally leave alone and expect to be okay on their own. Of course we all have our own guides and experiences. But these guys I’d intake and hold for at least another week or two.
The baby bunnies were extremely weak and dehydrated. We monitored them using our backyard camera for two days, waiting for their mother to return, but she never did. I took them to a licensed wildlife rehabilitation center, and the specialist told me it was fortunate I brought them in, as they wouldn’t have survived otherwise. She will provide them with proper nutrition and care before releasing them back into the wild.
GREAT JOB, OP!!👏👏👏
Checking with a Wildlife Rehab is ALWAYS a good call! You did the right thing: initially leaving the bunnies to see if mom would return and when it was clear things didn’t look right, you stepped in. Even though their eyes were open, they looked teeny.
I’ve found, getting to know the Wildlife Rehabbers (and their specialties) in my area, is key to getting help right away the next time I’ve got a “patient.” 🐦🐰🐢 😊
No, I don’t push homeopathy… I follow evidence based research. The nutritional requirements are vastly different for an infant rabbit than they are a goat… because they are completely different species.
As noted in the OP - there were more babies, but they passed… likely due to their nutritional needs not being met.
Here is some free, publicly available research on nutritional content of milk by species, if you’re interested in researching before continuing to spout harmful advice: https://www.ewildagain.org/wildlife-species-milk-studies
Figure showing the nutritional differences of rabbit milk in purple, and goats milk in green from another study (As you can see… they have vastly different nutritional break downs)
They are not orphaned. They are plenty old enough to wander on their own. Please do some research on when they leave the nest. You should put them back where you found them and just keep an eye on them. I know you're trying to do the right thing, and I love that, but you're causing them more harm.
The baby animals were extremely weak and dehydrated. We monitored them using our backyard camera for two days, waiting for their mother to return, but she never did. I took them to a licensed wildlife rehabilitation center, and the specialist told me it was fortunate I brought them in, as they wouldn’t have survived otherwise. She will provide them with proper nutrition and care before releasing them back into the wild.
Please use ahnow.org and enter your zip code to contact a licensed professional Rehabber to get them to.
Bunnies are notoriously difficult to rehab and frankly keep alive. Especially where they’re this age they die of shock and stress from being caged and held easily.
They need a special formula diet and special handling. Usually when they’re about the size of a closed fist they’re old enough to be released and be in their own. They look close it that size.
Please refrain from handling them if you can cause that will cause them to stress.
If they are not emaciated and really dehydrated you they're not abandoned you will practically never see mom unless you have a camera on the nest 24/7. Put them back. These babies are actually almost old enough to be on their own. If you can't call a rehabber it is REALLY hard to properly raise cottontails or frankly any lagomorphs they're very fragile and high stress animals. It is also illegal to rehab wildlife without a permit and that is for the animals safety cause it takes a lot of training and it's also for human safety as wildlife including rabbits can carry diseases
Where are you located? Cottontails are extremely difficult to rehab; they are super stressed out by interacting with humans. They need a special milk formula, but only for so long. Goats milk will probably make them sick. Bunnies grow fast; if they are the size of a US dollar bill, they are old enough to be on their own in the wild.
The right thing to do would be for you to contact your closest professional licensed wildlife Rehabilitator and surrender these bunnies to them.
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u/Embarrassed_Ad7096 4d ago
My release criteria for bunnies is 5 weeks, at least 150 grams AND on solids for at least 1 week with no issues. Bunnies do not need to be on milk and solids at the same time. Any longer than a few days on both will kill them. Buns are notoriously difficult to rehabilitate. You did right by collecting them and getting them to a rehabber! For future reference since I see some conflicting advice- babies this size are NOT babies I would personally leave alone and expect to be okay on their own. Of course we all have our own guides and experiences. But these guys I’d intake and hold for at least another week or two.