Kits and Nursing Mothers

Baby rabbits are called "kits".

Kits are born blind and hairless.

They will grow fast and have hair in 3-4 days.

Eyes open in 7 days.

Mother rabbits don't sleep with their kits.

Mother rabbits nurse (feed) kits only 5 to 10 minutes a day.

Mother rabbits make a nest with hair she pulls from her body. The kits are born in a fur lined nest. Since they have no hair to stay warm it is very important that kits have a warm nest to protect them. Mother rabbits only feed the kits one time per day. She will stay with them for only a few minutes. The kits will quickly grap hold of a tube and fill up on milk very fast. You may think the mother is not caring for her kits becuase she doesn't spend much time with them but kits are robust and hardy.

Problems

Wet Nest

Mother rabbits sometimes urinate on their babies! When this happens you must remove the wet nest material and replace with new dry hay and fur. Fur can be collected when a kindling mother pulls too much fur for her nest. Collect the extra fur to use for such occasions.
Also wash and dry the kits to remove the urine. Use warm water and mild soap. If urine is left on them they can develop bacterial infections.
Move the nest to the other side of the cage. The cage may be on top of the mother rabbits' bathroom spot. Rabbit urinate in the same corner of the cage each time.

Cannibalism

Mother rabbits sometimes eat their babies!
This can be caused by several reasons.
Mother was scared or upset.
Loud noises such as dogs barking.
Predators stalking or lurking nearby.
Give mothers a safe and quiet environment.