4 week old rabbit bought from pet shop! HELP!!

[siaan10]

I bought a baby bunny about 2 days ago from a pet shop without knowing her age because the pet shop had only just got her in and hadnt put the signs up for the information about her yet, I took her home and realised that she looked very young so the next day I went back to the pet shop to ask her age and they said that she was only 4 weeks old! They said that she had been weaned off milk but I'm just worried since she is so young. She has been nibbling on food but I have only seen her drink a small amount of water and she is very shy and scared. How do I care for her when she is so young and should I be giving her milk supplements or just leave her eating pellets? Also any tips on how to make her feel more safe and calm her nerves would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

 

[Bunnyash]

Normally at 4 weeks the bunny should be having milk until about 6-8 weeks I believe. If you have a small bottle you can fill that up with milk and feed her, over time you should get your rabbit used to the pellets and drinking water, so after feeding it milk, make sure she always has access to water and pellets, Hay is also important for the rabbit's diet. Bringing her in to give her milk may help you and your rabbit bond a little.
If you want rabbits to trust you more, you should let them explore and not carry them all the time. Unless it's really necessary. With mine, I take them out and place them in the run everyday, and let them approach instead of me approaching them.
When they sniff you, you should treat them, let them know you always bring them something good, and make sure they have a place to hide, Rabbits are very timid creatures, so trust won't happen over night.
I hope this'll help you a little, and congrats on the new baby bunny, I bet she looks wonderful

 

[Blue eyes]

Some rabbits are weaned early - not ideal. But giving her the wrong milk will only make things worse. I wouldn't advise that.

Hopefully some of the experienced breeders on here will chime in. Until/unless they say otherwise, I would keep offering your new bunny plain alfalfa pellets and hay. Hay is important! Pellets and hay is all she needs right now.

 

[siaan10]

Okay great, thank you both

 

[siaan10]

Would it be worth holding out the bottle with the special milk formula out to her to see if she will suckle or whether she wants it?

 

[Aki]

How is he pooping and eating? Is he eating a lot of hay? Honestly, if I had the slightest doubt about his health, I would bring him to a vet for a check-up. It's recommended for petshop animals anyway because so many of them carry mange and the like. When rabbits weaned too early die (it happens quite a lot with petshop bunnies... or petshop animals in general - petshops aren't a place I would buy an animal from, ever) it's generally from weaning enteritis. There is an anti-coccidia treatment that a vet can give your rabbit to prevent the problem from occuring. If it does, the main sign is generally diarrhea and a weak bunny - but when you get to that stage, the rabbit don't always pull through as babies are so fragile.

 

[siaan10]

He has been eating plenty of hay and pellets (ones for baby rabbits) He is pooping fine, no diarrhea and has been drinking a little bit of water. He has definitely improved today and he seems a lot happier so im hoping he will be okay now I think taking him to the vet would probably be a good idea so I will definitely book him in, I called a vet today to ask whether he needs supplement milk but they said he will be fine with food water and vegetables although I found it strange they said veggies since a lot of websites online suggest not feeding baby bunnys vegetables? I definitely won't be buying from a pet shop again after that experience, unfortunately before I bought him I didn't have any knowledge about how bad pet shops could be.

 

[Blue eyes]

Greens are normally a staple to a rabbit's diet. However, if bunny's momma was not getting greens and therefore not passing that on through her milk, and if momma and baby weren't being offered greens after birth, then trying to offer them now could be risky. Often this results in diarrhea in the young bunny because her digestive tract has not fully developed to handle new foods. Diarrhea in young rabbits is usually fatal.

So in cases like yours, where bunny's background is unknown, it is safest to hold off on offering greens. Let bunny's digestive tract get settled first. Generally, around 12 weeks of age is ok to start -- very slowly -- to introduce greens. Only one type of green (think more in terms of "greens" than "veggies") should be introduced at a time. Here's more on introducing greens.

 

[ladysown]

four week old kits do not need milk.

If kits are 17 days old and lose momma, they do just fine on oatmeal, pellets and hay.

a four week old kit will do just fine with pellets and hay. DO NOT give greens etc at this age. if you want you can give uncooked kitchen oatmeal as an energy boost.

 

[siaan10]

Okay thank you all so much for the advice! He seems to be doing much better after settling in to his new home