Orphaned Babies

[TideFan]

Hello...I realize that I just posted this in the wrong section, so I'm going to try again.

Hello. I just joined the site looking for some advice. My neighbor just discovered a nest(?) of baby rabbits while mowing her grass. I have called our local mammal rescue and I left a message, but per their hours they won't be calling back until morning.

My question is, what to do in the meantime? I'm suspecting leave them there until morning? Just want to make sure that we' doing all we can/should.

Regretfully and sparing the details, the mother will NOT be coming back.

 

[pla725]

Try this site to locate a wildlife rehabber near you:

http://www.wildliferehabber.com/

 

[Happi Bun]

How do you know the mother wont be coming back? If she is dead and you know this for a fact then I would bring them inside along with their nest (so it's less stressful) so they are safe until you get in contact with someone. Would you happen to know if these are domestic or wild babies? What did the mother look like?

 

[butsy]

make sure they stay warm !

 

[TideFan]

When she initially went to get the mower, she saw a rabbit, which I am assuming is the mother, run into my yard...with my dog. It was grayish brown, just like all the others that tend to live around here.

I got in touch with the organization that handles wild mammal rescue for the area and will be meeting her in the morning with them. She said they will be OK in the nest until morning, which we have now thoroughly blocked off to ensure nothing else can get to them.

This has made me absolutely SICK and I am so mad at my dog that I could just spit!

 

[Pipp]

How old are they? Are their eyes open?


sas

 

[TideFan]

I am sorry...I realize I posted this in the wrong section and started another thread.

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=59368&forum_id=1

They are small, but do not look like 'newborns'. Their eyes were not open. They will be going to AL Small Mammal Rescue in the morning.
Thanks for all the quick replies. It's hard to get someone on the phone after hours and I really just did not know what to do in the meantime.

 

[Happi Bun]

I'm so relieved you got in contact with someone experienced in this kind of situation.

 

[Pipp]

I merged the threads.

Thanks for doing the right thing. Hope the babies make out okay.


sas :clover:

 

[TideFan]

Just wanted to come back and give an update.

This afternoon I delivered these 3 babies to the rabbit expert with AL Mammal Rescue. (She is also an active member of AL Ears, the local rescue.)

She checked them out quickly and said that she estimated them to only be 2-3 days old. :cry4: She did say that they had a great success rate for little ones even this small. I guess I did all I could and do feel like I got them to the best hands possible. She is going to keep me updated on their progress and let me come with her if/when they are released. ray:

 

[petkeeper]

HI

I just have a quick question, if your neighbor saw the mother, and she ran away, how did you know she wouldn't be back. Mother rabbits don't say with their young during the day. They usually return to the nest twice a day to feed them. If you blocked off the nest the mother wouldn't have been able to get back to them. I am glad they are in good hands, but it might have been better not to block the nest and just wait and see??

Just curious.

 

[Flash Gordon]

i understand exactly how u feel ...before i knew bunies as pets my cat found a baby cottontail and "played" with it ...ehem..and i remember hearing it scream when it was running away from my cat..thats when saw what was happening and i intervened but the damage had been done .i put the baby in our fron courtyard and started making phonecalls and put out some water and whatever i could think of to try and make the baby comfortable..which was silly stuff that now that i KNOW bunnies werent actually helping this little guy..but i had to do something cuz my damm cat did this to a little defenseless baby.,..ooh boy i was mad at my cat for a couple of days...i new it was a norm thing for a cat to do but it wasnt trying to kill the bunny for food i fed that cat very well it was for sport..thats what bugged me...i know it happens but i dont wanna see it ..anyways nobody ever called me back from arizona wildlife and the baby was dead by morning..i was bummed...but later on after i started rescueing domestic buns from a local park it made that bunnies death even harder cuz i found out how amazing bunnies are ...and how magical they are and how they can bring out a smile on my face everyday by just eating or cleaning themselves...i dont smile when i see a dog or cat grooming or eating...just bunnies...ok rambling sorry,,just wanted to say Tidefan...ur one of the good ones ..there arent many out there thank you for doin right by these bunnies...you rock in my book..keep us posted on ur little ones and how they are doin....Lisa and all The HipHops

 

[TideFan]

Lisa--thanks for the kind words. I did hear back from the lady (Tamara) last night. She said that all 3 are doing well. She said they all seem to be responding well to the formula.

Petkeeper--The neighbor saw the mother, who ran into my yard with my dog and was killed. (She didn't realize Flash was out at the time.) Per suggestion from the resuce late that night, we made an "X" out of grass over the nest just in case it wasn't the mother that was killed and watched until the following afternoon to see if it was distrubed--it wasn't.

My husband KNOWS I'm a bunny lover. (Maybe because I treated Monty Python better than him!) He said he knew that if it had been any other animal, I could have walked away, but once I told him they were bunnies, he knew it was no use.

 

[petkeeper]

Thank you, for replying, I miss understood, I thought your dog just chased the mom away I didn't realize she got killed. As I said it is great they are in good hands and hopefully they will survive.