Pregnant/Nesting Rabbit

[Rosie42892]

I have had a few rabbits in the past, but have never bred rabbits.Two weeks ago, Someone dropped off two rabbits in a shopping cart where my sister works, and asked me to take them. I already have a male and female (separate) dutch rabbit. The rescuerabbits had obviously bred, and you can feel the fetus's in her belly and her nipples are swollen. The female looks to be a mini rex but I am unsure about the male. Each rabbit is in a separate cage, and the female has a nesting box with hay in her enclosure as well. She has been flipping her food dish, digging, and acting anxious. I have no idea when she was bred. Does this mean she will be giving birth soon? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[aurora369]

I would keep the nest box in her cage until at least 5 weeks after the last time the rabbits where together.

There really is no way of telling when she is going to give birth other than to count the days from a mating. However, since you have no idea when the first mating happened, there is no sure fire way to tell when her due date will be.

If you are able to feel babies then she is most likely more than 10-14 days along. The babies should be grape sized or bigger, anything smaller than that might just be poop, lol.

Some rabbits will go off their feed about 12-24 hours before giving birth. Some will nest frantically and pull fur just before birth while others will build nests for weeks. Each rabbit is really an individual when it comes to how they handle pregnancy and birth.

I would just keep a close eye on her and watch for signs of her pushing or having contractions (tummy muscles tightening). If she is pushing and babies aren't coming withing about 20 minutes, then she could have a stuck kit and need to see a vet to get it out safely.

-Dawn