Hand Feeding Orphan Kits.
Hand Feeding Orphan Kits
Tube Feeding for Orphan Kits (0 to 2.5 weeks)
Tube feeding involves placing a tube in the mouth and directly into the kit’s stomach. You must be trained by an exotic DVM to perform this procedure. We have been trained and have used this method several times. It is very difficult to deliver food at this early age. Their mouths may be too small to accept anything other than a tube. Tube feeding allows you to deliver the correct amount of food within 5 to 10 seconds. However, this method is beyond the scope of this page.
Hand Feeding (2.5 to 3.5 weeks)
You may see the term “bottle feeding” used on social media. We define “hand feeding” as the process in which you must hold the kit in order to deliver food. At this age, the kit will not eat on its own via a bottle or eat solid food such as alfalfa hay.
We use Wombaroo Rabbit Milk Replacer, which is made specifically for rabbit kits. We previously used KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) before Wombaroo was introduced. KMR may cause gas in the kit. You must also clean any excess milk that gets on the kit’s fur—KMR dries into a compound that is difficult to remove. We have not used goat’s milk or other alternatives. You can use KMR, but you must understand that it might cause gas, and you must clean any residue on the fur. We clean any excess milk that occurs with Wombaroo as well.
Wombaroo and KMR are both dry mixtures. You need to mix them with warm water at about a 50/50 ratio. It may take a few tries to get the mixture right. It should not have lumps and should not be too watery.
Feeding Devices
Curved Tip syringe. Use caution as the tip is sharp and made of hard plastic. The tip can fit into the kits mouth.
The delivery device is critical for young kits. We cut an FR3 feeding tube and attach it to a syringe. You can also use a curved syringe. A standard syringe tip might be too large to fit into the kit’s mouth.
Weighing and Feeding Schedule
Weigh the kit daily using a gram scale. Feed the kits approximately 10% of their body weight, two to three times a day. The kit should either gain weight or maintain their weight. Kits that lose weight over several days are a major concern and require immediate attention.
Hand Feeding Process:
- Hold the kit upright in a soft fabric.
- Place the delivery tool into the kit’s mouth.
- It might take a day or two for the orphan to understand what is happening.
- Slowly deliver the food into the kit’s mouth.
- Pause every few seconds to allow the kit to breathe and swallow.
- You do not need to stimulate the kit’s private parts at this age.
- Do not force. You can always try again later.
When the kits are about 3 weeks old, you can begin feeding them via a shallow dish.
Foster Story: Michi
Michi was our foster orphan. He was found in the middle of the street at around 2.5 weeks old. He was about the size of a dollar bill and could fit in the palm of your hand. We weighed him on Day 1, but unfortunately, he lost weight every day for the first 8 days. In response, we increased feeding from twice to three times a day and increased the amount per feeding.
We contacted our exotic rabbit DVM and gave her a timeline and Michi’s weight data. Dr. Stern prescribed a 14-day medication. The prescription worked, and Michi finally began to gain weight. Today, Michi is a healthy, fixed bunny looking for his forever home at SaveABunny.
Michi eating from a dish. The dish can be a "bottle". Note the difference between the "hand feeding" from the previous video.
Once the orphan starts to eat solid food you can move to feeding the kit via a dish or similar.
You need to start off with small flakes of hay first.