Mother Rabbit Stepping On Babies + 4 Safe Tips

Your pet rabbit having babies can be such an exciting experience. But have you ever wondered why mother rabbit is stepping on babies?

Is this a common behavior from all rabbits and other pets and what exactly does this mean?

Should you be worried?

Continue reading to:

• Know why is mother rabbit stepping on babies?
• Know how to tell if a baby rabbit was stepped on
• And so much more…

Mother Rabbit Stepping On Babies

As a bunny mom/dad when your bunny has babies, you also become the primary caregiver to the new babies.

You may notice that the mother is stepping on babies. Although it is common among first-time moms, rabbit moms do not do it intentionally.

Mother rabbits will step on babies due to anxiety, working with a tiny space, could be trying to fit into new bedding or they are first-time mothers and are trying to adjust to the new environment.

In this article, we get to know why mother rabbit is stepping on her babies and tips on how to prevent that from happening.

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Why Is Mother Rabbit Stepping On Babies?

Rabbits are cute animals, usually very calm and collected. If your rabbit just had babies, it may step on the little ones.

This may scare you but there are various reasons as to why mother rabbit may step on its babies.

Below are the reasons why mother rabbit may step on its babies:

1. First time mother.

First-time rabbit mothers step on their babies, this is mainly because they are not aware of how to handle the little babies that suddenly appeared in their space.

Although it is common for this to happen among first-time rabbit mothers, the mother rabbits will not be doing this intentionally.

2. Tiny Space

A mother rabbit will step on its babies if the space they are both living in is too tiny, or does not accommodate all of them comfortably.

Bunnies require a lot of free space to play and move around. Keeping a mother rabbit and its babies in a tiny space will deny the mother enough free space.

3. Anxiety.

Naturally, rabbits are prey animals, they are always alert and will run off when they sense or suspect a predator is in their vicinity.

So if there are other pets like cats or dogs living in the same environment with mother rabbit and her babies, its first response will be to hide and protect her babies.

This may lead to the mother stepping on the babies.

4. New Beddings

If you introduce new bedding to the mother rabbit, she may reject it. If she rejects it she will move around too much, this way she will end up stepping on her babies.

Also Read: Can Rabbits Have A Stroke? + 6 Prevention Tips

How To Know If A Baby Rabbit Was Stepped On

Unless you spend most of your time around the litter, you may not catch your rabbit stepping on her babies.

But, if you are keen on how the babies are fairing on you may notice bruises or scratches on their tiny bodies.

Some rabbits will stand over their babies and it can look like it is stepping on them but in reality, it does not harm them.

If you notice your rabbit stepping on her babies without harming them then no need to interfere.

If your rabbit steps on its babies and harms them or even kills any of the babies, you will need to interfere and help protect the rest of the babies.

Tip To Prevent Mother Rabbit From Stepping On Babies

If your rabbit is soon going to be a first-time mother, you can do a few of the things below to keep it from stepping on the little babies.

A rabbit may step on its babies when they are tiny but will stop when they are a bit older.

Here are tips to prevent mother rabbit from stepping on babies:

1. Prepare a Nesting Box

If your rabbit is having babies for the first time, prepare a nesting box. Then place the nesting box on one end of the rabbit’s hutch or cage.

Ensure that the nesting box is soft and warm enough for the babes. This will keep the babies in the same environment as the mother but at a safer place.

It will also ensure that the mother rabbit doesn’t walk over them or step on them whenever it needs to move around.

2. Ensure That The Cage or Hutch is Big Enough

Because bunnies require a lot of space to move around freely, it only makes more sense to have or move the rabbit to a bigger cage or hutch when the rabbit has had babies.

This will ensure that besides there being little ones in the rabbit’s space, there is enough space for it to move or walk around freely in the cage without stepping on its babies.

Having a bigger cage or hutch will also accommodate both the mother rabbit and her babies comfortably.

3. Move The Cage or Hutch Away From Other Pets

Having the cage or hutch where mother rabbit is will make her anxious. Because of the nature of rabbits, they will flee when they sense danger.

If there is a cat or dog living in the same environment as the rabbit after it had just babies, the rabbit is likely to see the cat or dog as a predator.

This will make it anxious and it may step on the babies to hide them, to prevent this from happening move the hutch or cage where the mother rabbit won’t see or feel threatened by the other pets.

4. Give Familiar Beddings To The Rabbit

Because the mother rabbit may reject new bedding, don’t give new beddings to it after it has just had babies.

Giving new bedding will make it uncomfortable and it may move around a lot hence stepping on the babies.

If you have to, give familiar bedding, those that the rabbit is aware of and has been using even before she had her babies.

When changing bedding also ensure to change with familiar ones. The goal is not to introduce any new bedding to the mother rabbits’ environment

When Can You Separate Baby Rabbits From Mother

Although it is not advisable to separate or interfere with the mother rabbit and her babies unless she is killing them.

Separating them at eight weeks is generally fine. This is because at this age the babies can be weaned.

Separating them earlier than eight weeks may prevent them from getting the right antibodies and nutrients from the mother.

Remember to only interfere with the mother rabbit and her babies if she has killed any of them.

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Conclusion

Rabbits especially first-time mothers will step on their babies. This is quite normal and the rabbit does not step on the babies intentionally.

Rabbits will tend to step on their babies when they are still very little and will stop as the babies grow older.

If the rabbit does not stop stepping on the babies and harms or even kills them, try to find out what could be causing it and help as much as you can.