Help! I just rescued a baby jackrabbit in my back yard

[Horse with no Name]

No other rabbits to be found. He fits in the palm of my hand.
Does anyone know if wild rabbits can be raised like domesticated rabbits?
Does he still need milk at this size?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[slackmaster]

1. I Yahooed "care of wild baby rabbits"

:D

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/orphan.html

On edit: I think a pet jackrabbit would be very cool.

[dogtag]

4. Be sure to scroll down to this part in the link:

WARNING: Jackrabbits really NEED a skilled wildlife rehabber as they can run from you, throw themselves into walls to get away; many have died or severely injured themselves in captivity as they are so very wild. Please DO NOT raise them if you are not a skilled wildlife rehabber. This is vital. Noises and sounds easily frighten the jackrabbit and they are not able to be handled after 9 weeks.

[Horse with no Name]

12. We had a baby jackrabbit when I was growing up

He remained very gentle with handling, although the "wild" never really left him.
When he was large enough, we turned him loose back into the wild--which is what I will do.

[slackmaster]

19. Yes, I did see that - If mama bunny doesn't claim it get professional help

Too bad wild animals are not the same as domestic ones.

I'd like to have a pet clouded leopard too, but obviously it wouldn't be a good idea.

I had a pet scorpion once...

[shelter]

2. Odds are the mother is right near it. Put the baby back where you found

it and she will return and nurse it. Never handle baby wildlife. They may appear to be abandoned when in fact they seldom are.

[ogradda]

5. Really? I thought mothers stayed near little babies.

Is that just baby bunnies or all wild babies?

[shelter]

10. Wild rabbit mothers will leave babies unattened to lure predators away

which maybe this mother was attempting to do and the person never saw her. Otherwise these baby rabbits will just move around on their own but the mother will always find them and feed them.

NEVER EVER think a baby wild animal has been abandoned and take it in. ONly take it to a wildlife person if you have evidence that the mother has been killed by a car or something.

[radwriter0555]

13. Yes, please put the little critter back where you found it. Mom might have

thought YOU were the predator...

Little dude will be just fine.

[Arugula Latte]

25. I agree.

I've heard that, too. Sometimes baby bunnies are left by mom, who is likely not far off.

[onehandle]

3. Check these links:

http://www.rabbit.org/care/orphan.html
http://www.2ndchance.info/bunnies.htm
http://www.mybunny.org/info/newborn.htm
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=495&S=1&SourceID=43

[shelter]

6. You may even be breaking the law by having that baby jackrabbit in your

possession. What state are you in? Some states have stringent laws against keeping wildlife as pets. You should put it back and let its mother find it; she will.

[Horse with no Name]

8. Afraid my dogs will find it first.

:(
I'm in Texas.
I don't think anything is illegal.

[AValdoux]

7. Take it to a zoo?

I found a baby squirrel once. I was so afraid I wouldn't know how to take care of it properly, so I took it to our local zoo. They said they get baby animals all the time from people who find them. Sometimes the babies are sent to rehab facilities who have more detailed release programs. In the squirrel's case he would be released on the zoo grounds when he was mature enough. I had him long enough to name him Bucky though.

AValdoux

[ogradda]

16. I found a baby owl once that was hurt.

O! I wanted to keep him so bad he was so cute! But my Dad made me give him to a zoo. They were very happy to get him and took better care of him than I could I'm sure. Of course I was only 11 at the time. :)

[qanda]

9. Check your phone book for wildlife rescue places

They'll know what to do. We found a baby squirrel last year and found a place that was willing to take it, unfortunately it died before we could get it there.

On Edit: The way I found our place was to call our county animal rescue and they gave me the number to the wildlife rescue place.

[Lorien]

22. I agree

local zoos also keep that info on hand, too.

[atommom]

11. I think it's a lot like raising a domestic rabbit. Try this site:

http://www.debmark.com/rabbits/faq/wild.htm

[Horse with no Name]

14. I've raised domestic rabbits

and currently have one as a pet so I know how to handle rabbits.
Was just curious if the same would apply to a wild one as a domestic one.

[havocmom]

15. Call your local shelters and see if there are any licensed rehabilitators

in your area who wold call you and answer your questions.

We pulled a very tiny bunny out of the pool one night. Poor thing was exhusted and chilled nearly to death. I put him in my shirt to warm him and Havocpup hit the phonebook.

A very helpful licensed rehabilator told s what to do and that by morning he wold either be dead from the exposure/exhustion or ready to be released, hopefully near a water source other than the pool and where there were other rabbits. She assred s that though he was small, he was weaned and able to deal if he was released in a suitable area.

We did what she said: containment in a WARM, dark, qiet place. Greens to eay NO LETTUCE! I grow herbs so we put basil and parsley sprigs along with some apple pieces, all approved by the helpfl woman on the phone.

We put him in a cat kennel box, on top of a heating pad and towel. Next morning, he was ready to rmble! Took him to a huge prickly pear where other bunnies found safety. He went right to it and we saw him as he was growing. he did fine.

Wouldn't recommend a pet jack rabbit. Rabbits can be a bit tougher than you think and jacks are really tough.

Oh, corn syrup or the sweet syrup from canned peaches or pears is a good first aid remedy for shock for rabbits. Being a prey species, nature gave them the 'gift' of going into shock easily. Guess that is a better way to be eaten alive. Anyway, several zoo keepers and rehabilitators all told me about the syrup, rubbed on their mouths, gums for shock. Helps bring them back around. Have used it after minor srger pulling 'toy' arrows the local brats shot though the hide of a couple of cottontail neighbors of mine. The bunnies were most grateful and visit me often!

Call a wild life specialist about your project. Better in the wild than the house. Good lck. Let us know.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

17. We usually get a crop of wild rabbits to nibble our grass every spring.

When they first appear they are tiny and often apparantly alone. But, the adults usually show up. We name them all Bugsy. So far, this year, only one has been around. But, we have heard a lot more hooting of owls recently and the coyotes are pretty active. Alas, the developers have already driven off the deer.

[Horse with no Name]

18. After reading the article

I am going to take a put him back behind the fence so the dogs can't get it him--it's only about 10 feet from where I found him but it's safer on that side of the fence. It is not far from dark so the mama will probably be able to find him.
Wish the critter luck!

[Malva Zebrina]

20. this happened to me once

we had a snowshoe rabbit(huge feet) that hid under a huge forsythia during the winter, but we saw her every evening as she hopped around feeding and in the middle of a severe winter, we watched as she even ate bark from a flowering quince. We watched as she gradually turned from white to spotted to brown. Cute. Surely she knew our voices and deemed us safe. In the spring as my husband was mowing the lawn, a little baby rabbit apparently did not like the noise or the vibration and, spooked, hopped out from under the forsythia. My husband picked it up and it also fit in the palm of his hand. It was soooo cute and soft. He just set it back under the brush of the forsythia and let nature take it's course. We figured Mom must have been around somewhere.

[jeanarrett]

21. I did this once too and killed it by accident. Overfeeding.

The vet told me that if they have hair, put them back. They can survive just fine on their own. He looks small and vulnerable, but he's not.

[GreenPartyVoter]

23. Be carful putting it back. It may get abandoned. Got a zoo in your area?

[Horse with no Name]

24. Nope--this is a veryyyy rural area

We don't even have animal control.:shrug: