How to feed a rabbit after birth: diet and how to increase milk production

A rabbit who has given birth needs increased nutrition, because she needs not only to feed her babies, but also to recover from pregnancy and childbirth. Knowing what to feed a female rabbit after birth, so that she has enough milk for the rabbits and resources to renew her own body, the farmer is able to quickly increase the available livestock and get he althy, strong animals.

What to feed a rabbit after birth

The rabbit should be properly fed already during the period of bearing offspring. The female does not need to be overfed.

Remember: overweight rabbit babies are born weak, the mother rabbit slowly recovers after childbirth.

The diet of rabbits depends on the season. If in spring and summer it is easy to provide them with fresh young greens and vegetables, then in winter the animals feed mainly on hay and boiled root crops.

The diet of a nursing female should include vitamins, mineral supplements (chalk), table s alt. The amount of food during this period also increases. The daily menu changes slightly depending on the season.

Seasonal food

Any vegetable food is suitable for a rabbit. The amount of food a rabbit needs depends on the number of babies born. In summer, lactating females enjoy eating young root crops, they like herbs, stalks of cereals, tops from the garden. The composition of the feed mixture includes peas, young corn, oats, alfalfa, clover and other meadow grasses.

In winter, animals are fed with hay, silage, and boiled vegetables.The feed mixture in the cold season must necessarily contain vitamins, fish oil, bone meal, cake and legumes are added to it. At any time of the year, compound feed is included in the diet. It is a source of protein necessary for good lactation.

Important: the round bellies of rabbits speak of nutritional adequacy.

With scarcity of nutrition, lack of vitamins, the muzzle of the rabbit will be wet, and the bellies of the babies will be flat. In this case, you should review the diet of animals, consult a veterinarian. It is necessary to provide the mother rabbit with clean water, she should not suffer from thirst.

Concentrates

Feed should be given to a nursing female. At any time of the year it is a source of protein, essential for a balanced diet of rabbits and babies. Compound feed, especially in winter, can be up to 80-90% of the feed mixture. It necessarily includes bran, cake, oats are very nutritious for animals.

Vitamins

As vitamin supplements, fish oil, bone meal are perfect. You can purchase a ready-made vitamin complex for rabbits. Complexes are chosen depending on the age of the rabbits and their breed. Even with proper nutrition, babies need to be given calcium preparations (for example, dolomite flour) once every 7 days.

Diet of a lactating rabbit

The amount of food depends on the age of the female and the number of cubs. In the first 10 days after giving birth, the rabbit consumes 350-370 grams of feed per day. Then consumption increases:

from 10 to 20 days - 430-450 grams;
from 21 to 30 days - 530-550 grams;
from 31 days onwards - up to 700 grams.

The number of feedings each farmer chooses independently.

In winter

At different times of the year, the composition of the feed mixture for animals changes. In winter, the basis of the diet is hay, it is added:

180-200 grams of boiled potatoes;
about 70 grams of grain;
3-5 grams of fish oil;
30-40 grams each of bran and cake.

Rabbits should not be given beets, rotten dirty vegetables and fruits, tree branches, wild herbs. Wormwood, nettle, alfalfa are used as an additional source of vitamins. Complex vitamin supplements are used, for example, Chiktonik, Prodevit. Animals should be fed at the same time.

Summer

If lambing occurred in the summer, the rabbit should be fed with fresh herbs.It will provide the necessary amount of protein and vitamins. Alfalfa, clover, oats, green peas or corn can be added to this mixture. Grass should be slightly dried before feeding, so that the female does not have bloating. To enhance lactation, the female can be given vegetables:

zucchini;
cucumbers;
cabbage leaves;
carrot.

In summer, in addition to fresh grass, rabbit food should contain:

3-5 grams of feed yeast;
5-7 grams of bone meal;
2-3 grams of chalk;
1.5 grams of table s alt;
80 grams of compound feed.

It should be borne in mind that after 20 days of life, rabbits slowly switch from milk to adult food and try food in their mother's feeder.

What to do if the rabbit does not have enough milk

To establish milk production, the female should provide a quiet secluded nest and not disturb her for several hours after giving birth.

For sufficient lactation, you need to monitor the drinking regimen of the animal. The rabbit should have free access to clean water. In order for the female to have more milk, cucumbers, zucchini, and melons should be added to the diet. These vegetables contain a large amount of moisture and improve its production. Milk production can be increased by adding rowan berries or sprouted parsley and dill seeds to the feed. As a last resort, the veterinarian prescribes injections of Oxytocin. Often the refusal of food or water occurs due to hormonal failure after childbirth. You can normalize the level of hormones by placing the rabbit with the male. If it is not possible to normalize lactation, the rabbits are placed with another female.

Remember: if a female is hungry or lacks water, she can eat her newborn babies.

Babies who get enough milk are calm, with uniform fur, plump and well developed. For any farmer, getting offspring from their own animals is a long-awaited and exciting event. Indeed, in addition to adding livestock, a person receives new practical knowledge and experience necessary in the presence of a subsidiary farm.