When you see a wild rabbit in the yard, you may want to feed it. Before bringing carrots and lettuce into the yard to feed your rabbit, it's important to know what kind of food you can feed your wild rabbit, and whether or not you can feed it (especially if you see a baby rabbit). While feeding wild animals is usually discouraged, try to find out what types of food and how to feed wild rabbits to make sure that you are feeding them instead of putting their safety at risk.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Feeding Adult Wild Rabbits
Step 1. Determine an area in your yard to put food
If the presence of stray rabbits in the yard is not a problem, you can provide a special area in the yard where the rabbits can come to eat. Since wild rabbits tend to like wood or bushy areas in certain corners, try making a pile of dry twigs or hay in the corner of the yard for the wild rabbit.
- In summer/hot weather, rabbits like to eat grass. It's a good idea not to cut the grass in a certain corner of the yard to keep the grass growing. In addition, the presence of grass can provide a shady feeding area for rabbits.
- If your wild rabbit is comfortable in your yard, don't be surprised if it eats all the grass there every day.
- In winter/cold weather, wild rabbits eat more branches and twigs. You can provide a pile of branches or sticks in one corner of the yard for the rabbit to eat.
- Be aware that placing food in the corners of your yard can attract other wild animals to your yard.
Step 2. Provide grass and dry green grass for the rabbit
Grass and dry green grass are the main food for rabbits, both wild rabbits and domesticated rabbits. Perhaps the wild rabbit roaming the lawn could find plenty of fresh grass to munch on, but he didn't get much dry green grass to eat. Some types of dry green grass that are suitable for rabbits are oat grass and timothy grass). Also, avoid giving alfalfa to adult rabbits because alfalfa has too high a protein, calcium, and sugar content.
- Visit a pet store or pet food store in your city for some dry green grass.
- Do not spray pesticides on areas of the yard that you use to feed wild rabbits. Pesticides can make rabbits sick.
Step 3. Place the pellets in the yard so that the wild rabbits can eat them
Pellets are a good source of nutrition for rabbits. In addition, pellets containing grains are considered more ideal for wild rabbits. However, keep in mind that pellets are usually very rich in nutrients so don't give pellets in large quantities.
Look for rabbit pellets at your nearest pet supply store. If you can estimate the size of the rabbits available, you can ask the store clerk for the correct number of pellets to give the rabbits
Step 4. Give the rabbit fresh vegetables
Provide at least three types of green vegetables for every meal, including leafy greens that are rich in vitamin A. For wild rabbits, you can give:
- Collard leaves (rich in vitamin A)
- Beetroot (the tip of the leaf, rich in vitamin A)
- Lettuce: Romaine lettuce, red or green lettuce (don't give iceberg lettuce or bright leaf lettuce)
- Spinach
- Parsley
- Basil (basil)
- Mint leaves
- Pakcoi
- dandelion leaves
- mustard leaf
- Peas (petals/skin only)
- Brussels sprouts (Brussels sprouts)
- Spinach beet (Swiss chard)
- Broccoli (leaves and stems)
- Coriander
- Fennel Sowa (dill)
- Carrots (only the green part)
- Celery leaves
- Watercress
- Carrot leaves that have been thoroughly washed can also be a good choice of vegetables.
- Clean all vegetables thoroughly to remove pesticides.
- While carrots are a very popular vegetable choice for rabbits, they are actually high in carbohydrates and should only be given in small amounts (only half a stick every two days). Remember to give carrots in smaller portions than other vegetables.
- Don't give your rabbit any vegetables that can trigger gas production or bloating, such as broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. Since rabbits are unable to expel gas from their stomachs, the buildup of gas in their digestive systems can cause serious, even more fatal, health problems.
- Since wild rabbits are not used to eating vegetables, compared to domesticated rabbits, give vegetables slowly and gradually. Try to give one type of vegetable for each feeding session. Start by giving him small amounts of vegetables, and watch for bowel problems, such as diarrhea or loose stools. [10]
- Rabbits also have their own likes and dislikes regarding the type and taste of food. Therefore, if your existing wild rabbit isn't attracted to a particular type of vegetable, remember and replace it with a vegetable he may prefer.
- Wild rabbits can develop diarrhea if given new types of vegetables too soon.
- Wild rabbits also enjoy eating clover and watercress leaves.
Step 5. Provide fruit in small quantities
Clay rabbits love to eat small berries, and will eat other plant parts to balance the high sugar content of the fruits. If you want to give fruit to wild rabbits, try giving some berries, such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries.
- For raspberries and blackberries, provide fruit, including stems and leaves.
- Bananas and dried fruits are very high in sugar and should only be given occasionally (even less than other fruits). For a rabbit, three to seven centimeters of banana slices and two to three pieces of dried fruit will suffice.
- Other types of fruit you can give your rabbits include papaya, honeydew melon, and plum (seedless). However, it's a good idea to stick with berries, as rabbits may be more used to eating them in their natural habitat.
Method 2 of 2: Feeding Wild Baby Rabbits Abandoned by Their Mother
Step 1. Find out if the baby wild rabbit found was really abandoned by its mother
If you find a baby rabbit in the nest and the mother is nowhere to be seen, or if you see a baby rabbit jumping around on its own, you may feel like the mother has left it. However, often the baby rabbit is not completely abandoned by the mother. Usually, the mother just leaves the nest and will come back later. Therefore, it's a good idea to make sure that the baby rabbit you find was really abandoned by its mother before trying to feed and care for it.
- The mother wild rabbit cares for her young for a fairly short period of time in the evening and morning (towards dawn), then leaves the nest during the day. Therefore, it's not surprising that you don't see the mother bunny caring for her babies during the day.
- If the baby rabbit's tummy looks fat or full, you can be sure that its mother is taking good care of it. If you look closely at her body, you can see "milk lines" on her skin. This proves that his mother is still taking care of him.
- If you want to make sure that the mother is really there, place string or thread in a checkerboard pattern over the nest hole. Attach the rope or twine in the afternoon and check the condition of the rope the next morning. If the string/yarn pattern appears to have changed or is damaged, the mother wild rabbit is back in the nest.
- A stray baby rabbit that looks cold, weak, dehydrated (the skin feels loose and tugs when you pinch it), or is injured may have been abandoned by its mother. Since baby wild rabbits are very difficult to rehabilitate and care for, it helps you contact a wild animal rehabilitation center as soon as possible.
Step 2. Find out what kind of food is suitable for giving to baby rabbits
If you are unable to contact a stray rehab center immediately, you will need to provide at least first care (food and comfort) for the baby rabbit. For baby wild rabbits, goat's milk is usually recommended. Cat and puppy milk substitutes can also be a good choice.
- Milk replacement products are usually available at pet supply stores.
- You can find regular goat's milk in supermarkets. If it's not available, try asking the seller about a store or other place that sells it.
- Cow's milk and infant formula (pedialit) are not recommended for baby rabbits.
- If your baby rabbit looks cold before you feed it, warm it up by placing it in a shoebox lined with a soft, clean cloth. Turn on the heating pad on low heat and place it on the table. Place half of the shoebox on the pillow. This way, the baby rabbit can move away from the hot area if it feels hot.
Step 3. Feed the baby wild rabbit
Knowing what kind of food to feed your baby rabbit is only half the effort you have to show; Knowledge related to how to feed is an important aspect that can ensure the safety of his life. Because baby rabbits are very small, you can feed them through a syringe (one to three millimeters in diameter) that you can buy from a pharmacy. In addition, an eye dropper can also be the right choice of media for feeding baby rabbits.
- To remove harmful bacteria from milk or other formula products, heat the milk in the microwave or boil it on the stove. Cold milk or formula products can cause serious diarrhea in baby rabbits.
- Make sure the feeding area is kept quiet so the baby rabbit doesn't feel pressured.
- One by one, gently lift each baby rabbit you see and wrap it in a soft cloth. Tilt his head so that it is higher than his back, then place the injection bottle next to or under his mouth. These two steps will prevent the baby rabbit from inhaling the fluid into its lungs.
- Do not overfeeding. Stop feeding if the baby rabbit's stomach starts to look "rounded".
- Visit the website https://www.orphanedwildlifecare.com/rabbitandhare.htm to find out the amount and frequency of feeding baby rabbits by age.
- Make sure you wash your hands before feeding the baby rabbits.
Step 4. Encourage the baby rabbit to urinate and defecate
After the baby rabbit has finished eating, it must urinate or defecate to keep its digestive system and urinary tract healthy. To encourage urination, wipe the anal area with a cotton swab that has been moistened with warm water until the baby rabbit urinates and defecates.
Tips
- Rabbits are herbivores and like to eat a variety of plants.
- Wild rabbits love to "destroy" parks and trees. Therefore, try installing a 60 cm high chicken wire fence around the garden/garden. The fence can be held up by posts, with a distance of about 2 to 2.5 meters between each post. In addition, to protect the trees in the yard, you can use a product with a bandage or a plastic tree protector.
- Keep in mind that feeding wild rabbits in the yard can make them too dependent on what you feed them.
Warning
- Inadequate knowledge of how to rehabilitate and care for baby rabbits abandoned by their mothers can actually jeopardize their safety instead of saving them. It's a good idea to take him to the nearest wildlife rehabilitation center as soon as possible.
- Pesticides poison rabbits.
- Some vegetables (eg broccoli) can cause gas production and bloating which is harmful to rabbits.
- In some countries (eg the United States), you may not keep or care for wild animals, unless you have obtained permission from the Department of Environmental Protection. In Indonesia itself, you can usually keep wild animals (eg cats, rabbits or dogs), as long as they are not protected animals.
