I have a intact female Netherland Dwarf that is about 1 1/2. She goes outside everyday on a very long leash (on an acreage/not fenced) and I think she may have gotten pregnant by a wild rabbit. I see 2 rabbits outside every morning but I have never seen them around while she is outside, but of course I am not constantly watching her so they could have been. While bringing her inside yesterday I noticed that her teats felt very pronounced, and after looking at them each one has quite a bit of milk. Her stomach is also quite large for her small frame . She has also started making this wierd squeaking sound when I come near her cage, and then she procedes to try and attack me! I don't see any signs of nesting nor have I seen her pulling out her fur besides the odd chew on her dewlap. She does have bald spots all over her stomach and around her teats, so she must be pulling some out I just haven't seen it.

I have a few questions as I know absolutely nothing about rabbit pregnancy/kits other than their gestation is around 28-33 days.

If she is pregnant how far along does she sound?
How would I know if it is false or real? I have tried palpating but I don't know what I am feeling inside.

I am just so confused as I don't know how I have missed this the previous days/possibly weeks .
Thanks for any help you can give me.

Is there any reason she is not spayed?

It seems unlikely she was mated by a wild rabbit, surely you can see her most of the time when she is on her leash?

__________________

My first concern is that you are keeping a rabbit outside unsupervised and on a leash she could hurt herself and is open to predators.

She should be spayed for health reasons anyway, she sounds hutch territorial but you need to establish whether she is in kit or not first.

__________________
There are 33,000 bunnies young, middle aged, old, large and small all looking for a second chance and loving home, can you help? www.rabbitrehome.org.uk



If tears could build a stairway, And memories a lane,
I'd walk right up to Heaven, And bring you home again.

DO NOT PALPATE HER, if you do not know what you are doing you can cause some serious damage.
why do you leave her tied up outside? that is very dangerous, if she spooked she could break her back, she could also easily chew through the leash or harness, they should NEVER be used unsupervised

i would advise getting her spayed soon, 80% of all unspayed does will have developed uterine cancer by the time they are just 5 years old

unfortunatly there is no sure way to know if she is pregnant or not, until babies appear, rabbits are very good at hiding their pregnancies, unless you want to go into ultra sounds or xrays

in the future i would suggest you invest in a nice big secure rabbit run

__________________

Hmm summit doesn't sound right here

-sniff sniff-



In the event I am wrong I can only echo what has already been said and re-emphasise the need to get her spayed. She most likely is having a phantom but obviously no one can be certain until she either gives birth or doesn't.

__________________

sorry, i think thats me you can smell, ill go for a shower shall i

__________________

She is outside on a leash as I don't think it is fair to keep them in cages all day and it lets her get outside and eat grass etc. Her leash is a 20' thin chain so there is no way she can chew through it. Yes, I can see her while she is on the leash (she's only about 10 feet from the house) but I am not constantly watching her, how can she hurt herself on a leash???. As for predators, my German Shepherd Dogs keep everything away.

I don't see the need to spay a rabbit... none of my previous rabbits have gotten cancer or been pregnant.

So if she is pregnant how would I be able to tell how far along she is? She has milk in each of her teats so does that mean she is near the end?

I've never heard any thing so ridiculous, if it's true

Keeping a rabbit tethered up outside. In my years in rescue I've heard some "corkers" and seen some neglected and abused rabbits, but never heard of this

Get to the vet on Monday if you are genuinely concerned about her and while you are there, ask vet to EXPLAIN to you why it is important to spay rabbits ... Then TAKE their advice, as it doesn't sound as though you want to listen to anyone here ... Though if I am honest, I think this is not a genuine query

__________________
Fairy smiling, smokes cheroot ...
Simply doesn't give a hoot.

80% of unspayed females will get either uterine or mammary cancer. Just because you havn't noticed it in the past doesn't mean that they didn't have it. It is also cruel to keep rabbits without same species company. If you get her spayed you can bond her with a castrated buck for company.

Lol it does sound ridiculous but it is true! I have her on her little chain that I got at home depot and she is tied to an apple tree.

I asked about pregnancy not peoples advice on spaying/tying them up. So I am asking for help/opinions on those that have had pregnant rabbits before or who know about it as I have no clue.

I have better things to do than pretend to have a pregnant rabbit. That would be the biggest waste of time.
I can take some pictures of her on her chain with my GSD's right beside her and of her belly if there are any doubts!

I am not concerned about it I am just wondering if she is pregnant etc. It seems quite farfetched that she would get pregnant from a wild rabbit, but she has never had a false pregnancy before nor has she had any of these symptoms.