The Most Unexpected New Mom For Orphaned Baby Bunnies
People discovered a mother rabbit’s six small pups in a nest nearby after she drowned in a ravine. They realized they had to assist them.
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The newborn cottontails were so small that their umbilical chord stubs were still connected to their little bellies, indicating that they were probably just a day old. They were also infested with small ticks. It was almost as though all the odds were stacked against them.
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The newborn cottontails were so small that their umbilical chord stubs were still connected to their little bellies, indicating that they were probably just a day old. They were also infested with small ticks. It was almost as though all the odds were stacked against them.
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“Unfortunately, cottontails are exceedingly difficult to properly rehab when they are this young,” said Jasmine Fletcher Glaze, ASPTL’s founder and qualified wildlife rehabilitator.
But then something extraordinary occurred. Glaze’s husband unintentionally discovered a cottontail nest in their backyard. Glaze, on the other hand, had an idea.
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“I knew if they accepted, that was the best chance they had for survival,” Glaze said. “They slipped in in with the others and stayed warm and hidden for the rest of the afternoon.”
She brought two of the small infants to the nest and slipped them in. Unfortunately, the wild mother could not handle any more kids, and the last four rabbits did not survive on their own.
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Glaze returned later that evening to see how they were doing. And then there was the next evening. Then there was the one after that. They were clearly being fed by their new adoptive mother, as they grew in size and strength.
They eventually grew large enough to leave the nest.
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Glaze told The Dodo on Monday, “They have officially fled the nest as if this morning and are independent, healthy adolescents.” “It gives me great pleasure to watch them successfully nurtured by a wild mother.”
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Make a gift or send anything from the rehabilitation center’s wish list to help ASPTL save more animals like this small family.
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