What are the reasons rabbits eat their young?

But if she eats babies with each litter, there's no sense in breeding her anymore. There is no known cause or cure. The problem is that rabbits do not have the same motherly instinct as dogs or cats who will protect their young. Some does will simply neglect their young and let them die. read more

Some rabbits will eat their newborn kits. This is usually an indicator that their hutches are too small - an instinctive response to population pressures - but occasionally, a rabbit will just have a malfunction that makes her always eat her young. read more

Hence, the adult mother rabbits kill their young ones so that the child does not need to be fed. The mother rabbit do not kill the young rabbits if she is mother for the first time. If the mother rabbit is tired enough and is unable to tolerate the birth process, then she rarely kills the young. read more

Not all rabbits eat their young but some do and there a lot of reasons as to why they might “cannibalize” their babies. Some rabbits do it to gain much needed nutrients while others may to prevent predators from discovering the nest. Another reason may be that she is suddenly frightened. read more

As far as any rabbit eating a baby rabbit, sometimes it will think that a baby rabbit is a mouse or something and destroy it. Sometimes stress may cause a rabbit to eat its young. Some think that there is something lacking in the diet. read more