Help with baby buns

[Ella]

My doe made a nest yesterday and gave birth last night. But the problem was that she didn’t actually birth them in her nest, so this morning they were all over the place there was only 3 and 1 already died. We warmed them up and put them into the nest.

I’m worried she’s not feeding them or caring for them, they’re quite wrinkly, meaning they're dehydrated and don’t have a balloon tummy. I’m hoping that maybe she’ll feed them tonight but I really don’t want to loose any of these precious babies. She was a rescue who was already pregnant so we want the best for these babies. Any advice is appreciated

 

[Bunnylady]

For most rabbit does, caring for the babies means jumping into the nest at dawn (and maybe dusk), nosing/licking at the babies to let them know she's there, standing still while they crawl under her and nurse, and then leaving after standing there for maybe 10 minutes. That's it. Unless you just happen to get there at that time (or, like me, pull the litter during inclement weather and only take the box out to the doe a couple of times per day), you may never actually see the doe with her babies.

Many first-timers don't have a lot of milk until about day 3, so the babies don't develop the big fat tummies and it can be a bit hard to tell if they are getting fed. As long as the belly isn't slack looking, they probably are; you can often see a pea-sized whitish blob right in the middle of the bunny through the translucent skin of the belly. That would be the stomach with milk in it, so if you can see that, the little guy is getting something.