Book Focus: “The Rabbit Handbook” by David Taylor has a great chapter on breeding rabbits, including caring for a pregnant rabbit, mating rabbits and caring for the babies (called “kits”.) We certainly recommend it as a more thorough resource if the following article doesn’t answer all of your questions.

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Is your rabbit pregnant? Sometimes it can be hard to tell if a female rabbit is pregnant or not. Even veterinarians may have a hard time discerning if a rabbit is pregnant. One thing you may notice is that the female will not like any advances from the male, therefore you know she is pregnant. You may also be able to feel the kits (young rabbits) in her stomach, which will feel like little marbles. Once you determine that your rabbit is pregnant, there are a few tips you should know about caring for the mother and her litter once they are born.

Firstly, we will look at how to care for the mother during pregnancy. The gestation period for rabbits is only thirty one days. When her time has nearly come (after twenty eight days) your rabbit will prepare a nest of hay and fur so she can give birth. She may leave this till only one day before having her litter.

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Poisonous plants and flowers are everywhere and they are often difficult to recognize. This can be bad for our kids who are the usual victims of plant poisoning.

To help readers in this matter, the third part of my series contains a small list of poisonous plants and flowers that you should be wary of. If you have any of these plants at home or in your garden, fence them off or get rid of them fast. Teach children not to eat plants or flowers. These simple measures could save your child’s life.

The name Parietaria judaica may not sound familiar to you but it’s time you know what it does. This plant causes asthma and skin allergies. The plant has pink or red hairy stems, green leaves and small white or pink flowers.

This weed is often found in the coastal areas of Australia, the United Kingdom and North America. It’s common on roadsides and in cracks of buildings. Because of its bad effects, the plant is called sticky weed or asthma weed.

Another troublesome weed is Rhus (Toxicodendron succedaneum) which is related to poison ivy. This plant can cause severe allergic reactions regardless of which part you touch. Remove it at the first sign of growth but cover your hands and body to avoid trouble.

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