Rabbits are often found to be gentle and they easily nurture their young ones without little or no assistance, but at times we found that this gentle livestock tends to eat their young ones after birth. This has been the experiences of farmers and as a matter of fact I struggled to figure out why this was happening, but with experiences and discussions with other farmers, I found out that this habit can actually be curtailed on our farms.

Rabbits who eat their young one does not necessarily need to be culled but figuring out what could cause this seemingly unnatural act can be the first step to overcoming the problem, providing insights into rabbit behavior and helping rabbit owners prevent such incidents. This behavior, while rare, does occur in domestic and wild rabbits under specific circumstances.

• Stillborn or Weak Kits: Weak or deformed kit that may struggle to survive are often eaten by the mother rabbits, in order to keep the hutch clean. The rabbit instinctively cull the weak or sick kits. The rabbits used to this behaviour may tend to eat the healthy ones even after they consume the weak ones. Which obviously is not productive for the farmer. Regularly cleaning the hutch and removal of weak or deformed kits would be the best way to avoid cannibalism, that is eating of their young ones.

• When not property fed: Proper protein content in feed of the rabbit is very germain when it comes to avoidance of cannibalism. 12% to 18%  dry matter (DM) Crude protein requirement for rabbits is adequate though it would vary with life stage and metabolic demands. For example crude protein needed for lactating rabbits is 17% while for kits is 15-16%. The amount of protein a rabbit needs depends on its life stage and metabolic demands: Maintenance: 12% total protein, Growth: 15–16% total protein, Pregnancy: 15% total protein. Rabbits require a well-balanced diet, most especially at pregnancy and lactation. A diet lacking in essential nutrients like protein and calcium can trigger unusual behaviors, including cannibalism. They tend to consume their kits in order to reclaim deficient nutrients in the feed they consume. You should therefore decide to feed the pregnant and nursing rabbits a balanced diet having adequate protein, calcium, and other nutrients provided in their feed, thereafter fresh hay, vegetables, and clean water should be made available to the rabbits.

• Stress and Environmental Factors: Rabbits are fragile animals that must be placed in a ventilated environment and quiet environment for them to be at their best. Rabbits are prey animals with high sensitivity to loud noise, predators and other disturbances that could cause stress, therefore in the pursuit of hiding or protecting their kits against incoming danger and not wanting to leave them vulnerable, they tend to instinctively eat their kits. Heat stress will always reduce their performances and also trigger cannibalism in the rabbits. To avoid this you can just reposition the rabbit hutch away from noise or traffic or walk way and reduce frequent  handling of the kits for the first few weeks after birth, thereby providing a quiet and conducive environment for the rabbits.

• Avoid in-breeding: inbreeding is the mating of two closely related animals. In this case rabbits. Stillbirth and weak kits are often the  results of inbreeding so it's not advisable to practise inbreeding. As we said earlier weak or deformed kits are often eaten by their mothers in a bid to clean up the hutch of those kits that may not survive. Keeping up with this behaviour the farmer may end up losing all the kits to cannibalism.

• Birthing experience: First time mothers or rabbits under six months of age may be nervous at parturition and do not know how to properly nurture their young ones, so they result in cannibalism at any stress or disturbances. I will advise that you should provide an adequate nesting box suitable for the rabbit before giving birth, and ensure a quiet environment, getting rid of all disturbances in the environment around the rabbits. I will also advise that you can wait till they are sexually mature at around 5-6 months of age.

• Overcrowding: Presence of large litters could trigger cannibalism through stress and competition among litters. The mother rabbits tend to see threats among the kits and therefore leading her to reduce the litter size by eating some of the kits. Overcrowding can easily be remedied. We could probably think of how to create a larger space and reduce the crowd. I will advise that a larger nesting box with adequate space that could take the mother rabbits and the kits should be provided.

While the act of a rabbit eating her kits may seem horrifying and even not profitable for the rabbit farmer, it's often a response to environmental stress, nutritional imbalance, or birthing experience as a result: this instinctive behavior. Rabbit owners can take proactive steps to create a conducive environment and balanced ration ensuring adequate prenatal and postnatal care. With this knowledge the mortality rate along this line would eventually reduce and upshoot productivity.

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