Answer

I understand why you feel bad about this, but unfortunately such accidents are common. The shallow nest in your lawn is typical of a wild rabbit nest.The mother only returns to the nest twice a day to nurse the babies, usually at night. Raising young baby rabbits, especially an injured one, can be quite difficult. The care for wild ones or tame ones is the same. I'll give you a link in a moment that has very detailed instructions on caring for orphan babies. For now, I'll summarize so you have an idea of what's involved. Goats' milk is the closest substitute for rabbit milk. You can often find it in health food stores. It is usually combined with some other ingredients to make a formula. You would feed the babies from a small syringe. If the babies don't urinate or defecate on their own, you'll need to stimulate them to do so by stroking their anal and genital areas with a warm wet cottonball. This site has detailed instructions on all aspects of raising orphans, including a recipe for the formula. There's also a section on older babies, which at 4 weeks, would apply to yours.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html

You can try to raise these babies, but I feel that the best thing you can do with the rabbits is turn them over to a wildlife rehabilitator. They are trained in handling and treating wild animals, including raising orphans and treating wounds. Here's a link to a directory that will help you find the nearest one:

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact.htm

Once an animal has healed, the rehabilitator releases it back to the wild.

If you have further concerns or questions, just let me know by clicking on REPLY.

Anna