help...my rabbits going to have babies in a few days...

[beckz]

this will be my rabbits 3rd litter...the other 2 litters unfortuantly died, reason unknown :cry1:...she fell pregnant again by accident this time...my partner was doing some maintence to her hutch so we put her in the males 2 storey hutch, shutting the top half off to him giving her the bottom half...now i dont know how but he managed to get down to her :?...we couldnt work out how he did this as it was totally shut off, but i suppose if he wanted her, he'll find a way, and he certainly did!!!...

Now that happened a month ago 2morrow, and todayive gone out there and noticed her collecting hay to take to the bedroom compartment and started building a nest also pulling fur out laying that in the nest...what should i do this time to make sure everything goes well for them???...last time i did give extra hay to keep them warm as it was very cold out there...but last time a few got lost and died (without me knowing, as there was so much hay in there it was hard to see)...and within a few days the other 6 died aswell...any advice would be appreciated as im worried they could die again...is there anymore in which i could do??? Thanks.

 

[Bo B Bunny]

Do you have them where they can reach each other through cage wire?

How old was she when she was first bred? and now?

 

[beckz]

ok update...bought some more hay so went outside to give her more and noticed she has given birth already!!!...the other 2 litters she had at night so i was suprised she had these in the afternoon...she had placed them in the nest, unfortuantly 2 had died :frown:...but underneath the hay/fur there was another 5/6 alive (couldnt really look properly as mum was getting bit edgy)...i removed the dead babies, so have to see what happens and if this goes well...fingers crossed

 

[beckz]

no, they cant reach each other, both their hutches are next to each other so they cant even see each other...she was about 9mths old first time and shes now 1 year old...

 

[bunnybunbunb]

Did you stick your hand in the check the to see if they where all warm? I don't know where you are but I know here this morning everything was froze solid, even I got stiff from sitting in the building with my rabbits for only10 minutes.

 

[irishlops]

good luck with the new additions

 

[beckz]

bunnybunbunb wrote:

Did you stick your hand in the check the to see if they where all warm? I don't know where you are but I know here this morning everything was froze solid, even I got stiff from sitting in the building with my rabbits for only10 minutes.

ive just checked them and yes still warm buried under alot of hay...no this morning wasnt freezing here, just hope it stays that way!

 

[beckz]

if putting the babies in like a shoe box to prevent them crawling out and to keep them warm, how would mum still be able to feed them???...i really need advice asap, as 2 died from the previous litter due to them crawling out...ive just checked them and they r still huddled together...im just worried mum wont feed them as i think that was maybe the cause last time, not sure...when they were dead there bellys were wrinkly but then again dont know how long they had been dead as i checked them the night before and they were alive...in the morning found them dead...if i feed them i know i need kitten milk but how much milk do they need and how often???

 

[aurora369]

Mom will be able to find the babies. The box should be low enough for her to be able to hop in, but high enough to keep the babies inside. The other benefit of having a box is that it is easy to remove the whole nest to check over the babies.

Mom will only feed once or twice a day. So check them in the morning and then in the evening to check for full bellies. If they are due for a feeding, their bellies will look somewhat shrunken or flat, but just after feeding they will be nice and round.

Hand feeding should be a very last resort. Mom's milk is best, and the babies suckling will ensure that she produces enough milk.

Is there any way you can post some pictures of the babies?

--Dawn

 

[polly]

yes (what Arora says) sometimes though the doe will pile the shavings and hay up at entrance of nest to keep the babies in if she isnt doing that maybe you could. Usually they only come out of the nest before their eyes are open for 2 reasons 1 not being fed and 2 they come out attached to mums nipple still.

SOunds like she is doign fine by herself thouhg just do as aurora says and check them am and pm she should know what to do

 

[beckz]

thanks guys...ive put the box in now...i never touched babies just lifted the whole nest up and put them in the box lined with a couple of towels for extra warmth and padding...it has a low entrance but high sides so should be ok...the only thing i noticed was as i lifted the nest up it was wet underneath...not where they r laying but right at the bottom of the hay...also theres still bits of blood in there hay from where she gave birth, so do i need to remove the bloodied hay???...if not how long do you leave it now untill you can clean the bedroom compartment out where they are???

 

[polly]

we tend to take any bloody bedding out keeps it cleaner and stops it smelling.

you will need to let us see pics of your adults french lops are lovely

polly

 

[beckz]

polly wrote:

we tend to take any bloody bedding out keeps it cleaner and stops it smelling.

you will need to let us see pics of your adults french lops are lovely

polly

i will try and do this tomorrow when i check on them, but what if the hay that they are nesting in i.e around or under them, what if that has blood on, should i disturb babies and remove the stained hay???...if hand feeding them is the last resort, how do i know when the last resort is?...how long do i give it before intervening?

 

[aurora369]

You can handle the babies. It is very rare for mothers to abandon her babies because a person has touched them.

I would remove the babies from the nest into a make shirt warm place. Then pull out all the bloody and dirtied material. Leave as much of the original material as possible. Once the nest is tidied, then put the babies back and cover them with the fur.

I would also be careful about towels. I have heard stories of babies getting stuck in loose threads and strangling themselves or loosing limbs. If you have some fleece, I would use that instead, no loose threads. Or put a bunch of extra hay/straw under the original nest.

--Dawn

 

[polly]

Aurora is right thats the best way to do it. To be honest between the hay and the fur the babies should be warm enough without the towels anyway.

We usually give mum a treat like a peice of veg give her a pet then handle the babies most mums are inquistive or a bit protetcive over the nest but are very unlikely to harm them

As for when is the last resort if the babies are very shrunken no rounded bellies and its 24 hours or more then i would have a rethink. But she is probably doing just fine by herself. If in doubt get pictures of the babies and post them They are much better staying with mum than you trying to hand rear them

 

[naturestee]

Ditto to everything Aurora said.

I just put more shavings and hay under the nest. Now that they're in a nest box, you can pull the whole box out once or twice aday to check on all the babies. I like to pickeach one up and check it to make sure mom is feeding it, etc. Give mom a treat and pet her a little before taking her nest out.

Hand feeding is a very, very last resort and only if the mom has no milk. There's actually another threadgoing on that,look farther down a bit. If you're sure the mom isn't feeding them-the babies have wrinkly bellies and never look more fed- firstpick up the mom. How does her belly feel?Her mammary glands (breasts) should be obvious. Pick up a baby and put it under her belly. It should quickly latch on to a nipple and start sucking away.You can feed all the babies like this if you need to. Some people put the mom on her back and put the babies on her belly, but my mama bun was more upset about being on her back so I just held her in a normal upright position.

Best of luck with your new babies!

 

[DeniseJP]

Lots of good advice here - my first thought was that the kits needed a nestbox but sounds like you have that covered.

Good luck with the new babies... I live in upstate NY which equals COLD in winter... my Hollands would do just fine for the experienced does.

On the coldest nights, I would bring the nestboxes in around 9PM if they were newborns and return them to the doe for the day at 6AM - the babies did fine as they started to get fur and were plump from good feeding.

Good luck and take pictures!

Denise