OMG! OMG! She had babies!!!!

[birdlover]

Now I AM freaking out! She built her nest behind one of the cardboard boxes I mentioned in my other thread and I just went down to look at it. She hopped out and the newspaper was moving! I put my hand in and there was a baby!!! It's too dark to see in. I'll have to get the flashlight but it needs batteries! I hope she didn't have them yesterday because I locked her in her crate last night. Well, if they were moving, I guess they aren't dead!

Now for my next set of questions: My husband says I shouldn't separate them and to just leave them alone. Do you think it would be okay to let them stay together in the laundry room. I could move her back into the crate with her babies if I have to separate them. Forget the laundry!! LOL How would I go about doing that? I mean, should I get a box like you suggested in my other thread, put a soft towel in and then the nest? I'm trying not to panic here. I have Mr. Shredder with me at the moment until I hear from you. THANK YOU! ray:

 

[SweetSassy]

Put momma with the babies in the crate. Don't let Mr. Shredder in there. Hopefully Flashy will see this soon.

 

[SweetSassy]

How many babies?

 

[birdlover]

I don't know yet. After I felt the one, I jumped up and ran out of the room with Mr. Shredder in tow!

 

[Flashy]

Ok, take some deep breaths.

She may be in the process of having them now so it might be worth giving her some space for an hour or so (but keeping an eye on her) and then going and assessing the situation.

try not to worry about potentially separating them last night because mum's only feed their young once a day and most it takes 24 hours for their milk to come in, so she may not have fed them anyway.

In about an hour i would suggest sorting out the babies into a nest box (whatever you have around that would be appropriate will be fine-it's essentially to keep all the babies together and safe). Line the bottom of the nestbox with something like shavings, then put hay in and make a deep hole in the middle. In the hole put as much of the nest as possible, and put the kits in the middle of that (so maybe take a bit of the nest, then put the babies in, then put the rest of the nest on top). The babies probably firstly should be put back where mum knows she had them, to be honest.

I'm glad you have company Make sure he stays away from her and the area where the babies are.

Would there be anyway to use something like a puppy pen to block off her full access but allow her access to where the nest is at all times?

For now though, just give her some space to sort herself out, just in case she is doing it now.

When you go to the babies in an hour (or earlier if something looks amiss with her) then make sure you stroke her all over because smelling of Mr Shredder wouldn't be very helpful, I don't think.

 

[birdlover]

Oh man, Flashy!! I already moved her back to the crate! I put a soft cloth in the cat carrier and put the nest, with babies, on top of that. I hope I didn't screw things up! She has 4 babies (so far?) She peed in her litter box and it was bloody. Is that normal when giving birth? She does seem rather upset and seems to want out of the crate but I hesitate to move her again. I saw her go in the carrier but she only went in for a minute. She's eating. I put a sheet over 3 sides of the dog crate to kind of give her some privacy and so Mr. Shredder won't bother her. He HAS to be in the laundry room! Is that going to be okay under the circumstances I described? What is a normal number for a litter? O.k. eep breaths: eep breaths: Flashy, PLEASE don't leave me alone yet! Check in frequently please? :Biting nails: eep breaths: eep breaths:

 

[SweetSassy]

sounds like your just gonna have to make sure she's gonna feed them. 4 is fine. She's probably bleeding from giving birth.

 

[SweetSassy]

What you did sounds fine and I'm sure Flashy will be back soon. I would be scared too.

 

[Flashy]

I'm here, sorry, was cleaning the kitchen.

What's done is done, so don't beat yourself up. I would rearrange the nest as to how I explained (i.e. with shavings and hay and the nest in the middle, because they can get caught and lost under cloth).

How big is the crate? For some mum's they need to be right away from their nest (as they would do in the wild) whereas some can be near it. It might be because she feels so unsettled she is agitated because of that, or else she knows she has more to come but doesn't realise her nest has been moved.

Covering the crate was a smart idea

I think the blood when she went to the toilet is indicative that these are VERY fresh babies so I would suggest giving her some peace and sorting the rest out later because she may not be done yet.

 

[SweetSassy]

Keep us updated on how she is. And if there is more babies.



Thanks, April

 

[Sweetie]

Is there anyway that you can separate Mr Shredder from mom and the babies? Like confine him to a small area in the laundry room, just until the babies are weaned. Can he be in your bedroom with you?

You are doing a fantastic job!

 

[birdlover]

Okay, thanks everybody! I'm calmed down for now. Here's what I can tell you: The crate is very large if she wants to move away from the nest but she is laying next to the cat carrier where I put the nest. She's eaten a whole lot and seems a lot calmer now. Mr. Shredder has been thumping a lot which he hasn't done in a week or so. I assume he's agitated by "something strange" going on. But most of the time, he is just laying outside the crate and, sometimes, sticks his head under the sheet. But, at the moment, all is quiet. I have three more questions (for the moment)!

- So the mother doesn't stay in the nest with the babies like a cat would do?

- What should I be feeding her to make sure she's got a good milk supply? I know unlimited timothy hay and fresh water. What else?

- How will I know if she's feeding her babies? If she only does it once a day, I might not see her doing it.

Questions! Questions! I LOVE new experiences but I don't like the lack of knowledge. I was just as bad when my cockatiel hatched eggs! LOL

Whoops, forgot to say to Sweetie - there is no other place I can put Mr. Shredder. What is the problem if they are in the same room but separated?

Are rabbits like rats and will eat their young if over stressed?

 

[Flashy]

I think you need to block the crate off from Mr shredder completely. He needs to be no where near it and her.

No mum won't stay in the nest. she will tend to them every so often (this will vary rabbit to rabbit), normally only feeding once or twice a day. This will last only about 5 minutes and she will stand over the nest. You may never see her feed but you can tell if the babies have been fed by if they look like they swallowed ping pong balls.

She also is not able to move them, so if you see any stray ones then you need to move them back to the nest.

Is she on pellets as well as unlimited hay? the pellets need to gradually be increased to keep up with her milk supply (hopefully a breeder will clarify by how much and how quickly you should increase them). Some people also add oats to the pellet (regular oats, not quick or instant).

It's a myth that they will eat their young if stressed, however, if they do get stressed they may panic and damage themselves and potentially the other bun and also kits.

If he is in the same room but can get no where near the crate, that should be fine (sorry, i wrote my bit at the top before seeing what you said).

 

[Flashy]

This was a bit of an impromptu new experience hopefully it will get better from hereon in.

 

[Sweetie]

I heard that the male will kill the babies. Not sure if this is true or not. You need to make sure that he cannot get into the crate where mom and babies are. You probably already have that covered, just want to make sure.

 

[SweetSassy]

arty0002: Congrats on your new Babies!!



Watch for ping pong bellies then you'll know their happy babies :biggrin2:

Good Luck ....April

 

[birdlover]

So it's okay if I go poking around in the nest? (to remove the cloth I put in and to handle the babies to see if they have full tummies)

Mr. Shredder can NOT get in the crate but he can stick his nose in. I'll see if I can fix that!

 

[SweetSassy]

yes you can handle babies as long as mom doesn't look stressed about it. I would wash hands first.



So you don't smell like another animal.

 

[Flashy]

It's a good idea to compeltely block him away from it you don't want him stressing her out or ending up with a wounded nose. she needs to feel safe with them. A puppy pen can work well, or even NIc grids can make a good barrier.

Yup, it's fine to go poking around. you will need to check the babies daily. If you make sure you stroke her first and maybe give her a treat. If she acts stressed them only do the minimum but if she is happy then you can handle them and such. If she is stressed you can try a dab of vanilla just above her nose which will over power her senses and by the time it's worn off the kits will smell all normal to her again.

 

[SweetSassy]

If your husband knows how to post pictures we'd love to see pic's of the new Momma. If not, that's ok.