# Birthing problems



## Jacob Zierke (Mar 18, 2017)

My Mini Rex doe has been in labor for at least 12 hours now.... We found her last night(day 31) sitting in her nest box and pushing, but after about a half hour she jumped out and went into a corner and continued to push. After 3 hours of pushing she finally had her first kit, but it was dead and appeared to not have a brain... Now this morning(day 32) I found another baby out of the nest box dead and also appeared to not have a brain. The baby from this morning also had it's belly torn open, but the mother wasn't by it or anything. She is still pushing now. Why is she having so much trouble? Thank you for your help!

I forgot to say, this is her first time kindling.


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## promiseacres (Mar 18, 2017)

If they are deformed you need to consider genetics playing a part. When raising any animal birthing problems are always a possibility, and there may be no reason. 
I would definitely be considering a trip to the vet asap if you're wanting to save her. (Coming from one who does 90% of my own vetting)


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## Jacob Zierke (Mar 18, 2017)

I just realized now that she is having them breech, so could their heads just be getting crushed from that? Is there a reason she would have multiple breech babies? She is doing fine so I'm not really worried about her health.


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## promiseacres (Mar 18, 2017)

I belive they can come either way, head or butt...without issues. If they are overly large they may be getting crushed being born. 
 Will tag some other rabbit breeders
@Bunnylady @samssimonsays @Pastor Dave


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## Pastor Dave (Mar 18, 2017)

I have not had this type of issue, and if she seems stable, taking a rabbit to the vet is costly. That is why, like promisacres says, we do so much of our own vetting. The first time kindle issue could be a big part of it as well.
Depending on how this finishes out would determine when to try breeding her again. If she loses whole litter, maybe give her time to rest, and rebreed. If it happens next time, it definitely could be genetics. Three times, she's out. If you're attached to her, and she continues to kindle like this, don't  breed her. If she continues to do this and is part of a meat rabbit program, I would cull her. Too early to say with it being first kindle.
The two others above promiseacres tagged are great for these questions, and a few more in here too. @DutchBunny03
@Hens and Roos @JakeM


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## Jacob Zierke (Mar 18, 2017)

We just had to do a little bit of that... She got her third one stuck halfway, so we soaked her rear end in some warm water and then she got it out almost right away. Is there a chance she could still have a live one or two still coming? She is a pet so wont be doing that, but if this happens for a second time I wont breed her again. Thank you!


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## samssimonsays (Mar 18, 2017)

I had a French lop doe that did this but even with oxytoxin she didn't pass them. After a month she finally passed half decomposed kits. We did not breed her again due to her being too narrow to pass the kits.


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## JakeM (Mar 18, 2017)

Sadly, there is little to no chance that she will have any live ones this time around, leaning mostly towards no chance.

The prolonged dystocia (difficulty giving birth) can be caused by a variety of factors. If the doe is too young or of immature size, if she's older than (generally) a year and never had a litter, fetal giantism (overly large kits and there's only a few), or breech (first kit may have been sideways or had its head positioned wrong.

As for the missing brain/part of head, that can be either a development issue or a genetic issue. If you have a different buck, I would try using him. If it happens again I'd look at the mother and wonder if her hormones may be causing the issue. If it doesn't happen again it's either a fluke or that buck/doe's genetic pairing.

There's one more thing to worry about I'm sad to say. As a last step kind of thing right now, I would give the doe another 48 hours to make sure she has passed everything she can and keep her on limited feed, with unlimited hay and water. Make sure she stays hydrated. Then after a couple days feel her stomach/uterus. If you feel any sort of lump (larger than feces), she may have a mummified fetus which may cause her to be sterile in one or both of her Fallopian tubes. You can try breeding but nothing may happen. Just a warning on this.

I really do hope everything turns out alright, I just want you to be prepared.


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## DutchBunny03 (Mar 18, 2017)

How old is she? If she is especially young(under 5 months, depending on the breed), or especially old, difficulties like this are at a large risk of happening, but this sounds more like a genetic complication. Have there been any deformities in her parents, grandparents, siblings, etc.? She is not fit for breeding again, because even if her next litter is fine, the genes that caused the problem will continue to be carried, and you will have to deal with this same problem in the future. Take her to the vet, but there'e a large chance she won't make if if there is a  mummified fetus. Vetting can be very expensive, so you have to think about if treating her is really worth it.


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## Hens and Roos (Mar 18, 2017)

sorry to hear, I haven't run into this and cant add anything more than the good advice given by others already.  Hope she is able to get through this without complications


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## Jacob Zierke (Mar 18, 2017)

Thank you all so much! I felt around and I'm very sure that she has them all out, so I'm really not worried about have a dead baby in there, but thank you for the warning. I quite sure that her problems were due to only have 3 kits, because they were all very large, about 4 inches long. I'm wondering if their heads just got crushed because of the long time they were stuck? She is a year this May... I have no idea if her family has had problems because I just bought her and the buck last summer. I really don't think I'll be taking her to the vet... I'll breed her again and if she has the same problems again, I will make sure she is never bred again. Thank you all so much for all the help, I'm just glad she is doing well!


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