# How I nested my does in cold weather



## brentr (Jan 29, 2012)

Thought I'd just pass this along if it could be of any help to anyone.  I have permanently attached nest boxes with wire bottoms.  I had two does kindling in chilly weather - low 30's/high 20's at night, breezy, only warming to upper 40's during the day.

Last litter I had in similar conditions was lost.  Like most, I placed a piece of cardboard over the wire in the bottom, then piled in straw for the doe to nest in.  In this case she had burrowed clear down to the cardboard and I found the cold, dead kit on the cardboard with nothing to keep warm (being a solo kit made it that much harder).  I realized that my straw is short stemmed and easy to push aside.

So here is what I have done this time, and it has worked well for me.  I make no claims about this being the perfect way to do it. 

Directly on the wire I put a dishtowel to cover the floor and mitigate updrafts.  Over the towel I put a layer of pine shavings (not dust).  On top of that, I placed the cardboard piece.  My thinking is that even if a kit(s) get right down to the cardboard, they still have some insulation instead of just cold wire and cold air.  On top of the cardboard, I put in  layer of long-stemmed, stiff grass hay still pressed together into a cake.  On top of that, I piled in the loose grass hay and straw, and I mean PILED it in.  The does thought they had died and gone to heaven.

I'm happy to report that both litters were born in cold weather, but their nests are toasty warm.  A little investigation (careful digging) showed that neither doe had dug below the pressed grass.  Both nests were solidly on top of that, woven into the loose grass and straw - plenty of insulation under and all around the nest.  I'm thinking that in the future I might try not using towel and shavings, but simply put in cardboard, a cake of grass hay, and then loose grass/straw.  I think the pressed grass bedding is the key variable.


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## secuono (Jan 29, 2012)

My does dig through cardboard...I'd have to add wire mesh over the buffer just to keep her from it, but then it's a pain to clean. I now just move my does in the chicken coop and let them do their thing their way.


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## brentr (Jan 29, 2012)

secuono said:
			
		

> My does dig through cardboard...I'd have to add wire mesh over the buffer just to keep her from it, but then it's a pain to clean. I now just move my does in the chicken coop and let them do their thing their way.


I can appreciate that...one interesting thing I've noticed in my does is that when they are pregnant, they don't dig all that much when I give them their nest.  A couple times I nested a doe that turned out not to be pregnant...she dug up and wrecked everything.  Same doe, when actually pregnant, didn't disturb it at all other than to make her actual nest.  Go figure!


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## lastfling (Jan 30, 2012)

What I have done is to place a piece of sheetrock between the cage floor and the nestbox.  My nest boxes are wood with a wire bottom.  I still line the bottom of the nest box with several layers of cardboard, but if the do should decide to dig it out, there will still be a piece of sheetrock under the wire providing some insulation.  As the young ones grow and the nestbox is removed the sheetrock becomes both a resting board and chew toy.


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