# Blood a day before delivery of litter???



## PattySh (Apr 20, 2011)

What would have caused this. I had a NZ doe due on the 16th.  She had built a nest. On the 17th I noticed two areas under her cage with considerable amount of bright red blood.  She was agitated and lunged after me when I watered her. I assumed maybe she ate her babies. This doe had delivered a healthy litter in Dec and raised them fine, let me handle them from birth. I noticed the morning of the 19th fur in the nest and movement!  She will not let me look in the box, but I am seeing movement so there are kits in the nest.  3 days late and blood before birth, what could have happened? (I only bred this doe once and she was due on the 16th)


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## chicksandrabbitsohmy (Apr 21, 2011)

Wow..I have no idea...Maybe just getting ready kinda blood? There might have been a small problem with the birth..I'm gonna watch this thread!


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## DianeS (Apr 21, 2011)

With rabbits, bright red "blood" is often not blood at all, but a color they secrete in their urine that is the result of excess protein in their food that their body did not need. 

Real blood will coagulate and turn more brown within about 10 minutes of being outside the body. This protein color will stay bright red and liquid for much, much longer than that. Hours, sometimes. 

Glad the babies appear to be doing well! Hopefully them arriving late was just a coincidence.


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## PattySh (Apr 21, 2011)

Diane, I have seen the red urine. This was definately blood, drops of it all over. Even put some on my finger to make sure. Quite a bit so I really didn't expect a live litter. Still she won't let me take a look, I could if I grabbed her and pulled her out of the cage, decided to give her a few more  days to calm down as I can see them moving in the fur. The day I noticed the blood I did grab her and check her girl parts, there was blood in that area.


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