End of rabbit season?

[VickieB]

lol... I've been extremely happy with Bugs. I put the other two does in with him right after he turned 4 months, and then with these two, 2 weeks later. So far we've had 30 kits (and haven't lost one yet), and another doe to kindle soon. He's working hard to stay out of that pot!

I finally got my camera battery charged up so I'll be posting pics of all the kits soon.

 

[UnlabeledMama]

That's a great litter! Anything from your other doe yet?

 

[VickieB]

Not yet. She hasn't even started pulling hair yet. I'd think she wasn't pregnant by the way she's acting except she is looking awful big, when I pet her she feels lumpy, and she does gather the hay in her mouth and tries putting it in different places like she is wanting to start working on her nest...

By the way, I have a question. It's pretty warm on the back patio. I try keeping it cooler by making sure the sun doesn't hit them (in the morning they do get some sun, so I cover that side of their cage with a sheet and it gives them shade). I keep a fan blowing on the cages (It's not a large fan but it does get a breeze going for them), every hour or so I wet the patio and the jasmine growing on the trellises down, (which really brings the temps down) and give them some frozen water bottles and wet jeans, but it can still be pretty warm out there. The new mom is keeping her buns all covered up in hair though. I'm worried they may be getting too warm. Would y'all take the hair out, or wait until the buns are a few days old?

 

[brentr]

The baby buns will self-regulate; they'll climb up through the hair and lay near the top if warm and will burrow down if they get cooler. I'd leave the hair/nest just as is.

 

[VickieB]

Thanks!

 

[Moonshine]

The baby buns will self-regulate; they'll climb up through the hair and lay near the top if warm and will burrow down if they get cooler. I'd leave the hair/nest just as is.

X2
Whoa those rabbits are spoiled!

 

[VickieB]

lol... They're meat rabbits, they have a "noble purpose." I had determined if I was going to do this, that when my rabbits go to meet their maker they would be able to say they had a good life...

(By the way, it could have been better; they could have had air conditioning...)

 

[nawma]

I read on this forum somewhere that frozen stone tiles are great to help keep bunnies cooler. Rabbits chew holes in frozen water bottles andthey thaw quickly. But stone floor tiles stay cold for a longer time. Im thinking of getting some to try in this record heat.

 

[VickieB]

I saw someone post that you used the outdoor tiles. I went to Lowe's and asked about their "outdoor tiles" and they showed me the paving stones. Those would be way too heavy for my cages. So, I'm assuming they meant indoor tiles. For those of you using tiles, could you please elaborate on that? I've been using wet jeans and that seems to help. I noticed the denim does stay wet longer, and it is cool to the touch, but not cold like a frozen tile would be.

My other doe kindled this morning. She had 9 babies, so we've had a total of 39 babies in the last 3 weeks. Bugsy didn't do bad for his first month to breed!

 

[animalmom]

Give that buck a carrot and a blue ribbon. He's a keeper!