My new Zealand white kindled her second litter last night it was quite windy and cold but she had a beautiful nest with a ton of fur she had pulled the last few days then had pulled a ton more the cover them with. When I put my hand on top of the nest there was no movement so I took them out they were cold I brought them in and tried to warm them with no luck they were already dead when I found them which I suspected but of course I tried anyway. At the bottom of the nest was a placenta she must of missed which was frozen solid so I assume this acted as an ice cube that chilled the whole litter, my question is (being the first time I've lost a litter) what should I expect from the doe at this point..I'm not sure if she knew they were dead when I took them, when I checked her this afternoon she had neatly placed all the fur I had moved to get the kits back into the nest. I guess I'm just worried about her grieving. Also when would it be safe to re breed her?
First dead litter..advice?
- Thread starter zachbelle
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- #2
Hens and Roos
Herd Master
Sorry to hear 
it's hard to say what might have lead to the loss- could have been a combination of what you mentioned. If she has a nest box- I would remove it so she knows that the babies are gone. She may grieve- we have had does who lost a litter and you could tell that they knew.
I would give her a week or so and see how it goes before rebreeding her- gives her some time to heal.
Good luck and keep us posted!
it's hard to say what might have lead to the loss- could have been a combination of what you mentioned. If she has a nest box- I would remove it so she knows that the babies are gone. She may grieve- we have had does who lost a litter and you could tell that they knew.I would give her a week or so and see how it goes before rebreeding her- gives her some time to heal.
Good luck and keep us posted!
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Thank you for the info. It will be atleast two weeks til we re breed because we are moving and I don't want to breed before moving but I didn't know if that would be too soon. I'm in no hurry will do what's best for her.
animalmom
Herd Master
I am sorry to hear of your loss. You mentioned that this was her second litter. Was she successful with the first litter? How many were in the first litter and how many were in her second litter? Reason I ask is to see if this was just a combination of bad events (cold, windy) or if there might be something else going on.
If you think the doe is healthy, was successful the first time, then certainly rebreed once you are settled in your new place. Sometimes bad things happen. Good luck with your doe and keep us posted. Looking forward to a lovely success story the next time!
Oh, do take the nest box out.
If you think the doe is healthy, was successful the first time, then certainly rebreed once you are settled in your new place. Sometimes bad things happen. Good luck with your doe and keep us posted. Looking forward to a lovely success story the next time!
Oh, do take the nest box out.
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Yes sorry her first litter was successful she had 7 and was a great mom we didn't loose one this back in October I didn't breed all winter cause it has been a very hard cold winter here and I was figuring by mid March weather would be better which some days it has just happens the night she kindled we had very very strong winds and cold
animalmom
Herd Master
Good to hear! Sounds like it was just an unfortunate fluke for your girl.
Good luck with your move. I hate moving, packing, unpacking, figuring out where to put things in the new place. Sigh.
Good luck with your move. I hate moving, packing, unpacking, figuring out where to put things in the new place. Sigh.
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animalmom
Herd Master
OHHHHH a huge barn! Something to drool for!
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