New mini rex litter..advice needed

[parkersmom120106]

6 isn't a big litter and one doe should be able to feed them with no problem so I wouldn't worry about that if you need to add the 3 to the other litter. My smallest litter has been 5, largest was 11.

I've read that some will put vanilla on the doe or kit and others say it's not necessary. It depends on the doe I guess but it wouldn't hurt to rub the foster moms hair on them.

I may have jumped the gun with putting them together, but I really don't think that Ruby is taking care of these babies. She doesn't seem to want anything to do with them. Jana is actually in the box with the babies and paying attention to them. I figure they have a better chance with Jana. I probably should have used the vanilla, but so far so good. Jana doesn't even seem to notice that there are more babies in there. Plus, since she lost 1 there were only 2 babies left in her litter..I'm thinking that with Ruby's 3 they will stay warmer. So there's a total of 5 in there.

 

[terri9630]

Does only feed once or so a day so even if they seem to be ignoring the kits they could still be caring for them. I'd give her another chance if it was her first litter. In the wild the doe only goes back to feed and stays away all day/night so she doesn't attract predators to the kits.

 

[tortoise]

It's probably too late to foster them out, unless by some miracle they got colostrum within 12 hours of birth. If they didn't get colostrum before 12 hours after birth, you can expect them to fade and die in 'bout 4 days.

Of course you would/should try, but don't get your hopes up too high.

I think a lot of new rabbit breeders screw up by messing around with newborn kits. Leave them alone. Let nature sort them out. You will end up with a healthier herd in the long run.

but still possibly better than 6 babies on one mother

Nah, 6 is a small litter. A doe that produces fewer than 6 in a litter (with the exception of the first litter and litters produced during winter) should be culled.

 

[DianeS]

It's probably too late to foster them out, unless by some miracle they got colostrum within 12 hours of birth. If they didn't get colostrum before 12 hours after birth, you can expect them to fade and die in 'bout 4 days.

What? None of my abandoned kits got colostrum until they were fostered out almost 48 hours after birth, and they're still going strong at 10 days old.

but still possibly better than 6 babies on one mother

Nah, 6 is a small litter. A doe that produces fewer than 6 in a litter (with the exception of the first litter and litters produced during winter) should be culled.

Do MINI rabbits still have 6 or more in a typical litter? The woman fostering my angoras raises mini lops and mini rex, and only ever has 2-4 per litter. I was under the impression that was typical for the mini breeds - is that not true?

 

[therealsilkiechick]

no that is not true. my mini rex have anywhere from 4-9 per litters. my hollands 6-9 per litters. none of my does small breed or larger have ever had under 4 per litter to me 2-4 is not the normal.

 

[tortoise]

It's probably too late to foster them out, unless by some miracle they got colostrum within 12 hours of birth. If they didn't get colostrum before 12 hours after birth, you can expect them to fade and die in 'bout 4 days.

What? None of my abandoned kits got colostrum until they were fostered out almost 48 hours after birth, and they're still going strong at 10 days old.

Go ask your vet. I am spoiled enough to have free access to vet care 24/7. So I can't explain the science of it.

I tried to save an abandoned litter. We took my biggest 2 rabbits down to the vet clinic, draw blood and spin out the serum. Give the serum orally. But we didn't get it into them until 10 hours after birth when the gut was already "closing." I continued giving the serum after the 12th hour just in case it might get absorbed, and then changed to a milk replacer. I kept them in an incubator. I did not sterilize the syringe or milk replacer. In hindsight IF I cared to try again, I would do that too. They faded off at 4 days, which would be expected for a baby that doesn't get colostrum.

Clearly it didn't work.

But that momma sure tasted good in the crockpot!

I really do believe that bad mommas shouldn't be bred.

 

[therealsilkiechick]

here is a link for fostering orphaned bunnies with lots of good info- http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html

they can survive without colostrum but chances r slim they need that to protect them from bacteria and stuff. without it they can get alot of things that can be lethal to them and it may not be right away u see it or they develope it.

 

[parkersmom120106]

Well I lost 3 more babies...now we're down to 2..1 from each of the does. I got home from work late last night and checked on them...even bundled up in the nest they got cold. I turned on a heat lamp in the cage and rubbed the 2 living ones to warm them up. They're still alive today. I don't understand this..I'm in Florida..it's not even that cold. I'll have to do some major replanning before I try to have any more litters. I wonder if I should set up some cages in the shed to move the moms into before they give birth.

 

[Bunnylady]

For as long as I've bred rabbits, I have believed that they put their heads together when I'm not looking and ask each other, "How can we drive her crazy today?" I have had litters "freeze" at 50 degrees; it's always the best-marked baby that gets out of the nest and dies on the wire; I've had does that managed to mess up every which way the first time out. When I decided that I couldn't stand to see one more cold, dead litter, I began moving my does into my hall closet at kindling time. Believe it or not, most don't seem to mind! I also routinely "kitnap" the whole litter, only bringing them out to momma a couple times a day to feed them. I have had a few does that kindled in the nest box, pulled plenty of fur, and then didn't seem to know that they had to nurse the kits. I usually tell people that anything you get off of a first litter is gravy, because most does manage to blow it somehow on their first attempt. If I have a doe that gets everything right the first time, I give extra consideration to her daughters as replacement does!

 

[tortoise]

I usually tell people that anything you get off of a first litter is gravy, because most does manage to blow it somehow on their first attempt. If I have a doe that gets everything right the first time, I give extra consideration to her daughters as replacement does!

Very true. Breeding qualities are just as hereditary as color and type. Choosing to breed rabbits that need to be coddled is like shooting yourself in the foot - repeatedly. It's gonna hurt you for years to come!

I am lucky to have gotten some hardy stock and I fully intend to keep my herd hardy and low-maintenance. "Survival of the fittest" is my motto.

Yes, it hurts a little bit that a doe that produced beautiful babies was the one that didn't have milk. (The babies I so wanted to save - not to breed but to sell off for $$$). And my best doe was homozygous for the broken gene. Yuck.

But stick to the goals of your breeding program, don't comprimise because of money (loss of imagined sales) or emotion. And you will accomplish your goals!