Rabbit thread!!!

[lizardandchicks]

So, I go and check on them this morning. Another one dead, the other two very close. They were out from the hair I put in from the other nest since they didn't have anything,and I knew it was going to get cold. Since it got so cold, and they weren't snuggling, they got even colder. The two alive I brought home and got warmed up. They seemed pretty skinny as if they hadn't eaten, so when I brought them back, I flipped mom over and let them nurse, except they wouldn't. I don't know if they are going to live much longer. I put the kennal in the garage to keep them warmer. Will just have to see what is going on in a little while.
The white female (who we thought was the dad) is just starting to to pull her fur out. I think she hasn't had her babies yet. Only time will tell.

 

[Bunnylady]

Forgive me, but I'm getting a bit confused - just how many adult rabbits are you talking about? I think I'm hearing about 3 does and a buck; the buck and at least one of the does are white, and at least one of the does isn't white. You've had two litters of kits; one that was born Saturday, one on Monday. All of the kits from the first litter have died, and there are currently 2 survivors of the second litter. One doe is pulling fur, and you aren't sure whether she is about to kindle or whether she may be the mother of the first litter - have I gotten that right?

Even experienced rabbit people sometimes make mistakes when sexing rabbits, so that someone new to rabbits would get confused is not surprising. I assume that y'all have sorted out who's who at this point. Is the buck now being housed separately? Rabbit does become fertile pretty much immediately after kindling; any does that were housed with the buck at the time they delivered have a good chance of being pregnant already, with a due date approximately 31 days from this first litter.

Does often continue to pull fur for days after a litter is born, particularly if the weather is cool. Most does don't pull fur until just before or just after their litter is born, but there are exceptions; I once had a Jersey Wooly that started pulling fur about 10 days before her litters were born, and continued for days afterward. That rabbit wound up almost completely bald, except for her head, her feet, and a 2 inch wide "Mohawk" of hair along her spine. Yeah, that rabbit was a kook when it came to fur pulling. Every rabbit has her own pattern when it comes to kindling, but until you have worked with her a time or two, you won't know what is "normal" for a particular doe. The rabbit that you see pulling fur may not have given birth yet, or she may be the mother of the lost litter - I can't say from here. Assuming that she hasn't kindled yet is playing it safe - you should know, one way or the other, within a few days.

 

[lizardandchicks]

Sorry, it is pretty confusing. There are 3 does, one buck. 1 doe and the buck are white. There is one brown doe, and the other is white with brown splotches on get back. We now know for sure the mother of the second litter is the all brown one. We originally thought the mother of the first litter was the all white one. But we are doubting that because the splotched one had already pulled out lots of fur, and some of the babies of the first litter looked like her. The all white one just started pulling out fur last night, and seemed to be making a nest with some cardboard earlier. The splotchy one and the all brown one both have stretched out bottoms. The white one doesn't. Sorry it is so confusing, if you have any more questions just ask. Thank you for your help!

 

[Bunnylady]

If the white buck and the white doe have pink eyes, they are the color we call Ruby-eyed White (REW). If you breed two REW's together, the only possible color their babies can be is REW. If you had babies that were any other color, they didn't come from a REW x REW breeding. I'm guessing from your description that one doe is what we call a "broken;" some color plus white, typically in a pattern that puts color on the ears, color around the eyes, color on the nose, and some color on the back, either as spots or as a larger patch called a blanket.

If there were broken-patterned babies in the first litter, then yes, it follows that the broken doe was the mother. As I said, if the buck was still in the cage when she had them, there's a good chance she is pregnant now. She might not be, but at least you have the head's-up so you have a chance to be prepared, if she is.

A wild rabbit doe digs a burrow in which to have her litter. We don't usually give her domesticated sisters the opportunity to do that, but we need to provide them with a safe, secure, closed-in space that simulates a burrow; most people use a nest box made of wood or metal. Baby bunnies are surprisingly mobile, and the box helps to keep them together. Sadly as you've seen, if they wander away from each other, they can chill and die. Almost all does lack the instinct to put babies back if they get out of the nest, probably because the shape of a natural nest itself keeps them together.

During the days just before kindling, the doe gathers nest materials. Normally, this is plant material; we usually give a doe hay or straw. The hay helps to provide some insulation, and also absorbs some of the urine that the babies will produce. If there are other rabbits in the cage with the pregnant doe, she will probably pull hair off of them; I remember one family that was very confused because most of the fur in the nest with their new litter came from their buck (he was a different color than their doe).

Even people who are trying to raise rabbits in colonies often find that putting a pregnant doe in a space by herself is the safest thing for the babies. Sometimes, more than one doe will try to use the same nest box for their litters, and the babies in the first litter get injured or killed by the second doe's preparations for her litter. Does can be very territorial, and squabbles over nesting and resting sites create unnecessary stress on a pregnant or nursing doe, which may lead to her abandoning or killing her own litter. I hope y'all figure out ways to get these rabbits settled into some sort of order that makes things less confusing and stressful for all of you - I know dead baby bunnies are no fun.

 

[lizardandchicks]

So I went over again to get pictures and check on them. One of the babies which was super skinny and lethargic seemed close to death, so I tried one last time to have him nurse. He then started drinking! I could hear the other one wandering around, being just fine. She was plump (at least compared to other one) and making lots of noise moving about. When the boy stopped nursing, I put him back, and got the girl out. She was limp. I held her in my hands as she got cold. Now it is just the skinny boy who I don't have much hope for. At least he ate a little so he has some nutrients.
Here are pictures of everything.

This is the Skinny boy. In the second, you can really see how skinny he is.

This was the girl after she died.

This was their entire litter.

This was the other litter.

This is the for sure mother of the second litter (which still has a baby)

This is the splotched mother, who I am pretty sure was the mom of the first litter.

This is the white female who might be pregnant.

And this is the dad who they got exactly one month ago.
Thanks again for all your help!

 

[lizardandchicks]

The last baby died.

 

[Bunnylady]

I'm sorry to hear that.

Losing babies is tough.

 

[lizardandchicks]

The white mom had her babies finally. However, there was only one born, and it was dead. It was either early, our she had a miscarriage, and it was just coming out. The baby had no hair, it's face wasn't completely formed, it's foot was all crooked, and there were a few other things wrong with it. When it was born, it wasn't breathing. But it just seems really strange. I have a picture, but it is a might be a little disturbing to some people. If you want, I could post it.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

I have two adorable Holland Lops. I have 1 Chocolate and the other is a Lilac. I'm hoping to breed them next spring I've been trying to have my Lilac Holland Lop become a house rabbit, but it may not be permanent. I have really bad allergies and a rabbit doesn't help XD My other rabbit is fairly old. I have no idea how old he is, all I know is that he is over 3 years old. I rescued him two years ago. Unfortunately, I think when he was a kit he was abused by his owner, and he suffers from trauma now. It took me two years of trying to tame him to release that.
Here's a picture of the one I rescued:

 

[BantyChooks]

I have one pet rabbit; her name is willow and she's a netherland dwarf.
yay finally a bunny thread...!
here's some pics.