Lost a litter...born dead UPDATE: I got my mapgies! : Kindling and Care of Does and Kits

Well, I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later. I had a litter born dead. It looks like they may have been dead for at least a few days. They were due today (doe always kindles day 30). She had been a bit "off" the last few days and I had been a bit worried for her. Yesterday there was blood under the cage (which I was hoping was just red urine) but wasn't sure so I gave her some herbs: Comfrey, dewberry, pink silk tree and curly dock. She seemed to like the dock best but when I went out this morning she had eaten everything and I found a dead (underdeveloped kit). This afternoon, I gave her more greens and found 6 more dead babies, all of them seemed underdeveloped. She seemed more herself, so I'm hoping she's done. I'll wait a few days to make sure before I try to rebreed her. I've no clue why this might have happened. She is my oldest doe but still only 2 1/2 years and has given me 7 litters.

I had really been looking forward to this litter as she is my magpie and I had finally gotten her breed to a tri buck that can produce magpie. I'm kicking myself as I just culled a daughter (REW) of hers thinking that I would maybe get a magpie out of this litter to keep. I still have one daughter (chin) that is a great doe. I just wish I had keep the other as a bit of "backup". Isn't that the way it always goes?

I will rebreed her so long as she recovers. I just wish I knew what had happened and that I had gotten this litter...

They weren't born early. Today was day 30 and she usually kindles day 30. From the looks of them, I think they had died a few days prior to kindling as they still looked immature (but obviously born dead). Yeah, it sucks but it's just one of those things. I consider myself lucky. I've been raising rabbits for 3 years now (probably close to 300 kits total) and this is the first time I've experienced this. I've lost 3 litters to first time does not nesting correctly but that is it.

Pretty good overall I guess. Just hope she recovers Ok. I'd really like to get another keeper doe out of her.

I've been meaning to update this thread. She did make it but it was touch and go there for a while. Pretty sure she got or was very close to gi stasis. I picked her up to check her vent and her belly sounded horrible, all sloshy. I seriously considered culling her right then and there but I didn't. Instead I massaged her a belly to see if I could get things moving and gave her some more herbs, but it was a good week maybe closer to a week and a half before she finally was back to 100% herself. She lost a ton of weight and I still haven't rebred her.

I now have a wonderfully marked chocolate magpie in the nextbox and a nice harlequin out of her daughter and my tri buck so I may not rebreed her. I have quite a few babies I plan to keep back and she's only 1/2 rex so I'm kinda on the fence about her.

I bred her back yesterday to the tri buck. The first litter I got from her daughter and this same buck (there were only had 3), the buck in that litter was 5lbs 3 oz at 9 weeks and the two does were both 4lbs 6oz. I decided to keep all of them. I'm not sure how much of that growth rate is due to the small litter size but it's way better than what I normally get.

Me too. If her daughters litters continue to preform well, I may end up with an entire barn full from this line. This magpie doe is kinda funny, cause I almost didn't keep her originally.

-- Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:33 am --

This will be the last update on this doe, but I wanted to update. She did successfully kindle a litter. Had 9 and 3 were born dead but the other 6 are doing well and 1 month old. Not a magpie in the bunch.

glad she kindled for you again and yep isn't that always how it goes the one color that you majorly want and is the who reason for pairing doesn't come out.

I finally got those magpies! Looks like one is a broken magpie. I hope one of these is a doe. It looks like they will both have rex fur. I bred her grandson back to her for these babies. First two pics are the same kit.

Oh wonderful!!! Broken magpies always amaze me, and rexed...

Please post lots of pics as they age?

Thank you I will.