What a week (we have rabbits!)

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Nymphadora

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Location
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We have finally begun what my family sees as the “trial by fire” of rabbit keeping!

Last weekend I picked up two absolutely gorgeous Rex does from a breeder friend of mine. One’s a castor, the other is opal. I decided early on that those were the colors I’d aim for in my barn, and my friend was super generous in giving me two of her brood does. :in_love:

Now, here is where the trial by fire comes in. Because I will not have a buck for a while (waiting on some litters in my friend group to grow up a bit), the castor doe was bred so I would have babies while I waited for a buck of my own. Hehe, dear Judy (castor doe) is due this coming Tuesday! I made her a sturdy nestbox, and now we are in the final few days of waiting and watching. I’m so excited I can barely contain it!

Now, I realize that this hardly seems to be a “fire”… after all, I have several days (just over a week from when I picked them up) to get things ready for these babies. Ha. Well. Miss Jane (opal doe) had some hitchhikers due to an unforeseen rendezvous with one of the bucks in my friends’ barn… two little kits, just 5 days old when I picked them all up. Normally we wouldn’t have moved such young kits, but I live close enough and all of my equipment is pretty much from my friend’s barn… so the smells shouldn’t be all that new. Jane also has a much friendlier temperament, of the two ladies, so she’s settled pretty quickly (Judy gave us the stink eye the first day, and only comes to the front of the cage if you have food for her now).

The popples are doing well (just over a week old now). I check them twice a day, before and after work. I think one of the twins (they’re both black otters… I haven’t named them, probably won’t in the long run, so they’ll just be the twins) was starting to open an eye this morning! For the past few days I didn’t feel like they were growing that much, but this morning made me feel like they were growing just fine. They’re always warm and have round little bellies (maybe not engorged, but definitely not skinny). They’re also moving around in the nest box a bit more than usual as of this morning… DH has been unobtrusively checking on our girls and the wee ones every couple hours as he’s working in the barn. :oops:

Oh, and we ended up not setting them up in the big barn, after all. We’ve come up with a solution to protect the concrete in the fenced off patio, and the girls are happy with the arrangements we’ve made (at least they seem to be settling in alright). We’ve been doing a ton of work in the barn, and it’s really terribly noisy and smelly (burnt wood from a table saw that wasn’t cutting properly… fixed for now, but still unpleasant). We may move them into the barn in future, but for now this arrangement works well for us. And I can check on the girls before going to work (DH insists he gets to feed them in the mornings, though… sweetheart). :grin:

So… there are finally rabbits for me to fawn over. We’ve been giving them some more space this past week to settle in and feel more at home, but I can’t wait to snuggle with my little buns every evening after work in the future!
:bunnyhop:
 
faiththequeen":2uuku6yr said:
WOW! You sure have had a busy bunny week! I'm so happy for you that you finally have some sweet buns to call your own. Can't wait to see some photos of your girls and the babies.
Haha, thank you! Yeah, it's been a bit crazy, and with the new house and everything... I've been popping into RT to check in once in a while, but haven't had the time to respond/write much. Gonna try to do better, now that I can contribute with my personal experiences with the buns! :p

And I'll work on getting some photos for you guys, as well. :oops:
 
Sorry for not granting your wishes sooner (been a long weekend!), but I finally have pictures of the girls! :oops:

[album]3798[/album]
This is Judy the Beauty, or Miss Judy, as we've been calling her. She's such a pretty girl, but she throws some serious shade! I have several pictures on my phone now where she just looks so done with me. :lol:

[album]3799[/album]
Jane Doe on the other hand, is sweet as could be. She comes up to be petted, and will happily hang out by the front of the cage when I'm working outside. Funny thing is she sits in the nest box when I take the babies out to check on them, as if to say "sorry, this spot's taken... guess you've gotta keep those rascals now!". :oops:

[album]3800[/album]
These are the twins (only two kits for the litter... so they're just "the twins" for us) at 5 days old when we first got them. Cute little boogers, the chubbier of the two doesn't like his head touched much (although he'll let DH stroke his cheeks... not me though), and the little one will climb all over you until he finds the perfect hollow to burrow into.

[album]3801[/album]
This is the bigger of the two kits yesterday... growing fat and happy. 12 days old and still not a fan of anyone but my husband. Go figure. :oops:

Judy and Jane are still going through a bit of a molt (plus they've pulled some fur for their respective nestboxes), so please excuse their coats looking a bit rough. Judy is due this Tuesday, though! So excited to see some more popples! :in_love:
 
You waited a long time for those buns, Nymphadora, and did all your research and preparation. And it was worth it, wasn't it? Judy and Jane are gorgeous! I just love their soft, melted colours. And the twins with their little white ear linings! Adorable!
 
MaggieJ":e7up4te9 said:
You waited a long time for those buns, Nymphadora, and did all your research and preparation. And it was worth it, wasn't it?
Yes. So much yes! Going to rabbit shows with my friends is great because that's where I fell in love with Rex as a breed. And the castors and opals are just so beautiful... although my friend is starting with some chinchilla Rex, and I've gotta admit they're tempting! :in_love:

We got the babies out for a little yesterday morning as a reward for our hard work (definitely sore from building the table) and snuggled on the couch as a little family. It felt so good after working late into the previous night... and the little ones were happy to tuck in and take a nap on DH's chest.

I can't wait to have a pen or something where I can sit down and let Jane or Judy out for a little romp. They've been such good girls, and I want to show them I appreciate them. Just don't want to let them loose in the house... at least I can catch the babies when they go adventuring. :oops:
 
Thanks, Homer! :D

Judy’s due date is today and of course I’m stuck at work… but my hope is that she’ll kindle either tonight or early tomorrow morning (I’ve been told evenings is typical for her). She’s been sitting in her nest box like she’s waiting for something to happen, though, it’s the funniest thing.
:roll:

Hopefully we get a good litter from her, she was bred to a real pretty blue buck (I think… might have been blue otter). In any case, we’re keeping an eye on her as best we can to make sure things go smoothly. It’s not her first litter, but it’s her first with us, and I’m sure she’s been under more stress than usual with the move.

I’ve also noticed that she hasn’t eaten as much or drank as much as Jane has been. There’s still fresh poop every time I go to check though, so maybe she’s just munching more of the hay from the nest box than her pellets? The water concerned me a bit, but she is still definitely drinking… just not as much as Jane. I think I remember reading about it being normal for pregnant does to go off feed a bit as they get close to kindling, it’s just something I’ve been keeping an eye on.
:oops:
 
Nymphadora":2yo2x8x3 said:
...
I’ve also noticed that she hasn’t eaten as much or drank as much as Jane has been. ...

Sounds like the time is near! All my girls do the same thing a few days before they pop.

Here, I'll lone ya my nurse. :lol:

bunny_nurse.png
 
Homer":3gnpeo1n said:
Here, I'll lone ya my nurse. :lol:

I appreciate it, I feel like an anxious first-time parent over here! :lol: <br /><br /> __________ Thu Nov 16, 2017 10:38 am __________ <br /><br /> *sigh*

No little popples for Judy yet... starting to think she might not have took (I'm not even gonna try palpating, I know I'm not experienced enough to feel around properly, and Judy's not a fan of being handled in any case).

Ah well, we'll leave the nest box in there for another few days. I hear MaggieJ's voice in my head scolding folks for not leaving the nest box in just in case they're overdue! :p :lol:

If there's still nothing by the weekend, I think we may go take her for another "date" with the handsome buck my friend originally bred her to. :mrgreen:
 
Nymphadora":1dj6ngbs said:
No little popples for Judy yet... starting to think she might not have took . . .

Ah well, we'll leave the nest box in there for another few days. I hear MaggieJ's voice in my head scolding folks for not leaving the nest box in just in case they're overdue! :p :lol:
Scolding? Scolding? :cry:
And here I thought I was protecting against potential heartbreak! :lol: :lol: :lol:

Nymphadora":1dj6ngbs said:
If there's still nothing by the weekend, I think we may go take her for another "date" with the handsome buck my friend originally bred her to. :mrgreen:
Good idea! If she took but is that late, it can kick-start kindling -- and if she didn't take, it will give you something to look forward to in a month's time.
:lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny: :lilbunny:
 
MaggieJ":2d4p8gsa said:
Nymphadora":2d4p8gsa said:
No little popples for Judy yet... starting to think she might not have took . . .

Ah well, we'll leave the nest box in there for another few days. I hear MaggieJ's voice in my head scolding folks for not leaving the nest box in just in case they're overdue! :p :lol:
Scolding? Scolding? :cry:
And here I thought I was protecting against potential heartbreak! :lol: :lol: :lol:
You are right, my apologies... scolding was too harsh. Gently reprimanding, perhaps? Admonishing? :oops:
I am glad for your warnings, MaggieJ, they help me keep a level head when making decisions with the does now. :D
 
Ahem. I prefer to think of it as a timely reminder.

I know I make that warning too often, but if it prevents just one more of those unnecessary kindlings on the wire, I'll take the teasing. :p

And even enjoy it! So never mind, Nymph, I was quite amused by your post. :lol:
 
faiththequeen":1j03u9c6 said:
Your rabbits are BEAUTIFUL!!!! Any babies this morning??
YES!!!!
:mbounce:

I just went to feed the girls and checked Judy's nest box (because for once she wasn't sitting in it), and lo and behold... a tuft of fur. Huh, that's definitely new. Pull the nest box a little closer, because now I'm curious... and I see the nest move! Judy had 4 little popples in her nest, with very little fur pulled (but the babies look very fresh, so I'm inclined to think she's not done pulling fur for them... nonetheless I added a little bit of cut up merino wool from my fiber stash). I'm so proud of her, even if it is a smaller than average litter for her!

From the brief glances as I pulled them out to check that they're all alive and healthy, I have determined that this is a wonderfully symmetrical litter. 2 Solids (what I think may be an opal and either a castor or black otter), and 2 Brokens (again an opal or blue otter, and a castor or black otter). I'll admit I'm rubbish with the colors when they're this tiny, but I only had a brief peek at them. I'll give them a good look later (and get pictures, since my phone was stuck on the charger in the house).
:group-hug2:
 

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