My doe has seven kits. Two weeks old. Earlier today they were trying to nurse and she jumped around and tried to stomp them and she bit at them. She accidentally bit me, trying to get one of the babies. They are all in a separate cage and I am bottle feeding them. At least trying to. I can feel milk in her teats and I squeeze the nipple and nothing comes out. Are they blocked? I am hoping they aren't so that I can flip the doe and let them nurse. Thank you!!
Non-functional nipples?
- Thread starter Lopsided
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Make sure she doesn't have mastitis. The tissue around the nipple will become very hard and rapidly get large. Usually redness and irritation follow. Some first time does just get upset at the kits running all over the cage and take awhile to settle down with them. About all you can do in that case is give them as much space as possible and watch them closely until they chill. Unless you just want to give up breeding them and not leave them any kits to continue raising.
At 2 weeks kits can eat lots of solid food. Even at 10 days old I've started them on warm goat milk soaked pellets just fine. You can make the mixture thicker and the milk more watery as they get older. Leave hay available at all times and replace a low sided dish of softened food 3 times a day. You might have to shove a little into their mouths the first few times. Within a couple days they will dive in the stuff as soon as you put it out. They may have to be cleaned up with a damp cloth or paper towel. It's still a whole lot easier and not much more messy than trying to bottle feed them. Rabbits don't bottle feed well.
At 2 weeks kits can eat lots of solid food. Even at 10 days old I've started them on warm goat milk soaked pellets just fine. You can make the mixture thicker and the milk more watery as they get older. Leave hay available at all times and replace a low sided dish of softened food 3 times a day. You might have to shove a little into their mouths the first few times. Within a couple days they will dive in the stuff as soon as you put it out. They may have to be cleaned up with a damp cloth or paper towel. It's still a whole lot easier and not much more messy than trying to bottle feed them. Rabbits don't bottle feed well.
Her teats aren't hard but the nipples are a deep pink color. Tomorrow I will put a few in with her and supervise the nursing. Will the kits be able to eat the softened pellets instead of milk if this doesn't work out with the mom?
Just in case you haven't done this: if mom doesn't have a shelf or something to jump up on and be unreachable to the babes, give her something like a box to get on top of so she doesn't feel so harrassed and can get away from the baby piranhas.
I put a box in and all she did would dig at it and bite the box. She didn't quite figure it out so I took it out so she wouldn't mess up the box. I probably should put it back in and give her babies back and see what she does.
