I need Help ASAP.. my rabbit had kits 7 weeks ago. A litter of 9 and everyone was thriving no issues for those 7 weeks. Then all of sudden each morning I find a new one that has passed..what's weird is their are no signs of aggression towards the bunny no signs of malnutrition and lustruous coats. No signs of cocidia. I have begun a preventive treatment on remaining but I don't know why they are dying..any advice?
Kits dying
- Thread starter maryf
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RabbitsOfTheCreek
Netherland Dwarf Breeder & Well-known Member
Have you changed anything about their feed?
at seven weeks... that's the prime age for enteritis issues.
What symptoms are you seeing? have you done a necropsy on any of them?
Has the weather been fluctuating? from hot to cold or just bouts of precipitation (particularly rain)?
Damp or messy areas in the cage?
Are they still with mom?
What symptoms are you seeing? have you done a necropsy on any of them?
Has the weather been fluctuating? from hot to cold or just bouts of precipitation (particularly rain)?
Damp or messy areas in the cage?
Are they still with mom?
It's clean and they are with mom. Fluctuating temp but no symptoms they are great one day and next morning one has died. Like I noted coats are healthy no bloat eating and drinking no discharge or signs of cocidia really at lost what's happening
It does sound like a likely scenario for enteritis. Other options would include aflatoxins in the feed/hay (you may not see the telltale white mold spores, and have the feed still be infected) that can cause sudden seizure and death. I was giving extra hay to the mamas with litters, as I always do, and suddenly started finding dead babies in all the litters, and no one else, with no clue as to why. I was there when a rabbit went into seizures and died right there on the spot, a clue. A check of the hay did indeed show the white mold spores all through the hay. When I removed all of that hay, the problem began to resolve, with no return of the issue.
There is always the chance you've somehow come in contact with the deadly rabbit virus, RHD. The only clue is sudden death. There is a wide variety of information on RHD on the American Rabbit Breeder's Website, Announcements
There is always the chance you've somehow come in contact with the deadly rabbit virus, RHD. The only clue is sudden death. There is a wide variety of information on RHD on the American Rabbit Breeder's Website, Announcements
Do the dead kits look flat, like they've been stomped? Rodents and other predators are very active at this time of year, trying to feed their own young. A protective mama bunny will often climb into the nestbox and stomp her feet forcefully to discourage predators that she sees. Unfortunately, if the babies are around her at the time, they can get injured by all the stomping and die. Just another possibility. It is usually an issue with smaller kits, but. . .
Mom is doing well?
Rosey1
Well-known member
I’ve been having the same issue with mine, but it’s when they hit about 5-6 weeks. They go from perfect babies to diarrhea and dying. I finally realized it might be the little bit of oats/sunflower seeds I’m giving them. I stopped that in all my baby cages about 13 days ago and so far my baby cages have stabilized. I don’t know if they were going to be the ones that made it or if that was the culprit. I was losing about half of my litters of each cage before this. I was even giving preventative meds for enteritis and corrid and probiotics to be on the safe side. I am curious to know if most of y’all give oats or not to your rabbits and does it affect your babies?
I give rolled oats to nursing moms and their babies and they have been fine.
RabbitsOfTheCreek
Netherland Dwarf Breeder & Well-known Member
Wouldn't be a bad idea to ease them off of it and see if it helps. If not, no reason to not give them back
Such a frustrating situation... I feel your pain!
I agree with @Rosey1 and @judymac about enteritis.
Enteritis is kind of a catch-all term meaning, essentially, a bellyache. "Weaning enteritis" indicates that it's happening at the typical age of weaning, which covers that 5-8 week age group. Weaning enteritis can hit fast, with no apparent symptoms (other than the kits are dying!). I've seen kits popping around at 8am, sitting looking miserable at noon, and flat dead by 4pm.
Sometimes it's a single kit, but other times you see the sequential deaths you're describing.The shift from milk to solids seems to be a challenging period in the life of a rabbit, and some breeds and genetic strains seem to have a harder time with it than others. Keeping the diet the same as they and the mother have been eating all along is important, and giving supplemental probiotics like Benebac can be helpful too.
If I'm not seeing symptoms of coccidiosis, I tend to avoid giving meds like Corid, since that results in yet another disruption to the kits' gut situation. I do make some exceptions but I'm not a fan of prophylactic use of meds in most situations, as I'd rather raise animals that are healthy without the addition of meds. Also, eventually we probably are going to start seeing cocci that are resistant to amprolium.
But basically, any change in the life of a rabbit can throw it for a loop, and often where that loop ends up is in their gut. It could be that given the stress of weaning, the constant fluctuations in the weather pushed the kits' stress meters over the top. It could also be that the pairing of the partiular dam and sire resulted in kits that were not optimally healthy and just naturally more inclined to succumb to weaning enteritis.
I would also consider what @judymac said about the possibility of bad/moldy hay, especially if you've been having wet weather. Ironically, the first inclination most of us have to help sick rabbits is to give more hay; but speaking from sad experience, it does not take much moldy hay to wreak havoc in a rabbitry, and you end up hurting the very rabbits you're trying to help. The smaller and less vigorous rabbits are more likely to suffer from smaller amounts of exposure. If it was me, I'd give my hay a very close look and sniff (which would be a real sacrifice for me since I'm extremely allergic to mold myself!).
white mold on hay ...take some and pull it apart in the light and you will see it fly. i always check to see if anyone who is having these problems live around ohio where we know what happened. My babies eat mom's leftover oats, no problem. God bless rabbit friends.
I always wonder why rabbiters give rolled oats and not whole oats. I give whole oats to mom after kindling and the babies get a few cause they want to eat out of her bowl with her (sweet). I may stop that. I can feed her separately.
I do feed whole oats, and have done so for decades. We buy bulk oats locally, it generally costs between 8 cents and 14 cents a pound, depending on the time of year (it's cheapest at harvest time, when the farmers don't have to store it.) Most of the rabbits eat the oats completely, husk and all, but others dehusk each oat, leaving a bowl full of empty husks. Same thing with sunflower seeds. Most rabbits eat them shell and all, a few shell them first and leave the shells, and a couple don't like them at all, and leave the sunflower seeds in the bowl.
Generally, it seems that if mom has been eating certain foods all along, that the necessary bacteria to digest that food (be it hay or oats or fresh greens) will be in her night feces, which the kits will be exposed to. So, the kits seem to be able to nibble on mom's food without much issue. I've met so many people who have successfully raised litters on feed that others would be horrified by (like a total fresh green diet gathered fresh each morning), but it worked because all of the rabbits were accustomed to that feed from the beginning.
How are things going today? Have you bred this type of rabbit before with same buck and doe with no problems?
Rosey1
Well-known member
Yeah I’m trying it for a bit to see if it’s the culprit
Rosey1
Well-known member
See I’ve tried intervening and adding probiotics and corrid and probiotics and then doing nothing. I’ve added more hay, less hay. Used different does and bucks and kept them on the same feed. Made sure they have very clean cages, slightly dirty poopy cages where they for sure have cecotropes…. Etc…. It seems my bigger breeds suffer more than the smaller breeds for sure.Such a frustrating situation... I feel your pain!
I agree with @Rosey1 and @judymac about enteritis.
Enteritis is kind of a catch-all term meaning, essentially, a bellyache. "Weaning enteritis" indicates that it's happening at the typical age of weaning, which covers that 5-8 week age group. Weaning enteritis can hit fast, with no apparent symptoms (other than the kits are dying!). I've seen kits popping around at 8am, sitting looking miserable at noon, and flat dead by 4pm.
The shift from milk to solids seems to be a challenging period in the life of a rabbit, and some breeds and genetic strains seem to have a harder time with it than others. Keeping the diet the same as they and the mother have been eating all along is important, and giving supplemental probiotics like Benebac can be helpful too.
If I'm not seeing symptoms of coccidiosis, I tend to avoid giving meds like Corid, since that results in yet another disruption to the kits' gut situation. I do make some exceptions but I'm not a fan of prophylactic use of meds in most situations, as I'd rather raise animals that are healthy without the addition of meds. Also, eventually we probably are going to start seeing cocci that are resistant to amprolium.
But basically, any change in the life of a rabbit can throw it for a loop, and often where that loop ends up is in their gut. It could be that given the stress of weaning, the constant fluctuations in the weather pushed the kits' stress meters over the top. It could also be that the pairing of the partiular dam and sire resulted in kits that were not optimally healthy and just naturally more inclined to succumb to weaning enteritis.
I would also consider what @judymac said about the possibility of bad/moldy hay, especially if you've been having wet weather. Ironically, the first inclination most of us have to help sick rabbits is to give more hay; but speaking from sad experience, it does not take much moldy hay to wreak havoc in a rabbitry, and you end up hurting the very rabbits you're trying to help. The smaller and less vigorous rabbits are more likely to suffer from smaller amounts of exposure. If it was me, I'd give my hay a very close look and sniff (which would be a real sacrifice for me since I'm extremely allergic to mold myself!).
Derrickshoe
New member
You need to check the feed and see
if there is any mold growing in the feed. Check the water bottles and nozzles for any green algae growing. If present clean out with soap and water. Water and feed are the most common areas to check first.
