Another string of no good very bad luck it seems...

[DaytonHillRabbits]

Ugh. Today has not been my day..

I have been struggling with does who have been missing when bred. I had bred 5 does for the "Easter Rush" at work. 4 does missed altogether, 1 doe gave me 8. So that was a bummer, but the 8 were nice healthy babies so.. that was a plus. That was a week ago they were born.

Since then 2 more does have not produced litters. What the heck?! It appears that I may have been overfeeding them, so I've struck out a more managed feeding schedule with my small does and bucks getting 1/4 of feed instead of the heaping 1-2 cups they were getting.

This weekend we experienced a super cold snap, -24 last night... everyone did alright Friday night, everyone had lots of hay and the litter of 8 were alright when I checked last night. Well.. on morning rounds.. all dead. So crushing. It doesn't matter how many rabbits I collect, the loss just kills me. It guts me.

Not only that but when we went to check the other shed (the one that was supposed to be finished 3 weeks ago and isn't!), my ONE 4 week old baby that one of my does produced was dead. He was 100 percent fine yesterday, I handled and spent time with him. He was the sweetest nicest looking little fella I've ever produced.. What happened? He was in a cage with another baby who is 8 weeks old. She is fine, he has no marks or anything on his body.. I have 6 other babies in the cage right next door to them all are fine... I can't win.

Someone quick.. remind me why I do this in the first place?!

:shock:

 

[MaggieJ]

You do this because given normal circumstances it is fun and rewarding. Remember?

The run of "bad luck" that you are having is likely a combination of an error in feeding in the case of the does who are missing, and the cold weather and/or happenstance in the case of losing the kits. We've all gone through bad spells at one time or another, where everything seems to conspire against us. Don't let it get you down . . . or at least, don't let it keep you down.

Hang in there! :autumn:

 

[DaytonHillRabbits]

On the plus side, hubby did finish the cages for me tonight! I love them, they're the best and such a great price. So impressed with Grandview Rabbitry!

 

[Nymphadora]

:congratulations:

Those cages look really study! Good job DaytonHill's hubby! :lol:

:goodjob:

 

[LittleFluffyBunnies]

Those are great cages!

I'm sorry about your bad luck. It just happens. Whenever you raise animals there are always ups and downs. You just have to mourn for the lost, move on, and enjoy the ups of the hobby. It's always worth it in the end.

 

[alforddm]

My dad told me once when we lost a foal, "The only way to not lose any, is to not have any." It really stuck with me and helped to put things in perspective a bit. No matter how much we try or how well we care for them, eventually we are going to lose some. It's just part of keeping animals.

Sorry for your loss.

 

[Ferra]

Uhg, yeah. The losses are no fun. I've only lost two and still was rather peevish about it all.

On the other hand, those cages DO look pretty fantastic. Makes me hopeful: In theory, mine should be arriving at the city trucking depot in the next 2-4 days. Then I get to start the rack build. But the cages look good and reassure me that this order matches my coding buddies' idiom: "Good, Fast, Cheap: Pick 2"

 

[SarniaTricia]

On the plus side, hubby did finish the cages for me tonight! I love them, they're the best and such a great price. So impressed with Grandview Rabbitry!

Brian does an AMAZING job!
We try and make a run at least once a year... I'm getting a few pans for the new tower I've put together.
He really is nice too.... Great to work with and patient!