Bleep! bleeping bleep bleep! (this is me swearing)

[boundarybunnyco]

Ugh! So my doe, Tamsen, had her 8 babies, and then something ate parts of four of them. So I blocked the J feeder hole and things improved for a few days. Today, Tamsen is not herself. She is usually aggressive, if only in running between my hand and her babies. Today, nothing. She sat with her eyes half closed and I THINK I heard her grind her teeth once. All her water was gone, and her food, and she had no hay left, so she is eating and drinking. I refilled everything and she didn't move. Then I picked up the nest and checked the babies. They were really active, but looked a little wrinkly. The only thing she did was turn and put her head in the corner.
Yesterday she was fine. I see no injuries, and she isn't thin, and she looks healthy, other than that, she just doesn't look right or act right, and I know my bunnies. Something is wrong.
If she dies, I really cant foster the kits to another doe, right. what the heck can I do?
The kits are 8 day old flemish/californian cross. Tamsen is 6.5 month old flemish/californian cross.

 

[ladysown]

8 days old you have a chance, not high, but at least a chance.

do you have access to a goat for milk?

for a doe to be shutting down like that is not a good sign.
See if you can get some gas x into her, use some pineapple juice and syringe in some fluids.

 

[boundarybunnyco]

I can get raw goat milk at the mennonite store tomorrow. I will try those suggestions with Tamsen. Do I give the babies the goat milk straight or do I dilute it? And I assume I warm it.

 

[akane]

Actually rabbit milk is about double the concentration of goat milk so you definitely don't want to dilute it and you'll have to feed slightly more often than a doe normally would to make up for it. You want it at about 103F. Slightly warmer than for humans so you can actually feel it on your wrist. They will not drink cold milk. As soon as it starts to reach the temp you can no longer feel it they will shortly stop taking it as eagerly and then all together even if still hungry. I float my container of milk in a larger bowl of hot water to keep it warm enough and I've used those little mug warmers as well but they can get too warm and I found accuracy a problem.

 

[MaggieJ]

Someone was saying recently that if a bottle or syringe doesn't work well for the kits, then try a washcloth (or a piece of one) soaked in the milk. I know this method used to be used for both animals and human babies before bottles came into use.

 

[boundarybunnyco]

last time I had to do this, I actually just used a teeny coffee stirrer/straw. it took forever, but it worked. so the canned goat milk is concentrated, would that be better than the raw?

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

If your doe is still alive, i would get some calcium into her asap. I think there may be some sort of calcium product made for goats you can get at the feed store otherwise tums I guess! The eating and drinking but not responding is signs of calcium/potassium deficiency, she may be a very high milk producer! The kits are approaching a very high "demand" time for milk and they have probably perfected the "Turbo Suck" by now!

 

[Miss M]

I used an eyedropper for feeding kits, when I had to start handfeeding them.

I don't know if canned goat's milk is better than fresh because it's double strength, but I do know that formula made with it seems to hold the kits as well as doe's milk. I did not feed just the canned milk by itself. This was the formula that I used, with very good success:

1/2 Cup canned evaporated goat's milk
1 egg yolk
1/2 Tablespoon corn syrup

I poured a little of the mixture into a small bowl, and refrigerated the rest. I warmed it for about 4 or 5 seconds at a time in the microwave, stirring with a fork between, until it was very warm. You don't want to cook the egg, though. I made a new batch every two days.

At first, they really resisted, since it was a hard glass thing I was sticking up to their mouths. Once they figured out that hard thing contained something yummy, though, they were all over it! At about one week of age, I fed about 4-5 eyedroppers per kit, until they looked like they had swallowed a big marble. Overfeeding will cause them not to look right -- they'll look like a fat toad. At about two weeks, they could clear the eyedropper in two or three sucks.

I hope you can save your doe!!!!!

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

You can also get injectable calcium solution at most feed stores--- labelled to treat toxemia in cattle