Branwyn had popples!

[trinityoaks]

Our fawn Brazillian doe, Branwyn, just kindled!!! 7 altogether, 1 DOA. She's a first-timer, and she had them on the wire, NO nest built! GRRR!! Thankfully my son was out in the garage shortly after they were born and found them. We almost missed one--two had escaped from the cage, and a third got stuck trying to get out.

I'm so excited, but nervous, too. Now everything I've ever read here and on HT has gone right out of my head. We refilled the nest box with hay and some dryer lint (NO idea what she did with all of the hay that was in the nest box this morning). How soon should they have the "swallowed a grape" look? How often should I be checking them?

 

[Anntann]

YAY! Congratulations to Branwyn!

I'll leave the suggestions to others who know more...but HOW COOL!! (she probably won't feed until tomorrow morning early..me, I'd check to make sure they were still warm in their nest this afternoon and evening. They can chill so quickly)

 

[Brody]

yup keep em warm so whenever she does feed them they can use the food ...

good save!!!

 

[trinityoaks]

How do I know whether they're warm enough? I just went out to give Branwyn an apple, and saw that either she had uncovered them, or a couple had climbed on top of the hay. The temps in the garage are probably in the 50s F (about 10-12C).

 

[Brody]

I put my hand near them and it's warm - I'm amazed at the heat they generate ..

do you have any wooly breeds?If so I'd clip a bit of wool and add it to the nest - I'd also recover the exposecd ones either way (with or without wool)

 

[ladysown]

enjoy them

 

[trinityoaks]

I put my hand near them and it's warm - I'm amazed at the heat they generate ..

Ok, I'll check in a little while. When we found them, they felt cool but not cold. Only Brazillians here, so the only substitute fur I have is dryer lint. How much should I put in? Should I fluff it up?

 

[Brody]

yup fluff it up .. that way it can hold more heat in it

I actually store dried lawn grass over the winter so blend it with hair when I need to build up a nest so dryer lint is not my expertise

 

[MaggieJ]

Congratulations on the popples, Trinity! You've waited a long time for this!

:wbounce:

Dryer lint is good. You can also use teased cotton balls or batting, feathers from a pillow or even shredded newspaper to help keep them warm. It's good in a way that she uncovered the kits after you put them in the box. It means she knows they are there and is interested. Hopefully her instincts will kick in and she will pull more fur. Six is enough to keep each other warm in those temperatures, as long as they are well-covered.

Check their tummies today and again tomorrow morning. That way you will be able to see the difference when they have been fed. It's not always as dramatic as "swallowed a grape" but they should look rounded and full, not flat and wrinkled.

I'm thrilled for you! Hope all goes smoothly from here on.

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

Can we have pics?? I have never seen a "Brazilian" puleeeese???

 

[trinityoaks]

Can we have pics?? I have never seen a "Brazilian" puleeeese???

Ok, let me try:

Here's blue fawn mom (Branwyn):

Here are the six popples (dad is a blue chin; don't be confused by the dryer lint that is almost the same color as the kits):

Just so you can see some color variation that is so typical of Brazilians, here's Branwyn's broken-blue sister, Dot, who is also due to kindle any day:

Here's our blue chin doe, Chica (whom we haven't been able to get to breed):

And our frosted white buck, Smokey:

 

[ladysown]

oops that didn't work trinity, want to try again?

 

[trinityoaks]

Congratulations on the popples, Trinity!

Thank you!!!

You've waited a long time for this!

Boy, you're not kidding!

It's good in a way that she uncovered the kits after you put them in the box. It means she knows they are there and is interested.

I've peeked out there a couple of times and have seen her nosing around in the nest box. I also saw her climbing out once--hopefully she had just been feeding them.

Hopefully her instincts will kick in and she will pull more fur. Six is enough to keep each other warm in those temperatures, as long as they are well-covered.

Our nighttime temperatures have gotten down around the freezing mark, but the garage doesn't get as cold as that (it's attached to the house on two sides and fairly well insulated). How thick should the hay covering be?

Check their tummies today and again tomorrow morning. That way you will be able to see the difference when they have been fed. It's not always as dramatic as "swallowed a grape" but they should look rounded and full, not flat and wrinkled.

OK.

I'm thrilled for you! Hope all goes smoothly from here on.

I hope so, too! And I hope her sister, Dot, kindles soon--I'm on pins and needles!

 

[ladysown]

ah...this time the pics worked for some reason. nice average sized bunnies? (at least that's the impression I get from the pics).

 

[Brody]

adorable

 

[Anntann]

Wow! lots of variation in color there Very nice bunch!

 

[Briza]

Gosh they make me chilly looking at them with no fur. Do you have any more lint you can fluff? Or anything fibrous that is smaller than the hay blades? They need to be covered to avoid spending energy warming the air and all of that body heat wafting away. Do you have a shaggy blanket you can wash and dry and collect fresh lint that isn't smashed?
Hope they do well for you. I hope you can get them covered.
B~

 

[trinityoaks]

Wow! lots of variation in color there Very nice bunch!

That's one of the things I love about the 'Zils. I can't wait until they fur out and we can see what colors are in the nest boxes.

__________ Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:46 pm __________

Gosh they make me chilly looking at them with no fur.

I uncovered them just for the photo, but they've been covered with hay and some dryer lint since I found them. I've gone out there and found that the doe had uncovered a couple of them, so I keep covering them back up.

I'm not sure, though, how thick the hay covering should be, or how much dryer lint to put in there. I have almost a gallon bag full. I tried to fluff out the lint as much as possible, but it's not fluffing very much--just pulling apart.<br /><br />__________ Sat Jan 16, 2010 10:49 pm __________<br /><br />I just went out to check on them, and Branwyn had pooped in the nest box (but it doesn't look as though she peed). At least one of the kits was uncovered and away from the rest of the kits, but they were all nice and warm. I took them out of the nest box, replaced most of the hay, and added a big handful of dryer lint, which I made into a sort of bed. I put the kits back into the nest box on top of the dryer lint, then covered them up with 2-3 inches of hay.

It's hard for me to tell whether or not she's fed them. They certainly don't look as though they've swallowed a grape. Their belly skin is somehwat wrinkled, but they feel fairly full. I have nothing to compare it to, so I don't know whether it's enough. I'll check again in the morning and hope for the best.

No sign yet of Dot kindling, although she was sitting in her nest box when I went out there, with no pottying in the box, either. I just pray she doesn't have them on the wire like her sister did, especially during the night when I might not find them quickly enough.

 

[MeadowView]

SINCE there's no fur, I would pull out momma bunny and flip her over in your lap. Pull out fur from her lower belly and thighs gently, it won't hurt. I usually end up having to do this a few days after birth, what needs to be done to keep them alive needs to be done. If she generally is comfortable with you, it won't freak her out too much.

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

I am not sure about using the dryer lint it is very dusty and fine. Hay is a very good insulator as is shredded newspaper.When other does kindle if there is a lot of fur, snitch some from them; especially in the warmer months and keep it for times like this. Thoses are interesting rabbits, I didn't know they came in a lot of diff. colours! How much do they weight?