How long to try and bring back cold kits before giving up?

[bananarabbit]

I had a doe give birth, pulled nearly no fur, 8 kits spread out and all were ~ice~ cold and stiff. Temperatures were in the low thirties last night. Brought them inside, used hot water, then put them in a box with a heater blowing hot air on them. They are soft and warm now, but I don't think any will 'come back from the dead'...
How long should I try to warm and revive them before it's officially over?

 

[Cottie]

I'd give it until 10 minutes after they're warm. Absolutely no signs of life...then I think it's done. =( So sorry.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

The saying here regarding chilled kits is "They aren't dead until they are warm and dead."

But RJ's advice of waiting ten minutes is a good idea. I usually notice life once they start warming up though.

Sorry about the kits.

The doe will be very receptive to the buck right now, so you can rebreed her immediately and hope she does better next time. She also may still pull fur- sometimes they don't quite get everything in the right sequence the first couple of times they kindle.

Many members here have a three strikes rule, meaning they give the doe three chances to have a successful kindling before removing her from the breeding program.

 

[bananarabbit]

Well that's no good. Found another kit in the nest with a crushed head. Gave up on the others as well. Went ahead and rebred her, better luck next time.<br /><br />__________ Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:42 am __________<br /><br />There were several clumps of fur, but not nearly enough to make it warm. She's also very full of milk.

 

[OneAcreFarm]

Sorry about the litter, you can give her mint to dry up the milk. I usually check the nails and if they have red in the quick from blood pooling, I know they are truly dead and I don't even try to warm them up. If the nails are still white, then I always try. Generally, once they are thoroughly warm, you should see some signs of life.

 

[bananarabbit]

Will any mint work? We have a wild strain of black mint and store bought peppermint.

 

[MaggieJ]

Any true mint (mentha spp.) should be fine. Garden sage (Salvia officinalis) and even catnip (Nepeta cataria) will also help.<br /><br />__________ Mon Oct 21, 2013 5:34 pm __________<br /><br />Any true mint (mentha spp.) should be fine. Garden sage (Salvia officinalis) and even catnip (Nepeta cataria) will also help.

Giving her a diet of mainly grass hay and withholding the pellets will also help dry her up. It won't hurt her for a few days.

 

[owlsfriend]

good tip about the nail color. I will pass that on if I may.