Kits dying

[TheAntebella]

Hello,
I am a newish breeder to Holland Lops. I had a litter that has been passing away every two days starting at the five week mark. Today they are six weeks and I lost the third kit out of five. They are indoors. Large xpen. Great mother. All equal size and witnessed eating and drinking. Fed oxbow young rabbit garden variety pellets with bene-bac every third day and probiotics every second day. They have timothy and alfalfa hay given to them (oxbow and small pet select brand.) Fresh water from a bowl. No bumps, lumps, tumors, bruises, abrasions. They are found in the exact same spot in the xpen with their feet outside of the bars. No diarrhea. Fine the day before and deceased the next. No blood noted in the intraoral cavity. They are also not rigor'd when I find them. Either it has passed or hasn't set in yet I'm not versed on the timeframe for that with rabbits. Thank you for any advice.

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

They are found in the exact same spot in the xpen with their feet outside of the bars.

What do you mean? Do you mean the feet are detached?

 

[TheAntebella]

What do you mean? Do you mean the feet are detached?

No just that their little back paws are sticking through the slats.

 

[northernnevadahollandlops]

Could be weaning enteritis? I have a friend who lost a lot of kits a couple months ago and it turned out to be moldy feed. Check your pellets and hay to make sure it isn't contaminated. Could there be a predator that is getting to them through the wires? Is the mom acting any different?

 

[MnCanary]

Is the mom still with the kits? Some people, myself included, have better results if the kits stay with the mom for 8 weeks.

 

[ladysown]

okay

So you can rule out failure to thrive since that would be gradual and noticeable.
You see no diarrhea or bloating, so not entropathic illness.

So then you need to look at other things
1. environmental. Do you run a diffuser in the house? Some EO's are toxic to small animals.
2. genetic. Get a foot caught, have a heart attack, hear a thump in the night, have a heart attack.
3. feed related, but that usually leaves some sign with rabbits, as in they'll go off feed, have the runs, blood in stool or urine, etc.
4. Other animals: do you have other animals in the house that could be "playing" or acting like a predator and they get scared.
5. is mama rabbit a bit of a jerk? It happens.

questions
why are you feeding benebac and probiotics to them?
I'm not familiar with garden variety oxbow. is it straight pellets or is it mixed pellets and "other stuff". Sometimes that other stuff includes corn and corn isn't good for rabbits overall, or has "fluffy coloured bits" which isn't good for them either. A straight pellet is best.

Do you feed hay, greens, mixed grains etc?

rigor happens quickly with rabbits.

 

[SixGun]

I see that you're raising them in an x-pen? I would say this is a health issue then. They're on the ground with feces and are probably getting a fatal load of bacteria or parasites. E. Coli, Coccidia, etc.

If you want to keep them on a solid floor I would recommend cleaning with bleach, daily, letting the bleach stay on the surface until it dries naturally. Then put them back in.

 

[TheAntebella]

okay

So you can rule out failure to thrive since that would be gradual and noticeable.
You see no diarrhea or bloating, so not entropathic illness.

So then you need to look at other things
1. environmental. Do you run a diffuser in the house? Some EO's are toxic to small animals.
2. genetic. Get a foot caught, have a heart attack, hear a thump in the night, have a heart attack.
3. feed related, but that usually leaves some sign with rabbits, as in they'll go off feed, have the runs, blood in stool or urine, etc.
4. Other animals: do you have other animals in the house that could be "playing" or acting like a predator and they get scared.
5. is mama rabbit a bit of a jerk? It happens.

questions
why are you feeding benebac and probiotics to them?
I'm not familiar with garden variety oxbow. is it straight pellets or is it mixed pellets and "other stuff". Sometimes that other stuff includes corn and corn isn't good for rabbits overall, or has "fluffy coloured bits" which isn't good for them either. A straight pellet is best.

Do you feed hay, greens, mixed grains etc?

rigor happens quickly with rabbits.

Yes they get Timothy hay and alfalfa hay. I do not feed them anything other than hay and pellets. The pellets don’t have anything in them they are just straight pellets. They were recommended by a vet which is why I chose that brand. No essential oils. The bene bac and probiotics were also recommended by a vet. No other animals. I’m at a loss. Lost another one today. They are almost eight weeks.

 

[Preitler]

I see that you're raising them in an x-pen? I would say this is a health issue then. They're on the ground with feces and are probably getting a fatal load of bacteria or parasites. E. Coli, Coccidia, etc.

If you want to keep them on a solid floor I would recommend cleaning with bleach, daily, letting the bleach stay on the surface until it dries naturally. Then put them back in.

No. That isn't a problem at all. It's a minority that uses wire cages, x-pens are not any risk per se. No fatal load of bacteria or parasites, not even in the very, very small solid wood hutches traditionally used over here.
My rabbits are everywhere, in their hutches, in the house, in the garden, underground when they decide to dig, no issue.

 

[TheAntebella]

No. That isn't a problem at all. It's a minority that uses wire cages, x-pens are not any risk per se. No fatal load of bacteria or parasites, not even in the very, very small solid wood hutches traditionally used over here.
My rabbits are everywhere, in their hutches, in the house, in the garden, underground when they decide to dig, no issue.

I could certainly change their living area to a wire cage- but it’s very clean with lots of room. I’ve been using this setup for a while with no issue with others.