MY DOE KINDLED 3 WKS AGO,THEN 4 DOA LAST NIGHT!WHAT HAPPENED

[Mummabear81]

My doe kindled 3 WKS ago,4 healthy kits that are still thriving today,However last night she had 4 foetus ones......
WHAT ON EARTH HAPPENED? I didn't think they could go again just 3 WKS after.. Can they keep the sperm in there & it release sometime later,is it possible for does to have 2 litters?

 

[Zass]

Sometimes some kits simply do not develop, and sometimes those kits are not expelled right away.

I believe it's actually quite common, but does have a tendency to clean them up before we ever see them.

 

[Mummabear81]

Oh okay thank you
The 4,3wk old ones were her 2nd litter & I was worried as they were so tiny,especially the peanut but as I said in my post all 4 are thriving now,especially the peanut who is no longer the 'peanut' anymore ,well in size at least lol but then to see 4 ones like that was quite a surprise as I certainly wasn't expecting more to just pop out like that but thank you again.its good to know these things,lessens the shock value I think

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

It's possible she was impregannted again after you first bred her - if you put them back together, or he was able to get her. They can carry 2 litters at once.


If she had undeveloped fetuses they would not be born 3 weeks after, maybe a few days but certainly not 3 weeks.

Edit: or it's possible she got pregnant after giving birth & miscarried

 

[akane]

They cannot carry 2 litters at once. Some kits develop faster than other kits and when they all come out it makes it look like they were bred at 2 different times for 2 different sets of kits. I should bookmark that thread with pics.....

It is not uncommon for rabbits to give birth to more kits at a later date but 3weeks is a long time. Lucky they didn't cause an infection. I'd watch her for signs of pyometra such as checking her genitals for discharge and pay extra attention to how much she keeps eating, drinking, and feeding her kits.

 

[Zass]

Here is a pic with some underdeveloped kits from a doe who was carrying 12. Nine viable kits (all lived) and three that were in various stages of development.
(the image only shows two)



I do know for a fact that embryos from one litter are carried in both horns of the uterus.
I was unlucky enough to have to euthanize a pregnant doe once, and decided to autopsy. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures..

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I agree that she likely was bred again just after kindling, especially if the kits were quite large. Does cannot carry two litters at once, but they CAN get pregnant immediately after they kindle.

If she had undeveloped fetuses they would not be born 3 weeks after, maybe a few days but certainly not 3 weeks.

I agree- they should have been expelled soon after if they were from the original litter. Sometimes animals do "mummify" their fetuses, and then are unable to carry a pregnancy (at least in that horn of the uterus). Sheep sometimes mummify their lambs and then are barren forever after.

I have no idea if this happens with rabbits, but it is a possibility.

Some kits develop faster than other kits and when they all come out it makes it look like they were bred at 2 different times for 2 different sets of kits. I should bookmark that thread with pics.....

If it was the one I posted, it is a sticky in breeding and record keeping:

fetal-kits-and-full-term-in-one-litter-graphic-pics-t22564.html

 

[akane]

I just lost a hedgehog that retained multiple fetuses 6months ago and mummified them. She had some issues with a litter over winter and then never got pregnant again. Her abdomen started expanding rapidly and found she had 3 of them in there and an infection had developed despite them becoming mummified. I had a guinea pig do it too but she lived another 5 years with her lump sticking out one side of the abdomen.