Nursing Doe?

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Susie570

Susie570

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I feed both commercial and 'natural' food to our rabbits, so I wasn't really sure where to post this. I'm just wondering if I should give my nursing doe anything special? I just feed pellets and hay with supplements like, pieces of carrot, pieces of broccoli stems, kale and a few bites of banana (the nursing doe is absolutely NUTS over banana, but I just give her a few bites since I understand it can be bad for them). I don't give any of this stuff 'every day', it's more like 'regular treats'.
 
It also depends on her body condition.

I feed extra grains as I keep my does lean to begin with and I don't want them to loose too much condition during lactation

Alfalfa pellets are already high in calcium so unlike dogs and cats nursing rabbits usually don't need supplementation.
 
Mine get a mix of barley, oats, BOSS, wildbird seed, and flax seed.

I have just started experimenting with Calf Manna again after being very anti-corn for a long time, so they are currently getting about a teaspoon of that as well.

Parsley is good for bringing their milk in in the first couple of days (mostly because it causes uterine contractions, which in turn lets their milk down), but it can also dry a doe up, so I don't continue with it past that.
 
Zass":2m12f1v0 said:
It depends on how many kits a doe has. If she has a large litter I like to give her a little black oil sunflower seeds.
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What is a 'big litter'? She had 9 kits.

__________ Thu Feb 05, 2015 5:56 pm __________

OneAcreFarm":2m12f1v0 said:
A bit of BOSS or oats is good, and few treats like you mention won't hurt.
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I'm not sure what BOSS is? <br /><br /> __________ Thu Feb 05, 2015 6:02 pm __________ <br /><br /> I think we have some flax seeds, I might try giving her a little of that. The babies all seem pretty fat, but momma seems so excited about her snacks that I'm wondering if she might be craving something.
 
Nine or more is a big litter. Black oil sunflower seeds is shortened to BOSS. A tablespoon or so on top or as a treat from your hand. It is high in fat so if she is small use less. Just a couple tablespoons old fashioned oats as top dressing as well....congratulations on the litter.
 
katiebear":12q6j2vm said:
Nine or more is a big litter. Black oil sunflower seeds is shortened to BOSS. A tablespoon or so on top or as a treat from your hand. It is high in fat so if she is small use less. Just a couple tablespoons old fashioned oats as top dressing as well....congratulations on the litter.
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Thanks! She's on the small side. I would estimate her at maybe 4-5lbs, the buck is 6.5lbs I will try to find some of the sunflower oil. Any suggestions on where to find it? And oats, like slow cooking oats? Poor girl is probably ravenous. Lol I want to be careful about giving her new things, obviously. Thanks again!
 
Syberchick70":j9o2a0ai said:
She's on the small side. I would estimate her at maybe 4-5lbs
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If that is accurate, she has a HUGE litter. Smaller rabbits generally have smaller litters of 4-6 or so.

Syberchick70":j9o2a0ai said:
I will try to find some of the sunflower oil.
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It isn't the oil you want- BOSS is commonly sold for feeding wild birds. Tractor Supply Company carries it, as do stores like Walmart, etc.

Syberchick70":j9o2a0ai said:
And oats, like slow cooking oats?
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Yes, those would be fine. I personally buy livestock oats (50lbs. at a time) since I have so many rabbits.

Syberchick70":j9o2a0ai said:
Lol I want to be careful about giving her new things, obviously.
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Good thinking. It is always good to introduce new foods slowly, but that especially applies to fresh foods like greens, vegis, and fruit. :)


.
 
Katiebear pretty much said exactly what I was going to.
9 is huge for small rabbits! Flax is as good as boss so far as I'm concerned. For boss, you want the black sunflower seeds with the shell. Find them anywhere the sells birdseed.
They eat them whole, shell and all, like rabbit candy.

The boss and oats are so commonly recommended because they rarely cause a digestive upset.

Boss can cause cecal overproduction in some rabbits because it's a bit rich. Lactating does tend to turn the fat into milk and have less trouble. Sometimes my kits will get a messy backside after getting into their mother's boss.
 
I never would have thought that I could give bun whole sunflower seeds! So just give her a small spoonful of seeds and a small spoonful of oats once/dat? I'll try to pick some up today. Maybe I'll weigh her today and see How much she actually weighs. I know she's a good bit smaller than the buck. <br /><br /> __________ Sat Feb 07, 2015 1:45 pm __________ <br /><br /> So, today I gave River (momma) a little bit of flax, but at the same time, I was realizing that, if anything, she looks fat at the moment. Is it normal for lactating does to get fat? I hope she isn't carrying a second litter (possibly re-bred during her first pregnancy??). There is no chance she was rebred after kindling. I did a gentle palpation but didn't feel anything unusual, but then I was being gentle with her.

I've been letting her eat as much as she wants from her pellet feed and hay. The hay is just horse hay (grass hay) and the pellet feed is the cheap 'Producer's Pride' from Tractor Supply.

Also, I weighed her and she weighs about 5.5lbs.

Here are a couple of pictures of her today... of course she's sitting kind of humped up and that makes her look fatter, but you get the idea.

River - Day11b.jpg
River - Day 11.jpg
 
If you can see daylight underneath her when she moves around and does not have stomach rolls, doesn't look like a rabbit on a penguin's body, you can feel her spine nicely without feeling boney, she'd doing alright. Keep free feeding her and make sure her water is constant! My nursing doe is eating three times as much as normal and going through 3-4 water crocks a day of water. River is doing a lot of hard work feeding those babies and I doubt she'll get fat on you LOL. After my doe kindled she seemed really greens hungry and it was suggested that I try some kale, beet greens and beets. She loved all of those but she really took after spinach and swiss chard for a few days.
 
Thank you! Yeah, she does seem especially hungry for greens right now. I'm giving her grass that I pull from the yard (we don't use any pesticides of course), a bit of kale, a little broccoli... and she's especially crazy for banana! But I only give her a few bites of it a day. She makes the funniest face when she eatslol! Lol She has a large water bottle that I keep full. I also have a bowl of water she can drink from when she runs around. She loves to gulp water from the bowl and makes a funny squeaking sound when she does. I guess if she had re-bred while pregnant, I would be able to easily feel the kits by now. I laughed out loud at your fat bunny descriptions. :)
 
Wow! She was a big girl! Sounds like you got her weight under control now though? Post a recent pic. :) What was I reading about putting Apple cider vinegar in their water? Should you do that for all rabbits? How much, etc?
 
Rabbits can not get pregnant while they are pregnant..this is a myth. Yes the uterus has two horns but both are used at the same time.. there is a thread in breeding section that addresses this myth...
Your rabbit can not get fat while nursing 6 babies....if she doesn't get enough to eat her body will begin to break down it's muscle to produce milk. Please do not stop the free feed of your doe until the kits are eating on their own.
Apple cider vinegar is 2 Tablespoons per gallon of water. I do it for all my rabbits..it helps keep them in good condition it aids in digestion and keeps the urine acidified so the smell is not so strong.
She is a pretty bun.. and a great producer. Treat her kindly... :)
 
katiebear":3rlmq0o5 said:
Rabbits can not get pregnant while they are pregnant..this is a myth. Yes the uterus has two horns but both are used at the same time.. there is a thread in breeding section that addresses this myth...
Your rabbit can not get fat while nursing 6 babies....if she doesn't get enough to eat her body will begin to break down it's muscle to produce milk. Please do not stop the free feed of your doe until the kits are eating on their own.
Apple cider vinegar is 2 Tablespoons per gallon of water. I do it for all my rabbits..it helps keep them in good condition it aids in digestion and keeps the urine acidified so the smell is not so strong.
She is a pretty bun.. and a great producer. Treat her kindly... :)
Click to expand...

Wow, I am SO relieved to hear that! Lol I have been really stressed about it. Thank you for the kind words and advice. I will start mixing acv water for my buns. I have to admit, it's tempting to get another litter from her since this one has gone so well. I don't think we will have any problem selling the kits as pets. However, River is three years old. Isn't that on the mature side for breeding a doe? If I did decide to get another litter from her, I would wait a while before breeding her again.
 

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