question about 2 week old litter

[Rainey]

Berwick has a litter of 8 that were 2 weeks old on Monday. At ten days some had their eyes open. We were checking the nest daily and removing any wet/soiled material. I would have taken the nest box out Monday except that the temps had dropped so that even the days were below freezing and overnight down into the low teens. Yesterday noticed one kit with eyes crusty and shut. Brought it in, cleaned it up, eyes open and put it back out. This morning a different kit had eyes crusted shut. The one we'd cleaned yesterday was ok. This is our first ever experience of nest box eye. So I have 2 questions

Today will get above freezing and tonight but by the weekend it's back below again. Should we take out the nest box and figure they'll deal with the cold or leave it in for them to huddle in and just clean eyes as needed? (We took all the nesting material out and put in fresh hay this morning)

Any ideas on why this time we had a problem that we hadn't had in the previous 14 litters? We always clean nest boxes between uses, but the wood is rough and perhaps we're not getting it clean enough?

 

[macksmom98]

My climate is different, but we clean our wood nestboxes a couple of times a week and haven't had any problems, yet (knock on wood). I do have one who turned 2 weeks this past Monday, whose eyes have not opened at all yet. I am watching it really closely, and may start to help by applying a warm washcloth if they dont open soon. But I don't this sounds like the same thing you are dealing with....

 

[Rainey]

I went back and read a bunch of old threads on nest box eye and now I'm confused and somewhat worried.
One thing that was suggested as contributing to the problem was erratic weather and certainly we've had that since these kits were born. The other suggestion that it is a hereditary problem is more worrisome since I've just gotten to having all our breeding rabbits ones we've raised ourselves on natural feed.
Now I need to decide whether to just keep cleaning with chamomile tea or to get terramycin. And have decided reluctantly to leave their nest box in as they are mostly staying in it in this colder weather.
Any words of wisdom from the more experienced would be appreciated.

 

[MaggieJ]

There is no problem with leaving the nest-box in as long as the nesting materials are fresh and clean. I have always advised that a nest box be cleaned out, saving only the clean fur "blanket," on Day 9, just before their eyes start to open.

Fluctuating temperatures and humidity may be factors, but I've come to the conclusion that there is a genetic predisposition to nest-box eye and that, over time, it is a factor to be culled out, with the breeders being selected from the rabbits whose kits do not exhibit these symptoms. Just my take on the problem. :roll:

 

[Dood]

When I had it, it was obviously genetic as about 50% of the kits from the new buck, even in mixed litters, got it :angry:

Debris can also cause it or a scratch on the eye

If your pair have had other litters that were fine then I woulnt worry too much

 

[Zass]

Rainey, this weather is just nuts.

I'm a firm believer in genetic predisposition too, but...I just had a crusty eye kit in my harlis for the first time. :|
I cleaned it, and it was fine, no sign of infection and it didn't crust back up. Instead, a different kit had a crusty eye a few days later.
Cleaned and fine. No sign of infection.
It makes me suspect it isn't really nestbox eye we're seeing this time around.
I'm leaning towards intense temperature swings unless I see it happen again with the same doe.

When I had what I feel was genetic nestbox eye before, the eyes would crust back up over and over, and there seemed to be a slight eyelid deformity that was either the cause for increased infection risk, or else the result of the infection.