Weaning, new litters and potential for mastitis?

[EnglishSpot]

This weekend I moved Lexi's 4 wk litter to grow out, since Lexi is due to kindle again in a couple days. I've been rotating a kit or two with her to keep her from getting mastitis. Last night she went all aggressive on one of her kits, growling and bowling him over and working into a proper rabbit rage. I restrained Lexi and snatched the kit out of the cage.

She's not due to kindle for at least two more days and I'm worried that she'll develop mastitis and will be unable to nurse her next set of kits. Could her rabbit rage due to lack of nursing six kits and unable to take the pressure off with just one nursing, or could it be that this close to having another set of kits she's just done with this bunch?

I would appreciate your answers, I am worried.

What would be the signs of mastitis manifesting?

 

[Dood]

Have you felt her teats to see if they engorged? My does are pretty empty by 4 weeks and kits don't get much except comfort from nursing.

I suspect she is agressive as she is nearing the end of her pregnancy and her priorities have switched to her new litter

I also doubt she could get severe mastitis in 2 days as the newborns should relieve the pressure

 

[EnglishSpot]

Thank you thank you thank you for the quick reply!!!

They aren't engorged, and her appetite has picked up again (it had dropped off the last week or so). Perhaps this would be due to the next round of kits? The 4 wk litter was pretty much chowing down on hay, oats and some pellets by 3 weeks.

At what point are does most vulnerable to mastitis?

 

[Marinea]

I have yet to have a doe with mastitis, but I would think the best chance of it would be a doe losing a very young litter. If that happened to one of mine, and I had no kits to foster over, I would give the doe some mint for a while.

 

[Dood]

I believe it is more common in the first week of lactation.

I've had an experienced doe get early signs of mastitis when she lost a litter to cold because she did not pull any fur

At the time I didn't think anything of it but when she started acting odd I saw the swollen teats and pulled 4 runts from the other 2 litters I had at the time (in case the milk was bad I didnt want to jeopardize others) but it was fine and after a couple days I gave her a couple more kits to feed to even out the litters.

From now on I always split litters if a doe looses hers but my rabbits are very heavy milkers and I don't think all does would have such issues.