What to do with dead kits?

[Kenzierey]

I have been lucky and have not had a single kit die yet. But I have a new mother who is due to give birth next week and I don't have much faith in her. I am expecting some losses this time around.

Just wanted to know, what does everyone do with their dead kits? I am assuming most people just bury them. I was just wondering if anyone has any good uses for them. I like to use everything I can, whether it be bones for crafts, animal food, fertilizer, etc.. I am looking for any and all uses.

 

[Oscar]

I know it sounds like I'm a bad person but I don't have anywhere that my dogs won't eat them so I have to throw them into a trash can. I won't do that with the one I have now because he is my baby, but other wise the dogs will dig them up.

 

[Kenzierey]

I know it sounds like I'm a bad person but I don't have anywhere that my dogs won't eat them so I have to throw them into a trash can. I won't do that with the one I have now because he is my baby, but other wise the dogs will dig them up.

Doesn't sound bad at all! That's what a lot of people do. I would do that if my dogs were like that too. Luckily I have enough space and wooded area that I can bury whatever, wherever. But I don't want to discard them at all if I can find a better use for the bodies.

Do people ever freeze them for snake food? Is that ok to do? There's always people on CL looking for frozen feeder rats and mice. What about rabbit kits? Or is that ill-advised since they died of natural causes?

 

[wamplercathy]

I've lost a few to being born on the wire. After trying, unsuccessfully, to revive them I give them to our cat. At one point, this past winter I had a whole litter freeze, 9 in total. Stupid doe never recovered them after feeding them. :evil:

Anyways Thomas, our killer, got all the kits. Just placed them in his bowl outside. Waste not want not. :twisted:

 

[Kenzierey]

I've lost a few to being born on the wire. After trying, unsuccessfully, to revive them I give them to our cat. At one point, this past winter I had a whole litter freeze, 9 in total. Stupid doe never recovered them after feeding them. :evil:

Anyways Thomas, our killer, got all the kits. Just placed them in his bowl outside. Waste not want not. :twisted:

We have two dogs and 3 cats yet I don't think I could feed it to any of them. My dogs are babies and won't even touch raw food. I am slowly trying to introduce it but I tried feeding a kidney to my Aussie/Lab the other day and she just carried it around the yard daintily all day long. I think the chickens ended up stealing it from her.

As for the cats, they are my roomates' and I think they would kill me if I fed their cats a kit. I will certainly ask though. They seem to be the type of people who only trust man-made kibble and treats.

 

[alforddm]

I lost a litter of 7 this past winter. I froze them and was able to find a raptor rescue that was delighted to take them. If I lose or have to cull individual kits I generally just throw them over the fence into the cow pasture.

 

[Preitler]

Chickens. After seeing them hunting mice and doing The Copperfield with a dead rat in no time I'm sure they would enjoy a little bunny...

 

[Zass]

My dogs won't eat them fresh, but when frozen, they will crunch them right up.

 

[MaggieJ]

Snake or raptor food is a great idea. Feeding them to one's own dogs, cats or chickens is fine too. I agree with you, Kenzierey, that it is best to find a use for them if you can. But even burying them is not a waste--it all goes back to Mother Earth.

 

[ladysown]

all mine get frozen and they becomes

1. cat food
2. snake food.
3. raptor food

In that order.

 

[wamplercathy]

Our dogs love the heads on butcher day. :twisted:

 

[Truckinguy]

Mine go to the chickens and it keeps them occupied for as long as the body lasts. They gleefully play tag with it until it's all used up.

When I got chickens I thought they were cute and fun... they are still cute and fun but I've learned that they can be vicious and heartless too... just Nature's way, I guess...

 

[Deer Heart]

My dogs will gobble them up. All but the one, she wont touch anything that hasn't been cooked to death though.

The chickens and ducks clean up/fight over anything missed by the dogs. It all gets eaten immediately after death as usually my maremma is right there, knew of the losses before I did, and is anxious to get rid of the smell. I'm giving a doe her third chance right now as she's been a huge producer of dog food to the point there were too many even for the maremma. (2 litters so far, first was a full loss of a litter of 7, second was a loss of 7 with 3 survivors. Wonderful mother though, gladly fostered 3 mutts at 4 weeks, 4 from another NZW at 2 days old, and all with her own 3 kits and still looking as beautiful as the day I bred her)

 

[macksmom98]

Mine go in the compost pile if they are kits, and some animals, usually a cat or chicken, will come and eat them.....

 

[ladysown]

Mine go in the compost pile if they are kits, and some animals, usually a cat or chicken, will come and eat them.....

be careful doing this unless your compost is a good distance from your rabbitry...you can bring in rats, opossums, and other such critters that will bother your still living rabbits.

 

[Stephanie]

I have been just tossing them in the garbage. But, the idea of freezing them as snake food sounds interesting. I wonder if there might be a market for those?

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

I have been just tossing them in the garbage. But, the idea of freezing them as snake food sounds interesting. I wonder if there might be a market for those?

Check your local craigslist, or offer them in a freecycle, and there are FB pages devoted to raw feeding....

 

[Kenzierey]

Thank you all for your ideas. I am trying to slowly introduce raw to my Aussies so hopefully at some point in the future, that is where my dead kits will go. I am also in search of a barn kitten so if I ever find one, that will be a good solution to this too. I have some ravenous chickens as well so between the three, I am sure I won't be discarding any bodies!

I am also thinking I will possibly try to put them on Craigslist somewhere down the line, if I lose a litter or something. Kind of just curious to see if there is a market for that around here.

Again, thank you all for your responses I got some great ideas from this thread.

 

[skysthelimit]

fortunately my dogs eat everything, fur on if necessary.

 

[Kenzierey]

I was so right... Doe kindled today. Two dead babies. Yippee. Can't say I'm shocked. I had bad feelings about this litter since the beginning. It's day 30 and there is not much fur pulled and the doe is still grunting the way she has been all throughout the pregnancy so I am leaving the box in there and hoping for more but I am not hopeful whatsoever.

I did put the babies in the freezer but they are, for lack of a better term, yucky. One was all bloody and was not cleaned off at all. The other is bleeding out of it's mouth with it's bloody tongue sticking out.

For those of you who feed the dead kits to other animals, are there any instances where you would not feed the kits to a dog/cat/reptile?