So your doe has finally kindled? That's fantastic! Here is everything you should expect as the kits mature, and what you should be doing to give them the best possible start in life. :)
At birth, kits are blind, deaf, bald, and totally helpless. Because rabbits have a gestation period of only a month, the kits don't have a long time to develop, so they are basically fetuses for their first week or so of life. At birth they are helpless, and can only nurse, sleep, urinate, and defecate. They like having siblings to snuggle up against, so if you have a 'singleton' born, see if you can foster over a kit of the same age. Litters of 2 or more are far more likely to survive than singletons.
You may get a DOA or two, this isn't a huge concern. Just make sure you remove them as soon as you can, once the mother has finished kindling and has settled down. If the doe has her litter on the wire, wait until she has finished kindling and put them in the nestbox. Remove the mother from the cage before you do this so she doesn't maul you. ;)
If you see a kit that is not breathing but isn't flattened and stretched out, don't automatically assume it is a DOA. If blood hasn't pooled in the nails, it may actually be alive. To warm it up, put it on a hot water bottle or cradle it on your chest (inside your clothes so it gets your body heat). You can also gently rub its chest. Sometimes, unfortunately, there's nothing you can do, and in these cases, you can remove and dispose of the dead kit.
Many people automatically assume that their doe has rejected her kits just because they never see her interact with them. Actually, a doe rejecting her offspring is HIGHLY uncommon. The dam will only feed once or twice in 24 hours, usually in the night hours. In the wild, does only feed at night so as to not attract predators to their nest. So don't be surprised if you never see the doe feed her litter!
Ideally, you want to see the kits with very rounded, chubby bellies. NOT blimps, but definitely on the fat side. This means mom is feeding them well. If the kits seem to be skinny and wrinkled, this may mean mom hasn't fed them in a while. Don't stress about it too much unless it becomes apparent she hasn't fed them in the past 24 hours or so. I have heard from others that young kits can survive up to 72 hours without feeding. They will also fuss a lot, squeaking and popping up and down if they are hungry. If the kits are skinny but are lethargic, this could be caused by one of several things. Sometimes, kits just randomly die at this young age, and there's nothing to be done about it. It's sad, but it's a fact of nature. If it is a dwarf breed from a true dwarf to true dwarf mating, then it could also be a peanut. These tend to have weak back legs, misshapen heads, and lack energy. They are also very small. Peanuts always die. It could also theoretically mean that the kits haven't been fed in several days, but this isn't likely.
Kits sometimes look a bit skinny for the first 5 or so days of life, as the mother doesn't produce a lot of milk at this time. This is because it reduces the risk of mastitis if her litter dies within those first few days. So don't worry too much if they aren't super fat. BUT...if a singleton kit is starting to resemble Baymax from Big Hero 6, now is probably the time to find it a foster littermate. ;)
If you are certain that a doe isn't feeding her kits, try taking her and the kits out of the cage, and put the nestbox on a table. Place the doe in the nestbox, and hopefully she should feed the kits. If she resists this, you can also hold her on your lap on a blanket, and put the kits underneath her. If she still is really resisting, you could also flip her over on her back and have a friend hold down her back legs while you place kits on her to nurse, usually one at a time. If she continues to be a bad mother past this point, you can always consider fostering the litter to another doe with a litter of a similar age. Only do this for the first week or so of life; any later and the foster mother will recognize that the kit isn't hers and may attack it.
Young kits are very sensitive to cold, so you must make sure that they are always kept somewhere fairly warm. Chilled kits can very easily die. If a kit feels cold, press it up against your skin (I stick em in my bra), as natural heat tends to warm them up more safely and effectively than artificial heat such as heat lamps or hot water bottles.
From 0-4 days old, try and handle the kits as little as possible. You don't want to upset the mother. You will however want to check on them about once a day and remove any dead kits immediately. I also like to completely clean out the nestbox when the kits are about 2 or 3 days old as I doubt it is very sanitary in there! I save the fluff that mom pulled and put it in the freshly cleaned-out nestbox. Don't worry about your scent getting on the kits, that's totally fine. Just don't mess with her babies, and she won't mess with you. ;)
At this age, it is possible to foster kits into the litter. Distract the mom with some pellets or something while you remove the nestbox and place the new kit(s) in there. That way she won't realize they aren't hers.
When you first handle the litter, count how many babies there are, and record colors if you're good at that sort of thing. Count numbers of stillborns, peanuts, Max factors, false dwarfs, true dwarfs, etc.. Record anything significant. You'll be happy you did.
The kits will start to grow 'peach fuzz' at about 2 days old. The fuzz will get longer and longer, and will start to feel really silky and soft by the time they are a week old. They get stronger and feistier each day, until at 10-14 days old, they begin to open their eyes. They are so adorable at this age, so take lots of photos! If their eyes haven't opened by 14 days old, take a damp tissue and gently wiping some of the crustiness away to encourage the eye to open.
At around 18-22 days old (rough estimate), the kits will also start popping out of the nestbox. Just gently place them back in whenever you notice them, especially if it's cold. Eventually, once they start popping out constantly, you can take the nestbox out You will see the mother start to interact with her litter more, especially as they get stronger and start chasing her around the cage in search of milk! At around the same time as they start to open their eyes, they will start to slowly begin to hear. You will see their ears quivering as they respond to the sound of your voice. At this age most kits will be regularly escaping the nestbox and will start nibbling on solid food. Provide plenty of hay and pellets for them to explore. They also like sitting in the food bowls. :)
Don't introduce ANY new foods aside from hay and pellets. Greens, fruits, treats, grass, and most supplements could VERY easily kill them. Kits have extremely sensitive digestive systems at this young age. If you plan on feeding any of the above, please wait until the kit is at least 6 months old or so.
Once the kits are escaping the nestbox constantly, you can remove it. Some people like to place it on its side, but my does like hopping on top of the nestboxes and could very easily accidentally pounce on a kit when they hop off. Accidents with these sort of things do happen. I just take out the nestbox at this point and put a handful of shavings, hay, and Litter Saver (you can get this from KW Cages) in the corner for them to snuggle in. At this age, they start to hop more than walk.
As the days progress, you will start to see more rabbit behaviors, such as grooming and licking. Many of my kits like to lick my nose! You will start to see personalities emerge, and will notice which are the feistiest and which are the most laid-back. This is such a fun and exciting time. You can handle the kits several times a day to get them used to interacting with humans.
Once the kits hit 4-6 weeks old, this is the critical period for weaning, as this is the time when they stop drinking their mother's milk. At this age, some kits just can't make the transition. These are called faders. Faders really cannot be saved, please do not attempt to do so as they never thrive, and often randomly die at a young age.
At 4-6 weeks, kits are SUPER SUPER sensitive to any change, so whatever you do, do not change anything. Don't mess with them too much, don't let them play outside their cage, don't change their food, don't do anything. Still handle them every day, but keep the stress level to a minimum so they are less likely to die. Aside from straight after birth, this is the stage when the most kits die.
Feed TONS of hay to prevent something called weaning enteritis. Be on the lookout for runny poop. If you spot any, many people feed a probiotic paste. I don't do this as I want the healthiest, strongest kits to survive, but whatever floats your boat. With these sort of things, it's every breeder's decision to make for themselves.
Once the kits are successfully weaned onto solid food, you can separate them from their dam. This can be done sometime between 7-8 weeks old. We want weaning to be a gradual process, so take the mom from the cage rather than the kits from the cage. You can gradually begin to separate the kits out into their own individual cages around 8 weeks old. I sometimes leave my keepers until closer to 10 weeks so they get the extra time with their mom. But whatever you do, do NOT sell them before they are AT LEAST 8 weeks old. Not only is it dangerous to the kits, but it is also against the law in most states.
Parting note...make sure that you handle your kits a lot. Practice flipping them over on their backs, posing them, and checking their eyes, nose, ears, nails etc.. This will make them easy to handle as adults. It also makes them way more social and friendly. :)
At birth, kits are blind, deaf, bald, and totally helpless. Because rabbits have a gestation period of only a month, the kits don't have a long time to develop, so they are basically fetuses for their first week or so of life. At birth they are helpless, and can only nurse, sleep, urinate, and defecate. They like having siblings to snuggle up against, so if you have a 'singleton' born, see if you can foster over a kit of the same age. Litters of 2 or more are far more likely to survive than singletons.
You may get a DOA or two, this isn't a huge concern. Just make sure you remove them as soon as you can, once the mother has finished kindling and has settled down. If the doe has her litter on the wire, wait until she has finished kindling and put them in the nestbox. Remove the mother from the cage before you do this so she doesn't maul you. ;)
If you see a kit that is not breathing but isn't flattened and stretched out, don't automatically assume it is a DOA. If blood hasn't pooled in the nails, it may actually be alive. To warm it up, put it on a hot water bottle or cradle it on your chest (inside your clothes so it gets your body heat). You can also gently rub its chest. Sometimes, unfortunately, there's nothing you can do, and in these cases, you can remove and dispose of the dead kit.
Many people automatically assume that their doe has rejected her kits just because they never see her interact with them. Actually, a doe rejecting her offspring is HIGHLY uncommon. The dam will only feed once or twice in 24 hours, usually in the night hours. In the wild, does only feed at night so as to not attract predators to their nest. So don't be surprised if you never see the doe feed her litter!
Ideally, you want to see the kits with very rounded, chubby bellies. NOT blimps, but definitely on the fat side. This means mom is feeding them well. If the kits seem to be skinny and wrinkled, this may mean mom hasn't fed them in a while. Don't stress about it too much unless it becomes apparent she hasn't fed them in the past 24 hours or so. I have heard from others that young kits can survive up to 72 hours without feeding. They will also fuss a lot, squeaking and popping up and down if they are hungry. If the kits are skinny but are lethargic, this could be caused by one of several things. Sometimes, kits just randomly die at this young age, and there's nothing to be done about it. It's sad, but it's a fact of nature. If it is a dwarf breed from a true dwarf to true dwarf mating, then it could also be a peanut. These tend to have weak back legs, misshapen heads, and lack energy. They are also very small. Peanuts always die. It could also theoretically mean that the kits haven't been fed in several days, but this isn't likely.
Kits sometimes look a bit skinny for the first 5 or so days of life, as the mother doesn't produce a lot of milk at this time. This is because it reduces the risk of mastitis if her litter dies within those first few days. So don't worry too much if they aren't super fat. BUT...if a singleton kit is starting to resemble Baymax from Big Hero 6, now is probably the time to find it a foster littermate. ;)
If you are certain that a doe isn't feeding her kits, try taking her and the kits out of the cage, and put the nestbox on a table. Place the doe in the nestbox, and hopefully she should feed the kits. If she resists this, you can also hold her on your lap on a blanket, and put the kits underneath her. If she still is really resisting, you could also flip her over on her back and have a friend hold down her back legs while you place kits on her to nurse, usually one at a time. If she continues to be a bad mother past this point, you can always consider fostering the litter to another doe with a litter of a similar age. Only do this for the first week or so of life; any later and the foster mother will recognize that the kit isn't hers and may attack it.
Young kits are very sensitive to cold, so you must make sure that they are always kept somewhere fairly warm. Chilled kits can very easily die. If a kit feels cold, press it up against your skin (I stick em in my bra), as natural heat tends to warm them up more safely and effectively than artificial heat such as heat lamps or hot water bottles.
From 0-4 days old, try and handle the kits as little as possible. You don't want to upset the mother. You will however want to check on them about once a day and remove any dead kits immediately. I also like to completely clean out the nestbox when the kits are about 2 or 3 days old as I doubt it is very sanitary in there! I save the fluff that mom pulled and put it in the freshly cleaned-out nestbox. Don't worry about your scent getting on the kits, that's totally fine. Just don't mess with her babies, and she won't mess with you. ;)
At this age, it is possible to foster kits into the litter. Distract the mom with some pellets or something while you remove the nestbox and place the new kit(s) in there. That way she won't realize they aren't hers.
When you first handle the litter, count how many babies there are, and record colors if you're good at that sort of thing. Count numbers of stillborns, peanuts, Max factors, false dwarfs, true dwarfs, etc.. Record anything significant. You'll be happy you did.
The kits will start to grow 'peach fuzz' at about 2 days old. The fuzz will get longer and longer, and will start to feel really silky and soft by the time they are a week old. They get stronger and feistier each day, until at 10-14 days old, they begin to open their eyes. They are so adorable at this age, so take lots of photos! If their eyes haven't opened by 14 days old, take a damp tissue and gently wiping some of the crustiness away to encourage the eye to open.
At around 18-22 days old (rough estimate), the kits will also start popping out of the nestbox. Just gently place them back in whenever you notice them, especially if it's cold. Eventually, once they start popping out constantly, you can take the nestbox out You will see the mother start to interact with her litter more, especially as they get stronger and start chasing her around the cage in search of milk! At around the same time as they start to open their eyes, they will start to slowly begin to hear. You will see their ears quivering as they respond to the sound of your voice. At this age most kits will be regularly escaping the nestbox and will start nibbling on solid food. Provide plenty of hay and pellets for them to explore. They also like sitting in the food bowls. :)
Don't introduce ANY new foods aside from hay and pellets. Greens, fruits, treats, grass, and most supplements could VERY easily kill them. Kits have extremely sensitive digestive systems at this young age. If you plan on feeding any of the above, please wait until the kit is at least 6 months old or so.
Once the kits are escaping the nestbox constantly, you can remove it. Some people like to place it on its side, but my does like hopping on top of the nestboxes and could very easily accidentally pounce on a kit when they hop off. Accidents with these sort of things do happen. I just take out the nestbox at this point and put a handful of shavings, hay, and Litter Saver (you can get this from KW Cages) in the corner for them to snuggle in. At this age, they start to hop more than walk.
As the days progress, you will start to see more rabbit behaviors, such as grooming and licking. Many of my kits like to lick my nose! You will start to see personalities emerge, and will notice which are the feistiest and which are the most laid-back. This is such a fun and exciting time. You can handle the kits several times a day to get them used to interacting with humans.
Once the kits hit 4-6 weeks old, this is the critical period for weaning, as this is the time when they stop drinking their mother's milk. At this age, some kits just can't make the transition. These are called faders. Faders really cannot be saved, please do not attempt to do so as they never thrive, and often randomly die at a young age.
At 4-6 weeks, kits are SUPER SUPER sensitive to any change, so whatever you do, do not change anything. Don't mess with them too much, don't let them play outside their cage, don't change their food, don't do anything. Still handle them every day, but keep the stress level to a minimum so they are less likely to die. Aside from straight after birth, this is the stage when the most kits die.
Feed TONS of hay to prevent something called weaning enteritis. Be on the lookout for runny poop. If you spot any, many people feed a probiotic paste. I don't do this as I want the healthiest, strongest kits to survive, but whatever floats your boat. With these sort of things, it's every breeder's decision to make for themselves.
Once the kits are successfully weaned onto solid food, you can separate them from their dam. This can be done sometime between 7-8 weeks old. We want weaning to be a gradual process, so take the mom from the cage rather than the kits from the cage. You can gradually begin to separate the kits out into their own individual cages around 8 weeks old. I sometimes leave my keepers until closer to 10 weeks so they get the extra time with their mom. But whatever you do, do NOT sell them before they are AT LEAST 8 weeks old. Not only is it dangerous to the kits, but it is also against the law in most states.
Parting note...make sure that you handle your kits a lot. Practice flipping them over on their backs, posing them, and checking their eyes, nose, ears, nails etc.. This will make them easy to handle as adults. It also makes them way more social and friendly. :)