Too much

We were pleased a couple of weeks ago to rescue a newborn Holland and return him to his nestbox. Sadly, he was the only one of his litter who survived.... and that didn't turn out so well.

I've had some breeders tell me that it's impossible to save single babies because they don't have litter mates to keep them warm. Well, we haven't really had problems with that. If I put a reflector lamp (like the one pictured in this post) with a 75-watt light bulb on top of the cage, focusing the heat of the light bulb on the baby, it usually survives nicely.

(Please be very careful using a reflector lamp. It must be well secured or it could start a fire.)

And the little rescued Holland did fine under the light. However, another problem arose. We've had it before but not this bad and we decided this time to figure out how to handle it.

The mother of this little baby is a fine mama with lots of milk. Way too much milk for one baby. But the little baby, alternately known as Piggy and Tubbo, has engorged himself on milk.

That fat little tummy of his pressed his back legs to the side so that now, at 2 weeks of age, he has permanently splayed legs. Because it's warm enough in the rabbit barn, we took him out of his nestbox early and put a piece of carpet in his cage to help him get more exercise.

We hoped once he lost that big belly, the legs would pull back in line. They haven't.

After talking with some other breeders, here's what we'll do the next time we have a single:
1. Leave the nestbox with the mama for the first couple of days, until she gets used to caring fo the baby.
2. Then pull the nestbox out of the cage, placing it in a safe place (as from cats or other predators) with a light on it for heat.
3. Return the nestbox to the mother once a day. Watch until she's fed the baby, then pull the nestbox out again.

Hopefully, this will prevent another occurrence of moose-itis in a single baby.

Eeny, meeny, miney, moe....

My friend, Patty, and I got together Sunday afternoon to compare bunnies. Having friends who also show and love Hollands makes it so much easier to continue this hobby. Two hours flew by as we evaluated litters and compared bucks.

An issue we discussed for a little while was how to choose between bunnies. For example, one of my litters has two broken does. They're similar in composition but one has better width/bone while the other has better headset/shoulders. I opted for the second one but sent the first to Patty. We figure we can't lose either way.

But it does raise a good question: how do you choose which traits to prefer? In my case, I chose the better headset/shoulders because that's an area that I'm trying to improve in my herd. I have several animals with good width/bone but not so many with good headsets.

I hedged my bets, though, by sending the second one with Patty, knowing that if she turns out better (the doe, not Patty! Patty is turning out just fine.), I can probably get something back.

We also tried to select between two senior bucks. Both were torts. One is very typey, nice balance, nice pose, nice head and ears and crown. But he's rougher over the topline and hindquarters. We even poured over his pedigree to figure that out, because his father has a phenomenal hindquarter and his mother was decent in that department.

But we compared him to a second buck with a smooth, short body and good depth of shoulder, although his ears are narrow (OK, his crown is narrow from front to back) and his crown is slipped. His body is far superior to the first buck but his type and head aren't. For now, we sidestepped this decision, too.

Patty took the first buck home to breed to some of her does with great hindquarters. Maybe we can get it worked out in his offspring. (See why it's good to work together?)

So how do you choose between animals when their traits are different? How do you choose which traits to give higher value to? You could go purely by the ARBA Standards - rating the animal as a judge would and keeping the highest score. You could choose the animal that may bring a trait you need in your herd. I'd like to hear your program.

Feed decisions

I belong to several internet rabbit lists, which are really helpful in getting advice and ideas for raising bunnies. One of the questions that comes up frequently is which feed is the best to use.

I often get asked that from my customers. Whether 4-H youth or pet owners, they want to know what to feed.

I feed Penpals 16% feed. We've used it for nearly four years now, partly because we've had good consistent feed and partly because the feed store has two very helpful, friendly employees. I make sure those employees know how much we appreciate the consistent feed, because it seems like one of the biggest problems with pelleted feed is weird stuff that got dumped into the bag.

I've heard that breeders tend to breed for their feed, meaning they cull those rabbits who don't do well on the feed and keep those who do. Frankly, I'm afraid to jump from feed to feed to find out.

There are other good feeds out there; I'm not endorsing Penpals. But here are some ideas on choosing your feed:

• Avoid 18% protein feed with Holland Lops.
• Plan to feed a pellet. Don't try to mix your own feed. That takes a complex understanding of feed ingredients.
• Check around and compare prices. But don't automatically choose the cheapest feed. Compare feed bag labels, especially on protein and fiber. But also notice additives like yucca and yeast, especially if you want a show herd.
• Try to maintain a working relationship with your feed dealer so that he or she knows what you need. If you're a regular (and not a chronic complaining) customer, your dealer is more likely to help if you have problems with feed.
• If you change feeds, do it gradually or you'll probably throw your herd into a molt. Try to mix 1/4 new feed with 3/4 old feed for four days, then go half and half for four days, then 3/4 new and 1/4 for four days. Then you're there.
• Train your rabbit to a treat so that if even if the rabbit goes off feed for some reason, it has another food it might try to eat. Some examples of good treats are sliced banana or apple, fresh parsley sprigs, dry (non-sugar) cereal like Cheerios or Chex.
• Avoid green vegetables as treats. Don't give your bunnies lettuce or spinach or similar dark green veggies.
• Protect your feed from bugs and mice. We put our feed in a trash can with a lid.

We feed our Hollands 1/2 cup (about 4 ounces) of pellets per day except the nursing mamas who get their pellets free choice.

Feeding a Holland can be pretty easy but it's an area that can go sour on you. Take care of your feed decisions and those Hollands will be happy little lops.

Choices

One of my favorite activites with the Hollands is the 6-week checkup. Although I have usually sexed the litter by then, I have tried hard not to make judgments on their type. Every 4-week-old baby looks great so I try to wait. I love the surprise when I find a special one.

I've been anxiously watching a litter of 5 because their head and ears and crowns were promising. The ears were short and wide, the crowns already nicely defined, the heads round. But when they came out for their photos and 6-week check, we discovered some disappointments.

They couldn't pose for their photos. Once I realized that they weren't just being nervous but actually couldn't, I saw that they had weak shoulders. They also had long bodies and rough toplines.

In the end, I didn't keep any of them. Here are some photos to show you what I mean:

Here's the best pose any in the litter could do.
I see a low headset and weak shoulders.

This was as good as this baby could do, with me holding his head. Once I moved my hand, his head dropped back to the table. He had length of shoulder, too.Here's a typical pose for the litter. Too flat, too long, too rough for my taste. But, oh, the ears were tempting.....

Missing on the agouti

Well, Kisses missed. She's a nice broken tort doe who has been bred (twice, but who's counting?) to a beautiful chestnut agouti buck.

Both times, she had to travel a long ways to meet the buck. I knew she had missed the first time but had felt babies when I palpated her on the second breeding. Or thought I felt babies. I don't know if she absorbed the babies after the palpation or if my fingers were very hopeful when I palpated.

So the agouti project is on hold for now. None in my barn, which is, by the way, getting taken over by Timothy's black otter project. But that's a whole 'nother issue.

How often do I give a doe before considering her failed? Although I'll tell you three times, really the answer depends on how badly I want babies from her. Kisses isn't vital to my agouti project (I have plenty of torts!), she has produced some nice babies in her day.

So she may not be down two strikes right now. She lifted well for Bosco, a broken tort buck who is a fine buck to linebreed with. We'll see how it goes without the travel time.

But I'm still hopeful to get an agouti in the barn!

When to move on

Yesterday I told the sad tale of Tippie, our wonderful foundation brood doe who is having trouble conceiving. Although we haven't yet given up on her, we are starting to discuss "what if...."

As I said yesterday, Tippie is behind most of our barn's pedigrees and we're just discovering the benefits of linebreeding her offspring. She's birthed several grand champions and we were greedy: we wanted more.

But if she is done, what next?

I suspect my good friend Patty would reserve a special cage for her and allow her to live out her natural life with honor and respect. Not a bad solution.

It creates a problem for us, since we are always struggling with cage space. Can we afford to give a cage to a non-producing doe when we have so many promising younger animals?

Some breeders who are past their prime make good pets and can be given or sold to someone looking for a pet. We're not sure if Tippie qualifies, although she has mellowed since the day she nipped my hand for handling her too many times. Her patience ran thin after being wormed, checked for fur mites, enduring a toenail trim, and finally weighed.

That was after assuring Timothy that Tippie only threatened to bite; she never did it. Uh-huh. Timothy refused to pull her out of her cage without leather gloves after that.
Although I think that's overkill, I'm not sure Tippie would make a good pet.

She's too big to be a show animal for youth.

So, ultimately, we may have to decide if we make her cage into a museum or if we get rid of her. In this case, I mean euthanizing. That is the stomach-churning side of Hollands because they're really too small to be a meal. If a meat rabbit, they'd have some purpose, but a 5 lb. Holland is more like a cornish game hen than a full-size chicken, as far as meals go.

I hope this a decision to be postponed but it's one of the decisions that face a rabbit breeder. Let me know if you have any other suggestions.

When a doe thinks retirement

Tippie may be finished and we're not so happy about it.

Tippie is a 5 lb brood doe with a grumpy disposition. But if you shake out most of the pedigrees in our barn, Tippie's name falls out several times. She's helped our herd immensely with her nice pose and solid body.

But now she's three years old and not conceiving. Tippie loves pregnancy and is a wonderful mother, but her last litter is nearly 6 months old now and, although she lifts for the buck, she has not conceived.

If it were any other doe, we'd have given up on her before now. But we're still trying some tricks to see if we can get her started again.

Here are some things we've done to help:

• Artificial light in the barn. Even though it's spring, when does think, "time for babies..." we keep a light on in the barn.
• Wheat germ oil. After reviving a doe who refused to breed for several months, I always try this. I dribble a few drops on their treats about once a week.
• Apple cider vinegar in the drinking water. I use 1 teaspoon per gallon of water.
• Place the doe beside a buck's pen. Although I have not had problems with Tippie lifting for a buck, sometimes does refuse to lift. This can help get them in the mood.
• Swap cages. Putting the doe in the buck's pen and the buck in the doe's pen for a couple of days often helps. When the doe gets a good scent of the buck's special cologne, she is often more receptive to him.
• Cut back on feed. A fat doe doesn't conceive well and so we check the flesh condition. A diet may help a doe.
• Exercise. We sometimes wedge a 2x4 board from corner to corner in a cage, forcing the bunny to hop over the board to get to food and water.

I've probably forgotten something so feel free to add your comments and hints to the list.

Tomorrow I'll discuss what to do when it's over for a special doe.

Babies coming slowly

We're waiting out a first-time doe this evening. She was due to deliver today and had a single on the wire this morning, dead on arrival. Although the doe seemed pretty calm as though she were finished, we palpated her. Sure enough, there was at least one more undelivered.

So we waited.

Does can go late and we don't generally bother one until she's at least 3 days past her due date. (This assumes that I am very sure about the breeding date.) At 3-4 days, if nothing has happened, we palpate her again. Once in a while, she's re-absorbed babies.

If she is pregnant, we will then re-breed her to a buck. Often that stimulation from the breeding will induce labor. If that hasn't worked by the next day, we will try oxytocin. Now we're not veterinarians and we're not recommending this, because we can't. I'm just telling you what we do.

We give 0.2 cc oxytocin subcutaneously. Usually the first dose starts labor but we are willing to give a second dose a half hour after the first dose. We stay with the doe for at least an hour when we do this because she will invariably deliver babies on the wire. We have to be there to have any chance of saving babies born on the wire.

But we're not expecting live babies at this point. Our goal is to get the babies delivered. A retained baby can poison the mother or, if somehow mummified, prevent future pregnancies.

Others massage the mother's tummy to stimulate labor or use different herbs or natural treatments. Those are good ideas but we're not experts on those. If you use any, would you post those here? I'm always looking for new ideas.

Naming

I'm still at that stage of raising rabbits where I love naming the babies. I don't know if I'll ever get to calling them by their tattoo number. Somehow, cooing something like "you're a handsome young buck, Mr. TO12," just doesn't appeal to me.

I don't name the babies, however, until I've decided to keep them. The pets have to wait for their new owner to christen them. And I save the names I like best for the really good babies. It's harder to cull a baby with a cool name.

I like to line-name my babies. For example, my doe named Tippie has several daughters: Taylor, Tripod, Twilly, Tinsel. When I see a doe whose name starts with "T," I know she comes from Tippie. That works pretty well except Tippie is a good doe and I have a LOT of "T" names in my barn.

I also like to dig out the dictionary to find names. That's why I have names like "Tripod" and "Chambray" rather than real names. There aren't any Sarahs or Millies in my barn, although I did capitulate to Chloe once.

Timothy, being a somewhat normal 13-year-old, thinks my method of naming is weird. He prefers Bionicle names. If you don't have a 13-year-old boy, you may not know Bionicles but think of them as Lego action figures on steroids. They have their own names and storylines.

All of which to explain why we have a Matau and a Nokoma in our barn. Don't ask me any more about those.

I once tattooed a baby "KO" because her parents were Kashi and Oreo. So Timothy named her "Knock Out." We're nothing if not inconsistent in our naming.

I have friends who name their lines based on cookie names: Oreo, Macaroon, etc. Another breeder used Beatles' names. Not just John and Ringo and Paul, but names from songs. So they'd have Eleanor Rigby or Strawberry Fields.

When my friend, Kay, gets a Holland from another breeder, she likes to name it after the breeder. So she has Ted and Jason and Kathy and Timothy caged up in her barn.

But my friend, Patty, is anxiously awaiting the day that I totally lose my marbles and name a baby "Frying Pan." And I'm thinking about it.