OK, 9 day rule, now what?

[Backfourty,MI.]

I was a nervous wreck but today was day 9 & it was really cold but I had saved some fur I stole here & there & worked really fast to get them all back into the nest. Sure hope I did it right since hers was so nice & tight, etc.
So what do I do now, wait for 9 more days & do it again or will they be moving all around by then? This is our first babies & not sure if by then I do just like I would do any of the rabbit's or not?
One good thing is for a 1st time momma she seems to be taking good care of them, she had 6 popples & there are still 6 living & squirming around & so cute, they are starting to get their fur already. Sure hope they all make it. She doesn't seem to mind me in there either, just lets me do what I need to around them little ones.

[KimTN]

Hi,
What is the 9 day rule? I've raised rabbits all my life and have no idea what you would be waiting 9 days for.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Hi Kim, Maggie & some others here on the forum have talked about it & after we got rabbits I had read it & I guess it's becuase they are getting ready to open up their eyes so you want them to have a clean nest so not as big a chance to get what they call nest box eye(I think that's eye infections). Maggie had told me to try & steal some clean fur along the way to line the new nest with which I did & asome for over the top & I'm sure momma will be right in there too. Everytime I would steal a little fur before she'd run in there & pull more & cover them again. I will say she has kept them well covered.
I'm sure if I've forgotten something or not got it entirely right Maggie will jump in & help with the rest of what I have forgotten.

[KimTN]

Ok, I was confused as to what you were talking about. Put some wood pellet horse bedding in the bottom of your nest boxes before you add the hay. all the moisture in the nest will be wicked away from the kits. Even if the doe pees in the nest, it will soak it all up. I have not had any problems with nest box eye and have raised hundreds of rabbits. I usually just dump the kits out of the box at 14 days and am done with that chore. If it is really cold, I might put some hay in the nest box and let them stay a little longer.

[Beaners]

Haha, reading the first time I wasn't sure what you were referring to either. I clean out the dirty stuff from my nestboxes anytime from day 7 to day 10, depending on how many babies there are and how messy the box is. Then anytime it looks really messy, I pull out the icky stuff and leave the cleaner stuff in there. It just depends on how they are looking.

They sound like they are doing great!

Kayleigh

[MaggieJ]

Well, gee... maybe I made too big a deal about it, but nest box eye is so much easier to prevent than to treat that I do advise people new to rabbits to clean out the nest box on Day 9, just before the popples' eyes pop open. I don't know who began calling this routine clean-out the Nine Day Rule, but I believe it's a good practice by whatever name.

Since a lot of people worry about what to use when the fur blanket is soiled, as it can be by then, I suggested stealing a bit of fur here and there while it is clean and momma bun is still in fur pulling mode. Many, many rabbit keepers have a stash of fur to use when needed. I sometimes use small goose body feathers, the ones that are about half down and half feather and there have been other suggestions about using unscented dryer lint or feathers from a pillow etc.

Kim, your suggestion about the wood pellets is a really good one (note to self to get some of those), but there is more than just moisture to worry about. Staph is everywhere and you can't get rid of it, but changing the bedding at least reduces its population.

I agree with Beaners that anytime the nest gets gross it needs cleaning. But whether it looks okay or not, I always try to do a Day 9 clean-out. If I have enough boxes, I like to arrange a completely new and sanitized box with the fresh bedding. This means I can just take the old one out, transfer the kits into the new one without worry about them getting cold, and take the old box away for thorough cleaning.

I'm not saying you have to do any of this or that there is anything magical about it. I'm saying it's what I do and what many other rabbit people here do too. The first time I had a litter with nest box eye, someone suggested it to me and the only time I have had a case since then was last summer when I got sidetracked and didn't get it done on time. Could be just coincidence, of course.

(I just read this over and I sound really defensive. Sorry about that... I am stressed about things that have nothing to do with the discussions here and some of that has bled through onto this post. No time now to go back and change it, so please make allowances for the tone.)

[Jeanette]

Originally Posted by MaggieJ

Well, gee... maybe I made too big a deal about it, but nest box eye is so much easier to prevent than to treat that I do advise people new to rabbits to clean out the nest box on Day 9, just before the popples' eyes pop open. I don't know who began calling this routine clean-out the Nine Day Rule, but I believe it's a good practice by whatever name.

(I just read this over and I sound really defensive. Sorry about that... I am stressed about things that have nothing to do with the discussions here and some of that has bled through onto this post. No time now to go back and change it, so please make allowances for the tone.)

Don't worry about it Maggie! I had to go back and read it again to really see a defensive attitude and even then it was mostly in the first few lines.
The fact that you are so helpful All the time will certainly let us overlook a little crabbiness.
I am glad this little reminder keeps coming up! The first two rabbits that had been bred did not give me anything so I have not been able to get a "routine" going yet in dealing with kits. I have three that are due pretty soon so I need all of these reminders.
Feel Better!

Jeanette
Hondo, TX

Always Learning!

[Backfourty,MI.]

Maggie, I didn't mean anything bad when I said you had told about the 9 day rule on here. I am always very glad for all your help. Everyone is sooo helpful always on the rabbit forum as well as all the other here as well. I din't think you were crabby or defensive & I sure hope your feeling better & things what ever they are causing you the stress turn around soon.
I actually think the clean out rule is a good one. I just worry so much about the momma not wanting to go back in, feeding, etc. but so far so good though but I always have a tendency to worry way too much about everything DH says.

So anyways after they start moving around in the cage I don't need to worry so much as long as they can stay warm & clean? The doe doesn't actually have a nestbox, it's a wood box that DH built to the end of her cage & put a door on the back with hinges for easy cleaning. The doe built her nest in the back corner all nice & tight & neat & then here mine looks a little messy.
Will they open there eyes in the next day or so then? When do they actually start jumping & walking around?

[MaggieJ]

I't's okay, Katie, I know no one was meaning anything bad toward me. I was just having a "bad hare day". Sorry about that.

Usually the kits in my rabbitry start opening their eyes around Day 10. Not all of them at once, but that's when it starts. Their coordination improves, their ears stop looking stuck to their heads and they begin to learn to hop. By two weeks, the bolder ones are popping out of the nest box.

Which brings me to another matter. I really, really worry when the kits begin hopping out, because they can get out easier than back in. They stand on the nesting materials or a sibling's back and over the top they go... and can't get back. Can be bad in cold weather and even on a summer night they can get chilled. So I put a block of wood or a brick against the outside of the nest box to give them a step to make getting back in easier. It might not be necessary, but I worry less if I do this.

[Backfourty,MI.]

I'm a worry wart too Maggie. I try to hurry when ever I have to do anything in there since it is so cold & I don't go in the box everyday since she seems to be taking very good care of them. They were starting to get there fur & they were so cute. I keep telling myself we are suppose to butcher these when they get big, sure hope I can do that.
Anyways, she doesn't have what some here would call an actual nest box. We had some but she prefered to build her nest in the big wood box that is at the end of her cage. She built it in a back corner & had a big wall like of straw, etc. all around in the front of it. I worry about them getting cold too so I now have a blanket around the outside of the box to help keep out any drafts & because of the water freezing thing started putting a heavy blanket over all my bunny cages so I'm sure it's warmer in there because the water's not freezing solid that way. I sure was not expecting this much cold this early. I'm usually lucky enough to be putting up my Christmas stuff in at least 40-45 degree weather. Not looking so this year. I'm not sure I'll get it in the ground now but I guess that's for another post. Hahahaha!

[MaggieJ]

Sounds like the blankets made a big difference! It is amazing how much heat those buns produce, if you can just trap it in there with them. The foil bubble wrap insulation that you can buy in rolls is very useful to have around. You can sort of mould it and fold it around the cages and use dollar store clamps to keep it in place. Blankets work fine in the short term, but evenutally they get dirty and sometimes they absorb a lot of moisture. The foil also has the advantage of reflecting the rabbit's body heat back to it. Watch for a sale as it can be pricey.

[Truckinguy]

I find my rabbits don't care a bit about me checking on the kits. I check them at least once a day and every couple of days I take them all out for a minute to check how they're doing. That's how I found the cold runt that died yesterday.

My does are either right in with my hands supervising or they're on the far side of the cage lying down trying to look indifferent. A few days ago I was taking my new litter (four days old at the time) out of the nest to check them. When I had six of the eight out the doe decides to nurse and jumps into the nestbox. As she was sitting on the remaining two, I tucked the six I had back into the nestbox under her. I actually had my fingers under her tucking the kits in there and she couldn't have cared less. When a litter is born I take the nestbox out right away and check them out, They seem a little anxious that the nestbox is gone but when I return it, they check it out a little then go lie down.

I"m very hands-on with my rabbits and most of them get a little rubdown or at least a quick pet every day. Maybe that just gets them used to me messing with the nestboxes.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Yeah Truckinguy, I pet & handle my grown rabbits everyday but this is the 1st time I've ever had kits before since these rabbits are a new addition to our place early this summer. It was DH's idea, we are suppose to eat these when they grow up. Now I love wild rabbit but I don't pet & feed them everyday, I'm usually pretty good with that kind of thing though. It just makes me nervous since they are so tiny & she is a 1st time & young momma too. She seems to be doing well at it though. So far so good anyways.
We have goats & I handle those babies as soon as they are born & everyday thereafter too and probly after I'm more used to the rabbits & how they work I'll be better with them too.

Thanks Maggie, That's a good idea about that foil wrap. I will keep an eye out for it to go on sale. I already figured I'd have to wash & dry the blankets often depending on the weather, etc. But at least I'm down to only doing having to do the water 3 times a day now anyways.

[trinityoaks]

Originally Posted by MaggieJ

The foil bubble wrap insulation that you can buy in rolls is very useful to have around. You can sort of mould it and fold it around the cages and use dollar store clamps to keep it in place.

Wouldn't the mylar "space" blankets (for camping/emergencies) be less expensive? They're pretty big, too. Just be aware that you don't want to completely enclose them with the mylar, because the moisture from the bunnies' breath, etc., will condense onto the mylar, and in cold temps it will freeze. (That's also why, when you're camping, you don't put one of those space blankets on top of you but underneath your sleeping bag instead. Ask me how I know. )

[MaggieJ]

Originally Posted by trinityoaks

Wouldn't the mylar "space" blankets (for camping/emergencies) be less expensive? They're pretty big, too. Just be aware that you don't want to completely enclose them with the mylar, because the moisture from the bunnies' breath, etc., will condense onto the mylar, and in cold temps it will freeze. (That's also why, when you're camping, you don't put one of those space blankets on top of you but underneath your sleeping bag instead. Ask me how I know. )

Mylar space blankets might work very well. They might be more difficult to keep in place because they are flimsy... but much cheaper. Good idea!