Kelseycheese
Member
Well, to start off the story, I went down into the basement this evening to find that my obviously pregnant doe had blood on and in her nesting box, and there were four little balls of flesh and blood laying inside. I, currently after researching and asking my 4-H adviser, believe she miscarried.
The thing is, she was due in only two days, and the fetus' should have been much more formed than they were. (They were about the size of a quarter.) I read somewhere, that such 'blobs', can be caused by an imbalance of the estrogen cycle due to a second breeding after twelve hours. I did not know this.
Well, two of my rabbits had the locks off their outside hutches pried off them in December, and the two rabbits were taken. We sent out ads in the local news, radio shows, etc. The perpetrator then decided to throw my beloved bunnies into a local dumpster, where they were found and returned to me by the nurses at the local hospital. We gave them antibiotics to prevent disease, and they were fine. This doe, and her mate were the two rabbits.
We bred her and him, and she held all the signs of pregnancy... but never delivered. We believed it was probably trauma due to her kidnapping. We waited two weeks, and then bred them again. But, my mom and I made the mistake of breeding her two days in a row for certainty. We had never heard that breeding a second time can cause such things. I believe this is probably the reason for her miscarriage, and we'll know better next time...
But, my question is:
How long until it is safe for us to breed her again? Her safety, and well-being is our main concern... but her mate, one of my first Hollands, doesn't have many years left. We want another litter between them before he passes.
And, is there any ways to prevent such a tragedy happening again?
The doe, is a two year old Holland Lop. The buck, is a five year old Holland lop.
Thank you!
The thing is, she was due in only two days, and the fetus' should have been much more formed than they were. (They were about the size of a quarter.) I read somewhere, that such 'blobs', can be caused by an imbalance of the estrogen cycle due to a second breeding after twelve hours. I did not know this.
Well, two of my rabbits had the locks off their outside hutches pried off them in December, and the two rabbits were taken. We sent out ads in the local news, radio shows, etc. The perpetrator then decided to throw my beloved bunnies into a local dumpster, where they were found and returned to me by the nurses at the local hospital. We gave them antibiotics to prevent disease, and they were fine. This doe, and her mate were the two rabbits.
We bred her and him, and she held all the signs of pregnancy... but never delivered. We believed it was probably trauma due to her kidnapping. We waited two weeks, and then bred them again. But, my mom and I made the mistake of breeding her two days in a row for certainty. We had never heard that breeding a second time can cause such things. I believe this is probably the reason for her miscarriage, and we'll know better next time...
But, my question is:
How long until it is safe for us to breed her again? Her safety, and well-being is our main concern... but her mate, one of my first Hollands, doesn't have many years left. We want another litter between them before he passes.
And, is there any ways to prevent such a tragedy happening again?
The doe, is a two year old Holland Lop. The buck, is a five year old Holland lop.
Thank you!
