Why would this happen?

[CheyAutRanch]

Was talking to someone (in a petstore, I was buying some bunny food and they were, too) who asked me if I knew about breeding buns. I said not really, just what I've read. She said her bunny had 2 babies, and they were HUGE. I've read here, I think, that if a doe only has one, it would be huge and not make it? (hers were both dead) but does this commonly happen with two babies as well?

Also, she said she didn't get a good look at one, but the other had FUR! Now, I"m totally confused! Buns are born naked, right? She said she bred her 32 days prior to this. How does this happen???

I told her I have no clue about that, but she should get her buns fixed! I told her how to find a low cost vet, so hopefully she will....

But she got me really wondering about this!

Jessi

 

[Flashy]

I don't know why that would happen, but my Boof had a litter of four buns, one living (my Cloud), two that were both deformed and small and presumably shared a placenta, and one MASSIVE baby, really fat and wrinkly and about the size of a baby maybe a week or so old.

I would guess that if the doe had one baby in each lobe (rabbits have two lobes in their womb and they carry babies in each of them) then they could both get big?

As for the fur, that's really strange. Maybe it was some sort of genetic mutation or something, just a random guess.

 

[pamnock]

Fetal giants are not unusual, although the causes are not really understood. I've noted that we get more fetal giants during winter months. More than one fetal giant can be born in a litter, althoughit is generally seen in litters of 1.

Furred babies may be seen in gestations longer than the normal 31 days. Genetic mutations could also result in a furred baby.



Pam

 

[Flashy]

pamnock wrote:

Fetal giants are not unusual, although the causes are not really understood. I've noted that we get more fetal giants during winter months.

Is that possibly due to the fact that the doe doesn't consider it her mating season, so doesn't release as many eggs?

 

[pamnock]

Certainly could be a factor. Studies have shown that the does hormone levels do change seasonally.

Pam

 

[Flashy]

Cool (I like all these random bits of info. I lock them away in my brain for later use, hence all the annoying questions )Thanks.

 

[CheyAutRanch]

Very interesting, thanks guys!