RABBIT FARMING

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21714, 22 February 1936, Page 11

RABBIT FARMING

• , ./... / W - ? -- ! •'■' : '' The 'first neecV of tfew)!y-born : rabbitsis warmth. -. They- begin :life bare of fur or wool;and, if they.are exposed, to cold - air fos any length of time they will die. The best brood does not instinctively'present any risk of this nature by making their nests deep and covering them well, so that they afford the maximum degree of protection from the cold. But there are does who habitually make shallow nests, and neglect to coyer them sufficiently, or do not make nests of any kind. Healthy, well-developed young fabbits are often very active shortly after birth and, if their nest is lacking in depth or sparsely covered on top, the movements of the litter may result in one or more being pushed out. When this happens, although the doe often appears concerned, it does not seem to occur to. her to attempt to return the baby to the nest, and, as young, rabbits are unable to see until about 11 days after birth, they rarely find their way back and soon become fatally chilled.

The best thing to do when a nest is unsatisfactory is to remove the doe . from :tbe hutch, shut her up in a box, so that she cannot see what you are doing; and proceed to reinforce the .nest yourself. Do this by drawing up ttve sawdust ox trtiier litter Irom the floor of the hutch round the outside Of the nest, banking it well \jp; This will serve to increase its depth, but be careful not to pile butch-litter on top of the nest. Then pile on hay, using,' if possible, that which has al- ' -ready beert lying in the hutch in preference to fresh material. Do all this " as quickly, as possible, and when returning the doe to her hutch, give her a tit-bit to distract her attention. The' brood doe that makes no nest but simply deposits her young .'oh the hutch floor is, fortunately, comparatively rare. In this case, if the litter is born at night, or when nobody is about, the youngsters will, probably be dead when found, as they' crawl about the hutch in all directions and very soon die of cold. When, however, the trouble is detected soon after the birth of a litter, no time must be lost in making an artificial nest, but first of all the youngsters must be kept warm until ,the nest is ready. A good way of doing this is to wrap them in a piece of warmed flannel. To make an artificial nest, enclose a rectangular space at one corner of the hutch with two bricks. At the bottom of the space put a good thick layer of sawdust, hollowing it out in the middle. Line the hollow well with soft hay and some of the fur or wool the doe has plucked from herself. This type of dqe, although she makes no nest, almost invariably plucks herself. She may or may not make some attempt at covering the babies with the fur or wool, but if they are very active they will soon crawl from under the covering. When the nest is ready, transfer the babies to it and cover It wejl with hay and any fur or wool Which may *be -available. If the doe has not plucked herself, clean cotton wool may be used to take the place of the natural fur or wool, both in the lining and covering of the nest. Before using this, however, rub it in the damp litter of the "used" corner ofthe hutch. This ensures that the 4.6 e Vlrill perceive no unfamiliar smell Wfceti she visits the. nest, and for this Aieasoils it»is always Mvisable. .• to rub ;she hands'in this litter before handling jtne babiesw touchint»ysh£ nesfcof any Jdbe. Occasionally when a Utter' is tfpund scattered about the hutch obviously some time after birth/some or all of the babies show sighs of life when picked up. There is always a.strong possibility in these cases that the babies will die eventually of pneumonia brought on by exposure, but as there; is just a chance that they may survive it is always worth while to try. to revive them. Wrap the babies loosely in* a piece Of warm' flannel' and put them into a cardboard box well packed with hay. Put the lid on the box and let stand in a warm place where there is a good fire. After half an hour the babies should be moving freely, and may be put back into their permanent quarters with the doe. If, however, after this time they do not revive it may be concluded that they are past all hope of recovery. See that the nest which is to receive a litter, which has been revived after exposure is deep and well covered, so that there is no risk of further chills. If necessary add to it and always cover the front of the hutch with a sack to ensure freedom from draughts. In very cold weather a couple of very large bottles filled with hot water may be placed at right angles on the outside of the nest or inside the nests if they are artificial, for the first 24 hours. Be careful, however, if using glass bottles. Warm them before filling with hot water, or they may break. Take the precaution of wrapping them in thick flannel and packing t.iem well with hay, to prevent the youngsters or the' doe from burning themselves. Rabbit Breeders' Show The Co-operative Rabbit Breeders' Association .of New Zealand., Inc., young stock show will be held at ths club rooms, Hereford street, on April 3 and 4. Schedules may be obtained from the office of the association, 183 Cashel street.