Early this Week Kindling...or Lack of...

So yep, I had 4 Jersey Wooly does due on the 24th. And to no suprise, only one kindled on the 24th. That was my darling Ashlind! Ashlind had 5 kits, 2 peanuts, one fader who wouldn't nurse and 2 normal kits a black and a blue otter or marten (can't tell which yet). Anyways, so the story began when Ashlind would not make a nest inside her box. I just knew that she was going to kindle outside the box on the wire, so I decided to do something about it in order to keep the kits from freezing. So I set up a heat lamp above the cage and spread a pretty thick layer of hay over the entire floor or the cage. I went inside the house and the next time I came out, Ashlind had pulled tons of hair and made a nest for the 5 kits in the corner of the cage and she kindled them all right there. That doesn't mean that they were there when I found them, but all were warm and none of them froze! So I fixed up a nest in her nestbox and put them in the box.

All was going well, she was going in the nestbox to check on them and she knew they were there. But on the second day, the kits were looking a bit skinny. I tried milking Ashlind and there was barely anything there, so I called up Karli and luckily she had a doe that had just kindled the night before. I brought the kits over to Karli's and fostered them to her doe Dora. Of course we had fun feeding the woolies and milking Dora so that we could refrigerate the milk for the next day if the woolies needed an extra boost. But yep...it was pretty fun I must admit. Milking a rabbit is no easy feat!

So Coconut, Sophie and Daffodil still hadn't kindled by the 34th day. So at this point I was ready to rebreed them. Coconut took well again to Leapin's Eclispe. Sophie was not wanting to be bred at all, so I would have to wait until the next day to breed her. Daffodil also did not want to be bred. And since Ashlind didn't have a litter anymore, I ended up breeding her.

I borrowed two bucks from Alicia Kennemer to do some breedings with them. A broken smoke pearl buck and a black otter buck. I decided to breed the broken smoke pearl buck to Ashlind because she needs a bit more of the underwool in her coat, and that broken has got it! Also, since she is out of a smoke pearl marten, I hope to bring that out with this breeding. So that was yesterday, I got M an' M's Coconut and M an' M's Ashlind bred again.

Today...well that is a bit of a story too!

A few things happened today.

I got Bunnies in the Box's Sophie bred to Alicia's otter buck. I hope to get some nice martens or otters out of it!

My grand parents are also over from Eastern Washington to celebrate my sister's birthday, which was today. But them being wood people. I got out all of my scraps of plywood and had them make me some more nestboxes. I am always short on nestboxes, but not now! They made me 8 more wooly boxes...I think that will do for a while!



Also, about a week ago Alicia palpated M an' M's Daffodil and said that she felt babies in there, and she was right. Although it was day 35 today. She started kindling around 6 pm. She had one GIANT kit...and that was it. So I hope to rebreed her in the next couple of days...I haven't decided who to breed her to yet!

I got show reports back from VIRBA today. I got M an' M's Melodrama's 2nd leg and M an' M's Bebop's 3rd Leg. I am sending in for his Grand Champion certificate tomorrow.

Chehalis entries went in today....this is what I entered:

2 Standard Chinchillas
1 Junior Buck - M an' M's Mistro
1 Senior Doe- M an' M's Zoli

7 Jersey Woolies

1 Tan Pattern Junior Doe - M an' M's Star-Struck
1 Tan Pattern Junior Buck- M an' M's Dinky
2 Tan Pattern Senior Bucks- M an' M's Zane, and M an' M's Melodrama
1 Self Junior Doe- M an' M's Miss-D-fy
1 Shaded Senior Buck- M an' M's Bebop
1 Agouti Junior Doe- M an' M's Kandice


Anyways, lots of news for such an interesting time.

I will post again soon,

-Ashley