|
Place the doe on a table at a comfortable height for you with her nose
tucked under your right arm (watch they may bite). Wrap your arm around
her side to her butt. She will be a nicely tucked bun by now. My right
hand is used to support the hind end of the rabbit, and to lift her
rear a bit, in order to get her up enough and stretched her out enough
to have easy access to the tummy area.
Take your left hand and slip it under her tummy between her back legs.
Getting a good handful of her belly, gently bring your thumb, on one
side and your fingers on the other side together. Feeling as you go,
you should be able to touch, or feel like you are touching, your
fingers together. If you feel a grape sized lump or two or more in
between your fingers this is most likely babies at around 10 days. At
about two weeks I would estimate they are about the size of a quarter,
round and kind of firm.
Don't be afraid to feel around or of hurting her. I have heard that
most folks, who cannot palpate, cannot because they are not quite firm
enough and as a result cannot find the babies.
I have found that if I do not find babies by getting a large deep
handful of tummy and connecting my fingers that if I keep my fingers
together and slide my hand down towards the ground I can usually feel
the babies slide between my fingers at some point.
This is my method of palpating and I have found it to be accurate.
You may contact the author from her web page at;
Painted Acres Rabbits
Or by e-mail
|
