bloody urine after birthing

Question
QUESTION: hey there,

I have a 2 year old dwarf rabbit that just gave birth to 4 kits this morning.
There was a lot of blood and she was passing clots earlier. I called a vet and
he assured me blood was ok but over the course of the day i've noticed that
the blood comes when she goes to pee.. Specifically she strains to pee and
what comes out is not much.. blood and whitish or clear stuff. I have not seen
any normal pee from her since the birth 7:30 am this morning. Is this normal?
the ammout of liquid she is passing is lessening over time which makes me
happy (less blood) and concerned at the same time (wheres the pee!) her
vent area is still a little bloody.. But otherwise shes chipper, eating a little
here and there and pooping. If it wasnt for the blood id think there was
nothing wrong?? Im really confused! Please help if you can. Thank you!


ANSWER: Dear Lauren,

If this was her first birth, it's not unusual to see this type of thing.  But if she's still producing blood by tomorrow morning, I would definitely get her to a rabbit-savvy vet, just to be on the safe side:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Please also read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/surpriselitter.html

and especially:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/breeding.html

Hope that helps.

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thank you soo much for your reply. My does hindlegs are still pretty bloody
from birth (dried blood).. Should i at one point attempt to clean her?? Say
when i know for sure shes ok and everything is going well with the babies??

Also, theres some squeaking coming from the nestbox. Thats normal right?
Its not like she forgot to feed a kit right?

Truly, thank you soo much for your time and answers.. I wouldnt be able to
do this without advice and info from yourself and this website! Thank you
again!!


Answer
Dear Lauren,

If this is her first litter, she might not have her maternal instincts in gear, and you'll need to check on the babies to be sure they're warm and round.  If she built a nest, that's a good sign, since her hormones have kicked in and she's engaging in normal mama bun behavior.

She will clean herself off eventually, but if she's very calm you can take a warm, damp washcloth and wipe the dried blood away to give her a hand at cleaning up.  This will also help you monitor to see if she's still bleeding.

The article on "surprise litter" I sent before has instructions on checking the babies to see if they're being fed, and this article will also help:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/orphan.html

A bit of squeaking is normal, but if they are *very* wiggly and restless, they may be acting this way out of hunger.  Check to see that they're warm and round and pink, not blue-grey and wrinkly, which means they'll need help from you.

Whenever you handle the babies, be sure not to lift them more than an inch or two over a soft surface, since they can jump/thrash unexpectedly, with fatal results if they fall.  

Also be *sure* to disinfect your hands *very* well before handling them.  I rinse my hands in hydrogen peroxide (let it sit for a minute or so), then wash with povidone iodine scrub (you can get this at most large pet store outlets), or disinfectant soap and hot water.  Baby rabbits are very sensitive to the normal bacteria we have on our skin (E. coli and others), and at this tender age, they need to be protected from those potential pathogens as much as possible.

Hoep this helps!

Dana