Pet Information > ASK Experts > Exotic Pets > Rabbits > peanuts

peanuts

22 11:19:18

Question
I had a new zealand doe give birth, and one of the babies was unusually small, probably a peanut.  When I came home from vacation, he was about 2 weeks old with his eyes open and everything.  He appeared to be in perfect condition, but was less that half the size of his siblings.  I took him into the house and bottle fed him and he got better and better, but never grew.  One day(about 1 week after) he started hopping funny, and the next morning he was dead.  Do you know if it was just because he was a peanut or what?  

Answer
It is quite possible he was simply a runt, or what people often refer to as "faders" rather than a peanut. Being a peanut means both of his parents carry the dwarfing gene, which would be very rare, and very undesirable in new zealands. A peanut is generally characterized by a head that seems too large, ears that are very small and triangular shaped (like little triangle flags), and underdeveloped hindquarters. They also usually (though not always) die within the first week of life.

However, some kits are just runts and fail to thrive. Faders can happen in any breed.