Fostering.

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With the breeds we raise it is not uncommon to have to do some nest box juggling from time to time. There are many factors including small litter size, singletons, large litters, inexperienced does and over milking to name a few.
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We have never had a problem fostering babies and even older kits. Here are just three examples.
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A friend had a wooled dwarf she wanted to give us. It was 4 weeks old at the time. We knew that we would not see each other for many months so it was at this show or never. It was decided to go ahead give it a try despite her tender age. We took her home and placed her with a Holland litter that was similar in age. I removed the mother for about an hour and let the babies bond. I replaced the doe and no one seemed to be the wiser.
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When my Cheyenne suddenly passed I had three 2 week old babies that needed fostering. I took one and gave it to a dwarf and the other two went to Dilemma. At first Dilemma seemed to know someone didn’t smell quite right so I took the kits and rubbed nesting material on them and put vet-r-x on Dilemma’s nose. By the next day they were one big happy family, double in size but happy.
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Kaylee, Mom’s favorite otter doe. She had a difficult delivery and only one kit survived. We decided to put the singleton in with Rosita’s litter and give Kaylee a wooly litter because I had sold the doe. Oh, did I mention that the wooly babies were 10-12 days old? Kaylee didn’t even bat an eye and accepted the large furry babies as her own. She seems very proud of her ‘over achievers’ who are already eyes open and running around.
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Don’t underestimate your does mothering instincts and their inability to count!
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Melanie