Unexpected babies!! advice?

[tunes]

Shieldsey - Does mom have a house to hide in? If she doesn't, you might want to get her one that she can hide in with the kits. Also, you can put in a low shelf, provided there's room on it for her and the kits. You just don't want to put it so high they can't get to her. 3-4 inches off the bottom of the cages is fine and it may calm her down. All these changes are probably freaking her out a bit.

 

[addictedtochins]

Have you got the cage kit proofed yet?

 

[rainey]

Shieldsey - Does mom have a house to hide in? If she doesn't, you might want to get her one that she can hide in with the kits. Also, you can put in a low shelf, provided there's room on it for her and the kits.

I took the house out because she was jumping so much and I didn't want her to hurt herself/the kits on her jump down. Here's a picture to show you how high she's climbing. I'll try putting in a low shelf for her and see how that goes. Right now there's nothing in there except fleece, food, and water, and I've wrapped the outside of the cage with chicken wire so the kits can't get out.

 

[Diamond Dreams]

Maybe check craigslist for a baby safe cage. Or maybe the cage dad is in is better suited for mom and kits? It doesn't need to be huge, just safe.

 

[Essentia]

Looking at that picture it looks like you only wrapped the bottom with hardware cloth. I give it 3 days max before the kits climb the cage and get out. I would look on CL for a kit safe cage. Here is one in your area.

http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/pet/2012524553.html

 

[addictedtochins]

Yes they will be out of that any minute now, and the little dum dums never get back in, they just lay down and freeze to death. They have to stay warm and fed.

 

[rainey]

I'm on it, thanks everyone. I've wrapped almost to the top now, because they were definitely climbing it....I can't believe how active they are for being only 2 days old! I think I'm going to move them back into the carrier for tonight since I know they'll be safe there.

 

[addictedtochins]

You're a becoming a good chin mommy
You'll need to wrap the roof and doors too. Be careful I almost pinched my baby chin Jack in half closing the door on an airline type dog carrier. If I hadn't checked to see where he was (escaping from the hinge side of the door) I would have squished him when the door closed.

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

Tunes - sorry. Looks like I didn't read carefully enough. Sometimes that happens because of my dylexsia. Not that I should use that as an excuse - I just need to read a few times to get the 'facts' Again sorry

 

[6Dusters]

Babies look very healthy. Sometimes it takes a while for a new mom to calm down. A word of caution: kits jump and run very early in life. Be careful to cup them in your hands when your standing. My pet sitter accidentally killed a kit that jumped from her hand. She did not understand by day two they are quite mobile. A terrible lesson for a "new" person with kits. I wish I had cautioned her. She was checking a kit who needed his eyes opened and she pulled one out to see. And the kit in her hands jumped. Sighs......

Watch your doors when you close them. You will need to be extra careful with little paws and tiny bodies as stated. Read the FAQ'S several times. And offer lots of hay. I grind pellets in a low dish by the end of the week. You will be suprised as your kits are tasting and eating it! I offer my moms a pinch of oats. Adds calories and is a nice calming feature when little ones want to nurse under mom. The hay helps keeps her standing in one place too. Good luck.

 

[Essentia]

If you already put hardware cloth around that cage you can make it work as a kit safe cage. Do you still have the plastic shelves that came with that cage? You can put a couple of them all the way across the middle of the cage to make a "roof" and make the cage shorter and safer for both mommy and babies.

 

[mishalaa]

I agree, try to make a "roof" if you can't find a smaller cage. The kits will start climbing all the way to the top too and they won't handle a fall that far as well as their more-coordinated mother. I would not let them go any higher than 18 inches. My LARGEST baby-safe cages are 18" cubed.

 

[rainey]

A word of caution: kits jump and run very early in life. Be careful to cup them in your hands when your standing. My pet sitter accidentally killed a kit that jumped from her hand. She did not understand by day two they are quite mobile. A terrible lesson for a "new" person with kits.

Oh no that's terrible! Yeah I've been cupping them in my hands thankfully, but I'll be extra careful now. Also I hadn't considered watching the doors when closing the cage, so I'm glad for that reminder. Momma chin has been eating hay nonstop, and she loved the unsweetened apple-juice/water mixture. I'm weighing them every day at noon, (so I've only done it twice so far) and each baby gained about 4g. This morning they were 43.8g and 48.5g. Does that seem okay?

Also I switched them to the cage I had degus in, which was a process, but that cage has 1/2 by 1/2 openings and has more floor space than the carrier they had to be in last night. I'm much more relaxed now that they're in there!

 

[rainey]

Essentia and Mishalaa, I threw out the plastic ramps I think, but I did try doing that with some wooden shelves and failed miserably...There was one space somewhere and Madre wouldn't quit jumping for it. They're safe in my degu cage now though!

 

[mishalaa]

Those weights are fine so long as they're gaining. Once you're certain they're gaining well, stop the apple juice mix. That's only done to encourage moms to drink more, and the extra fluids help milk come in. Once milk is in, it's just extra sugar and that's not good long term.