Our doe Honey had her second litter back on February 2nd. She had 8 kits, and it seemed like they were in pairs size wise. We had 2 large kits, 2 medium, 2 small and 2 tiny kits. On the 3rd day we found one of the tiny ones dead and at this point I was sure the tiny ones were peanuts. We lost one of the small ones a few days later. I knew it was coming because the others always had round bellies and this one looked all drawn out. Well our kits are a month old now and 5 of the 6 survivors are all about the same size, but our tiny one is still smaller than the rest. How do I know if it is a peanut or just the runt. It has the sweetest personality out of all of them. Here\'s picture of when they were born and then one of Peanut and a sibling. BTW - they are Holland Lops.
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One thing is for sure, he is soooo darn cute! I love his color!
If you have a peanut, you\'ll know it because it\'s not just smaller than the others, it also doesn\'t look right. The back legs will be smaller and sort of deformed looking. His eyes will appear to be bulging. And peanuts will die eventually. We\'ve never had one to live more than 2 and a half weeks. I think that yours is maybe just a runt. I don\'t think peanuts are cute and your little guy is pretty cute.
I agree with 4H Mom...This looks like a runt and not a peanut.
(I also agree that he is cute.
)
Below are two photos showing a peanut alongside a normal Mini Rex kit. The skull is rather bulbous, ears are very short, and the hind legs are less developed...
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Charlcie Gill
Zodiac Rabbitry
Astoria, OR
http://www.zodiacsatins.com
I was amazed at the difference in size among the kits. This is the largest litter we\'ve had so far and up to this point all the kits were pretty close in size. We did loose two in the first week. The other tiny one didn\'t survive the weekend and one that was bigger than Peanut, but the body just didn\'t look right.
Thanks for the input. We thought she was probablya runt when she made it through the first week. The kits are 5 weeks today and doing great. Peanut certainly is fiesty and holds her own at the food bowl and in play. My 15 yr old DH has fallen in love with her and wants to keep her. He said if it was a matter of money, he would buy her from me so I didn\'t sell her. Needless to say, she stays.