# Breeding siblings?



## UnlabeledMama (May 22, 2013)

What are the rules about breeding siblings?  Are half siblings okay?


----------



## Beachbunny (May 23, 2013)

If your talking rabbits it is usually not done..google rabbit line breeding to get a good understanding of who you can or can not breed with rabbits.
You can breed a doe back to her sire or a buck back to his dam but stay away from siblings. Hope this helps!


----------



## brentr (May 23, 2013)

Depends on your purpose.  If you are breeding for meat consumption (i.e., all kits will be butchered), then there is no problem with breeding siblings.  I've done it and had no issues.


----------



## UnlabeledMama (May 23, 2013)

We have two bucks, a father and son.  And we have 4 does - 3 are unrelated and one is the daughter/sister of our bucks.  I am trying to figure out which will be okay to breed.  I figured breeding the full brother and sister together would be bad, so I was just going to breed her to her father (while trying to ignore the eww factor).  But can our junior buck be bred to one of his half siblings by the other does?  

We are breeding primary for meat, but I also have some friends interested from getting rabbits from me.


----------



## Livestock lover (Jun 6, 2013)

brentr said:
			
		

> Depends on your purpose.  If you are breeding for meat consumption (i.e., all kits will be butchered), then there is no problem with breeding siblings.  I've done it and had no issues.


I think you could do it but you will have more chance of genetic problems.


----------



## secuono (Jun 6, 2013)

You can breed full siblings for breeders, but don't continue breeding in like that, once is enough. You can line breed, but I don't bother, buying a doe or buck unrelated really isn't that expensive. But if you can't get new blood because of distance, line breed. Inbreeding is for just one generation, but better to linebreed for breeding stock.

If it's for meat and all kits will be dinner, doesn't matter who you breed to who.


----------



## animalmom (Jun 6, 2013)

brentr makes the important point and that is if you are breeding for meat purposes then line breeding works.  I breed one of my Cali/NZ cross bucks back to his daughter and they make fabulous meat rabbits, long loin and meaty thighs.

UnlabeledMama, my understanding is it is usually better if you are line breeding to do sire to offspring as oppose to littermates.  (How's that for taking out the ewwww factor of saying it is ok to do father to daughter but not such a good idea to do brother to sister.)  You should not have a problem giving/selling any of your offspring to friends.  You won't end up with three eyed,  or three eared bunnies by line breeding.

Sometimes folks get all hinky with the idea of line breeding.  If your stock has a considerable number of faults to begin with and you line breed then you will end up emphasizing the faults.  If your stock has some really fabulous attributes and you do sire to offspring then you ought to see the good attributes continued.  

This isn't gospel, recessive genes can, and do pop up with line breeding... but if you are doing meat for your own table then I do not see having a problem.

Helpful?


----------



## UnlabeledMama (Jun 6, 2013)

Yes thank you!


----------

