Some questions (kinda long)

[parkersmom120106]

Hi All!

I have a pair of mini rexes that I have housed together in the same cage. It was supposed to be temporary til I got something else built for the chicks I have housed on the other side of the hutch that the buck was in. They've been together since the end of May. I was thinking that a rabbit pregnancy was 9 weeks long, so I thought I better find other arrangements for the buck before she has babies. Then I saw it's only a month. She's not showing signs of pregnancy. The only time I've seen him try to breed with her is when I first put them together. They get along beautifully. Will a pair of rabbits that are housed together not breed? I got her as a baby, so I double checked to make sure she's a girl and she's definitely a girl and he's definitely a boy. So..my questions are as follows.

Will they not breed if they are housed together?
The male should be removed before babies, correct?
The cage is large (3x4 in each side)..can I house 2 does together in one cage permantly or will they hurt each others babies?


This question has to do with colors...the female is red and white. She's solid red on her back with white feet, chest, under chin and some red speckles on her feet. Is this considered a broken red?

The male is solid blue with gray eyes, so I know he's a blue. Is this a bad breeding combo?

I do have an extra cage to seperate the male, but it's one of those hanging types that's like 2x2..I'd like him to have more room than that. The chicks are almost big enough to go in the pen with the others so he'll have his side back. I should probably go ahead and seperate them until I know the answers to all my questions. I just want to have a couple litter of babies to sell as pets for now and built up to having show quality rabbits in the future.

 

[Pioneer Chicken]

Hi,

1. Will they not breed if they are housed together? They will breed if housed together. I have had that happen so I separated them.

2. The male should be removed before babies, correct? From what I've heard and read, yes. I have not ever let the male meet his babies because I don't want to find out.

3. The cage is large (3x4 in each side)..can I house 2 does together in one cage permantly or will they hurt each others babies? I would not house the does together especially if you are planning on breeding them and letting them have litters. I would suggest separating them as well.

A rabbit's gestation is generally 29-32 days. Our does kindle on the 30 or 31 day. If you don't have this book already, I would suggest getting the Storey's Guide to Rabbits. It has a lot of information and tips.

I hope this helps and blessings!

 

[parkersmom120106]

Thanks for the help. I just thought that maybe since they are together all the time and used to each other, he wasn't interested in mating with her anymore. They've been together for a month and a half now and no babies, and no signs of her being pregnant. I will check Tractor Supply for that book. I have their books on raising chickens, goats and horses. It's a good series of books with good information.

 

[Bunnylady]

I can think of a number of reasons why a pair of rabbits housed together for 6 weeks might not produce babies, but finding each other boring is not one of them.

I assume your doe is of breeding age? A doe should not be exposed to a buck before she's 6 months old, or a "teen pregnancy" could result. It might turn out perfectly fine, but it really isn't the best for either the mother or the babies.

Most of the time, I follow the recommended practice of taking the doe to the buck, and only leaving them together for a few minutes. That makes it easier for me to track the course of a possible pregnancy, and decide whether she is or isn't. However, sometimes I have trouble getting particular animals to breed. When that happens, I will put a buck in a large cage with 2-4 does. Sometimes a doe just doesn't get along with the others, and must be removed. I have tried leaving the does together, and just removing the buck, but what usually happens is that the does will try to use the same nestbox, and kits get trampled, dug out, and generally roughed up. There have been times when I didn't keep track of the date, and does wound up kindling with the buck still in the "colony" with them. I have never seen a buck show any kind of interest in kits, either good or bad. What I have seen, is the buck show extreme interest in the newly kindled doe, and her be in a panic about her kits. Between his rowdy attention, and her frantic stamping and running around, kits get trampled and killed, but I really believe it is the doe doing it.

Does become fertile immediately after the litter is born, and I believe that is the real reason for getting the buck out before the kits are born. I slipped up myself, just recently. This doe hadn't conceived on several attempts during the Spring, so I caged her with a buck in May. My bad, I didn't write the date down, and she kindled on the wire (I really didn't think it had been that long, but there were the kits to prove me wrong!) Fortunately, it was warm, and 3 of the 4 kits survived. I removed the doe and her litter to another cage, but she got bred before I got her out. I had to wean her 4 1/2 week old litter a few days ago, because she just gave birth to 4 more babies. Not a nice way to treat your does!!

This question has to do with colors...the female is red and white. She's solid red on her back with white feet, chest, under chin and some red speckles on her feet. Is this considered a broken red?

The male is solid blue with gray eyes, so I know he's a blue. Is this a bad breeding combo?

Just on the face of it, I don't have a problem with breeding a broken red to a blue, but there is no guarantee that all of the babies will be great examples of showable colors. Your most probable result of that cross will be broken and solid castor/chestnuts, but the doe may have some recessives that make for other possibilities, too.

 

[parkersmom120106]

Bunnylady...
Thanks for the good advice.

I'll be setting up the other cage for the buck and keep them seperated for a while. I'll give her some time to mature a little more since I'm not sure how old she is. I got her several months ago, and she was young, but not a tiny baby. I got her at tractor supply. I was surprised to see a mini rex in the tub full of bunnies and she was only $10 so I grabbed her. I'll be doing some more research and trying to get some cages together to house some better stock. I'd really like to get back into breeded rabbits, but I think I need to slow down a little lol.