Why does the buck need to be (x) age?

[VickieB]

I tested my 4 month old buck out with a doe, and it worked so well I tested him with 2 other does the next day. Within 30 days he was the proud papa of 30 buns...


(I have since learned the value of patience and the peace that comes with a simple routine.)

 

[Hens and Roos]

We have a buck who is probably close to 18 months old now, 1st time we breed him(he was around 8 months old) we ended up with our 3 does having litters in Feb 2013, the 2nd time we breed him to the same 3 does in April 2013- nothing- not from lack of trying by the buck but he never finished.... we tried him again this past week with 2 does and again he has the moves correct but never finishes- we tried our younger 8 month buck with 1 doe and within a minute he completed the job. We will see what the end of Nov 2013 brings- we weren't looking to keep the younger buck as he is related to the does(mother or grandmother). Not sure what is going on with the older buck and figuring we will need to find a replacement for him.

 

[Citylife]

You always take the doe to the buck, as rabbits are quite territorial. I will put her in for 20 minutes and watch to see if she gets bred. Its ok if he breeds her several times. Then 6-8 hours later you can take the doe back to him for another session. You do not want to rebreed her after that. Put the nest box in on the 28th day.
You need to be aware as has already been stated, he may not know what to do. If she gets nasty with him, take her out right away. You don't want him to get all intimidated. I have had success both ways, but I would recommend waiting with him since everyone there is new to rabbit breeding.
Also, I highly recommend "Storey's Guide To raising rabbits" Awesome book and an easy quick read.
Good luck and we all know how it is to want kits, now! LOL

 

[CochinBrahmaLover=)]

LOL, yes Citylife, and even my pigeons who were supposed to solve this problem killed their eggs! Gar!

Ok, sorry, mind blank. Doe to bucks cage - doh. We are getting an older buck to breed. Trading our 3 geese for them - gah, Ill be so glad when those are gone! They eat soo much!
So yes, we will have kits soon, thanks to an older buck. It'll also give me a choice to keep my bloodlines fairly fresh, since ill have 2 bucks & 3 does
Thanks everyone!

 

[CochinBrahmaLover=)]

Ok, so we got a buck. NZ, Cali, SF cross, except he's all black with white hairs peeking through.
Poor guy tried breeding one of my does and despite my bet efforts, would NOT go to the correct side... Kept scaring the girl, ('why is he on my FACE?') hidden agenda, perhaps?
He did, when I corrected him, do better on the 2 doe. I might try breed the 2 doe tomorrow, but will def. try again with the 1 tonight.

Then I have new issues :
Both of these does are bonded & I don't want to remove them. That being said, has anyone had any colony breeding issues in smaller spaces? They have plenty of room, but
But, then I have a new issue : both of these does are 2 years old, never bred. I've heard it's bad to not breed a doe before her first year, but never understood why...?
And last but not least - if I DO end up breeding them both, if they kindle 1-3 days apart, will that be ok? Or will the bigger kits bully the smaller ones (from what I've heard, if you breed colony style then they will nurse both sets of kits), and if there's a lot of kits, then how about milk production? I don't know how eithers milk production is, and Im a bit concerned on if there will be too many kits.
If there's too many kits or if something happens to either doe, I do know snake owners who'd love to take them, & they are Rex mixes, not too big, so it's not like I'd be looking for an 18ft reticulated python (which, based on another rabbit owners experience, can enjoy a 20lb Flemish giant meal).