Want to breed buns

I would like to breed my bunnies. I've never done this before so can you give tips?

ChocoClover said:

I would like to know if I should take them to the vet beforehand, what sort of cage I should use, what sort of nest box I should use, etc. any information would be helpful.

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Thanks.

What type of rabbits do you have?
Honestly, I dont think breeding just for fun is a good idea. There are hundreds on rabbits in local rescues who get euthanised because there are not enough homes for them. If you want the fun experience of baby bunnies, maybe you can contact a rescue and foster.
This world doesnt beed anymore mixed breed pet rabbits. Until the shelters are empty, I believe in spaying and neutering sorry

What are the purposes going to be for your babies? Show, pets, meat, etc?

Also you need to be mentally prepared for death. Will you be prepared if your doe dies during or after labor? And what will you do with the babies? Will you have a friend or other doe to take over nursing responsibilities? Will you be prepared for babies dying because this happens often and they all cannot be saved. And would you be prepared mentally if both the babies and the mother die.

Honestly if you cannot be prepared for any of these situations please do not breed

Also do you know the full health history of your rabbits? If these are strays or rescues please do not breed. Their babies might turn out like the parents and lord knows what kind of congenital issues a rabbit of unknown history might carry.

We have had to humanly euthanize baby rabbits due to health issues and we know our rabbits history. One of them was a baby that had malocclusion. If we let that baby survive someone would have spent hundreds if not thousands on vet bills for his teeth issues and the pain he might live in made it an easy decision to put him down. Would you be able to do that.

If you have already considered these options and weighed them carefully then you might be ready to breed but if you haven't it's extremely hard to learn things the hard way, trust me I know from experience.

Leopold_Ruby said:

What type of rabbits do you have?
Honestly, I dont think breeding just for fun is a good idea. There are hundreds on rabbits in local rescues who get euthanised because there are not enough homes for them. If you want the fun experience of baby bunnies, maybe you can contact a rescue and foster.
This world doesnt beed anymore mixed breed pet rabbits. Until the shelters are empty, I believe in spaying and neutering sorry

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I am starting a rabbitry and will sell them. I would (and will eventually) rescue bunnies if it were just for fun.

woahlookitsme said:

What are the purposes going to be for your babies? Show, pets, meat, etc?

Also you need to be mentally prepared for death. Will you be prepared if your doe dies during or after labor? And what will you do with the babies? Will you have a friend or other doe to take over nursing responsibilities? Will you be prepared for babies dying because this happens often and they all cannot be saved. And would you be prepared mentally if both the babies and the mother die.

Honestly if you cannot be prepared for any of these situations please do not breed

Also do you know the full health history of your rabbits? If these are strays or rescues please do not breed. Their babies might turn out like the parents and lord knows what kind of congenital issues a rabbit of unknown history might carry.

We have had to humanly euthanize baby rabbits due to health issues and we know our rabbits history. One of them was a baby that had malocclusion. If we let that baby survive someone would have spent hundreds if not thousands on vet bills for his teeth issues and the pain he might live in made it an easy decision to put him down. Would you be able to do that.

If you have already considered these options and weighed them carefully then you might be ready to breed but if you haven't it's extremely hard to learn things the hard way, trust me I know from experience.

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They are not rescues. They are purebred and I have pedigrees. I have cousins that have a rabbitry and I know what can happen. Many of their litters have not made it. I can handle the loss of a rabbit, but obviously, I love my buns and I don't want that to happen. Should I take them to the vet to make sure they don't have anything they could pass on to their young?

I know the basics about nest boxes, pregnancies, etc. I want any tips anyone can give me about breeding, since I have never done it before.

What I don't know much about is the actual breeding; is there something you need to do when you "put them together?" I've heard some stories about does and bucks harming each other. I would also like to know more about what happens after the babies are born.

I think I could breed them without any complications using what I already know, but I don't want to jump into it without getting more information. As I said before, if there are any tips you or anyone else has that might not be on the internet, please share them with me.

I'm sorry I didn't go into more detail with my other post. Here's what I already have:
-3 rabbits, 2 females and 1 male.
-3 humongous cages.
-1 giant hutch, which I could use for mother rabbits.

One of my female rabbits has been bred before successfully. (Not by me).

By the way, they are mini rexes.

It's very good that you already have experience. You never know on here what kind of rabbits people want to breed (often on here it's random pet store rabbits). I just wanted to make sure those thoughts were considered because they are important.

I haven't brought breeding rabbits to a vet before breeding. I know my lines and the breeders who owned the rabbits before and I trust them to make sure a breeding rabbit is healthy and know which lines may carry certain traits. With my tans I worry about European imports because those lines carry certain traits that are disqualified from show like white spots or white toenails. I'm not sure what characteristics are common in mini Rex that can create issues with breeding but the simplest thing is to google breeding mini rex. I know color combos are a very big thing and certain colors should be bred where as other colors shouldn't be bred together. For example a tort should not be bred with a castor because it affects the bands or rings of color. A rabbit should always be visually inspected for physical imperfections. This could be type, signs of illness (runny nose
Or vent disease), or malocclusion.

When breeding rabbits the doe must be brought to the bucks cage and watched for aggressive behavior. If a doe isn't willing to breed at all or cooperate then give her a few days and try again. Do not let breeding rabbits fight. Mini rex can start to be bred at 6 months or bucks at 5 months if willing. My rule of thumb is a doe should have her first litter by one year of age because after that the fat that builds up around her ovaries can prevent her from having a litter after. The same rule with previously bred does in that thy should have at least one litter a year in order to stay breedable. I've waited over a year before and had to retire a doe Because I waited too long. Our dies have two litters a year and that is enough for us. Other breeders have more but we don't have enough cage space to accomplish that.

We use wooden nestboxes with a solid bottom. It is layered with shavings, and hay. The doe is given additional hay to make a burrow and ends up mixing the hay with her fur. If a doe pulls too much fur or pulls fur early or pulls fur but doesn't kindle we save it. It can be used with another does litter if she didn't pull fur or didn't pull enough.

As far as what happens after the doe feeds once or twice at day usually at the same time every day. As soon as they are born a head count should be taken and dead babies removed. Checking on them each day after learning when the doe feeds will teach you if all the babies are thriving. The mom will take care of them but daily checkings are crucial. We check on babies twice a day. Sometimes babies get out of the nest box and must be returned in order to survive. I advise you to look through the Rabbitry and showroom threads because there are lots of threads about taking care of babies. I probably made a long post but hope
It helped

Thanks a lot. I already looked up a color crossing guidelines website and found a good one. The doe is a year old and already has been bred.

Thank you so much for your helpful advice. I will post lots about the babies when I have them.

Hey guys, how do I start my own thread or post??? Sorry but I can't figure it out!

In the general rabbit discussion there should be a link at the top that says new thread. You can click that and start a new discussion