Should a pregnant doe stay with her partner?

[Emma Nelson]

Hello all, our unspeyed doe escaped her enclosure (and her neutered male) on Monday; she was missing 5 days but we amazingly found and recaptured her. She had been not far away from our smallholding, but definitely could have had a 'fling' with the wild rabbits, so she may be pregnant. If anyone has any experience, can I ask: Is she ok to be back with her domestic male? We will take her to the vet in a week, as I understand they can safely and reliably palpate her then.

 

[Preitler]

Hi,
I would be a bit wary about that "reliable" part at less than 2 weeks, well, might be because I suck at palpating and don't really do it anymore because for me it's not conclusive anyway before I see other signs. Anyway, I would still prepare as if it were a positive, even if it would become obvious one way or the other by day 27.

Sorry, no experience with neutered bucks, but from what I know about intact ones I would say you can keep them together until day 27 after the escape, or when she starts nestbuilding later than 3 weeks in. Intact bucks must be removed when a doe kindles, it's kinda gross, but there's little that turns on a buck more than that, they try to impregnate her right again, sometimes even before she's done with kindling. Messy affair.
If there are any of those instincts left in a neutered buck I would definitly seperate him when the time comes, just to give her rest and privacy. Good thing is, at that times does have other things on their mind than to worry about hierachy or social things, so imho it shouldn't trouble bonding too much.
Once the kits are here, I think you could try to let them together again, but I would put the nestbox in a new setup, like extra box or cage the buck doesn't know, and the doe can claim as her territory. And keep an eye on him for the first hours. Never had a other rabbit (does) interfere with a nest.

Once the kits are mobile all my bucks were always friendly to kits. Can't tell how they would behave around a nest since for obvious reasons I never let that happen with intact bucks.

 

[zuppa]

Hello all, our unspeyed doe escaped her enclosure (and her neutered male) on Monday; she was missing 5 days but we amazingly found and recaptured her. She had been not far away from our smallholding, but definitely could have had a 'fling' with the wild rabbits, so she may be pregnant. If anyone has any experience, can I ask: Is she ok to be back with her domestic male? We will take her to the vet in a week, as I understand they can safely and reliably palpate her then.

Hi, as far as I know domesticated rabbits can't breed with wild ones because they are different species.

Are your rabbits vaccinated against Myxomatosis and RHD 1-2?
I would quarantine her just in case.

If she was away for 5 days she smells differently and it is possible that her partner won't recognise her so you may need to rebond them.

 

[Hermelin]

Hi, as far as I know domesticated rabbits can't breed with wild ones because they are different species.

Are your rabbits vaccinated against Myxomatosis and RHD 1-2?
I would quarantine her just in case.

If she was away for 5 days she smells differently and it is possible that her partner won't recognise her so you may need to rebond them.

Wild rabbits can breed with domesticated rabbits, it’s hares that can’t breed with bunnies

 

[Preitler]

You need to consider location - In the US domestic rabbits can't breed with cottontails. Here in europe (Pembrokshire sounds pretty british to me) the wild rabbits are the same species like the domestic, and some years ago a 1.5kg wild rabbit knocked up my 4kg doe. Was an interesting litter.

I would worry more about rebonding if it had been the buck that was away, rabbits don't forget within days, but territorial and hierachy concepts might shift.
But right about quarantine, didn't think of that. That will add signicantly time apart, considering that I wouldn't put them together until that vet visit.

 

[zuppa]

Wild rabbits can breed with domesticated rabbits, it’s hares that can’t breed with bunnies

>>Pet rabbits are of the genus and species Oryctolagus cuniculus; they are also known as “European rabbits” because they are native to Europe. The fourteen species of wild rabbits and the four species of hares in America belong to the genera (ie genuses) Sylvilagus (which includes cottontails) and Lepus (which includes jackrabbits), respectively.
That means that our domesticated rabbits, if released into the wild, cannot cross breed with wild rabbits or hares, because they are different species and genera, so there is no possibility of mating. They thus cannot disrupt the local ecosystem. Source: rabbit.org

https://rabbit.org/can-domestic-rab...mesticated,cannot disrupt the local ecosystem.

 

[Hermelin]

>>Pet rabbits are of the genus and species Oryctolagus cuniculus; they are also known as “European rabbits” because they are native to Europe. The fourteen species of wild rabbits and the four species of hares in America belong to the genera (ie genuses) Sylvilagus (which includes cottontails) and Lepus (which includes jackrabbits), respectively.
That means that our domesticated rabbits, if released into the wild, cannot cross breed with wild rabbits or hares, because they are different species and genera, so there is no possibility of mating. They thus cannot disrupt the local ecosystem. Source: rabbit.org

https://rabbit.org/can-domestic-rab...mesticated,cannot disrupt the local ecosystem.

The wild rabbits in sweden can breed with our tame rabbits

I’ve known many that gotten wild rabbits hooking up with tame rabbits through fence and they get kits. They are often more skittish and not tame the kits that are born from such a mix.

So maybe it depends on which wild rabbits and what country. Because even other sources warn about wild rabbits hooking up with tame rabbits. That’s because the bunnies are still quite close when it come to species.

I forgot that sweden have wild tame rabbits, so saying a wild rabbit it can also be rabbits that have generations back been a house bunny.

So it’s still wild rabbits, but if true wild rabbits it’s a hare type and can’t breed with our bunnies.

 

[Preitler]

There's a world outside the US, believe us....

 

[JBun]

Like Preitler said, wild rabbits in Europe are where our domesticated breeds come from. So yes, the wild rabbits in Europe can breed with domesticated rabbits there. But here in the US, wild cottontails, though still able to mate with our domestic rabbits, will not have viable offspring. Hermelin and the OP are from Europe, so is referring to that fact that their wild rabbits can breed with their domestic ones.

 

[Emma Nelson]

Thank you for your input, everyone, that's really interesting. Pembrokeshire is in Wales, by the way - and we have a lot of rain. I wonder if that has helped wash our doe from any scent if she mated with a wild rabbit, it was raining during the days she was away and she came home suitably soggy (but in good shape nonetheless). She is back with her mate and they are snuggled up again. I had thought that if she had mated with a wild buck, that she may have been hanging out with him, given how rabbits bond? Still, we will keep an eye on her and be ready to separate her for kindling. Thank you all so much for your comments.