At some point, you will probably want to breed your rabbits. That should be easy, right? (After all, they are rabbits!.) For the most part, this is true. However, there are some important tips and pointers you should be aware of...

What Age to Breed? Age to breed is dependent upon the following factors: Breed of the buck or doe, Weight of the buck or doe, and Personal preference of the breeder. Our recommendations for different breeds/groups are as follows: Compact breeds (Polish, Holland Lops, Mini Rex, Dutch, etc.) can be safely bred at 41/2 to 5 months provided that the minimum senior weight for that breed has been reached. Medium or Commercial type rabbits (New Zealands, Satins, Rex, Californians, etc.), can usually be bred as early as 6 months - again, as long as minimum senior weight has been reached. Giant breeds (over 11 lbs.), should have their first breeding delayed until 7-8 months of age and minimum senior weight. Personal preference means just that. Don't need another litter just now? Perhaps this doe is absolutely outstanding and there is an important show coming up. All the above reasons/scenarios have a bearing on what time to first breed your rabbit. The Breeding Process In order to breed a buck and a doe together, you've got to introduce them! ALWAYS take the doe to the buck's cage for breeding - NOT VICE VERSA! Rabbits are very territorial and the doe will very likely attack the buck if he is placed in her hutch. If the doe is ready (nearly always the buck will be), breeding will occur in less than one minute. Don't blink - you might miss it! (It is very literally "Whaam, bam, Thank you, Maam.") You will know when the buck has successfully serviced the doe because he will fall over backwards or onto his side. One service should do the trick, but we like to allow one or more services "just to be sure". (This should only take about 5 minutes.) It used to be common practice (and still is for many), to take the doe back to the buck for a second service in about 6-8 hours. This was thought to increase litter size by causing the doe to shed more eggs at about the same time capacitation occurs (sperm become able to fertilize the egg). New research suggests that taking the doe back one hour after the original service may be as much or more successful in increasing litter size. Gestation and Kindling Pregnancy in rabbits averages about 31 days, though some does can kindle (give birth), as early as day 29 or as late as day 35. Provide the doe with a nest box 28 days after breeding. You can build your own out of wood or wire (with a cardboard liner) or you can purchase ready-made boxes made of either wire or metal. Dimensions are what is most important. Though we now raise Mini Satins (a compact breed), we have in the past raised Palominos, Hotots, Mini Rex, and Flemish Giants - the largest of all accepted rabbit breeds. Here are the dimensions we recommend for various nest box sizes: Compact breeds - 14"long x 9"wide x 8"high; Commercial/Medium breeds - 18"long x 10"wide x 8"high; Giant breeds - 22"long x 12"wide x 8"high. We also recommend that nest boxes have an open top - NO COVER. Lids (even partial lids) hold in too much moisture (even in winter). Make sure the nest box contains some sort of nesting material. In summer, we use shavings only (preferably the soft, finer kind). In winter, we not only place a generous layer of shavings in the nest box, but pack it well with lots of soft grass hay. The doe will burrow into the hay which results in an extra warm cold-weather nest. Sometime about the 31st day, the doe will begin pulling fur from her chest, belly, and sides mixing it well with the nesting material you provided her. Most kits are born early in the morning, but kindling can occur at any time. It usually takes from 1 to 5 minutes to deliver each kit. When the entire litter is delivered, the doe will pull more fur and cover her newborn bunnies. Examining the Litter Some time during the day the doe kindles, you need to examine the litter. It helps to give the doe a piece of apple or some other treat to distract her. Remove the nest box from the hutch, and examine the litter. Count the kits. We recommend leaving no more than 8 kits in the nest. Your chances of having the doe raise an even, uniform litter are much better than with a litter of 9 or more. Remove any runts, dead, or deformed young. If the litter is large, try to foster extra kits to another doe with kits that are within a day or two of being the same age. For this reason, it is always a good practice, if possible, to breed 2 or more does at the same time. Return the nest box to the doe's hutch. We have found it is NOT necessary to mask your scent by rubbing your hands over the doe or dabbing her nose with vanilla as others claim. Removing the Nest Box We generally remove the nest box when the kits are 3 weeks old. It can be done a little sooner in hot weather, and a little later if the weather is cold. Weaning and Rebreeding Our general practice is to rebreed the doe from 35 to 49 days after kindling her litter. Those who practice an accelerated breeding program, rebreed as early as 21 days following kindling. (These are generally commercial breeders.) No matter when you decide to rebreed the doe, it is best to do so with her current litter still in the hutch or cage with her. Bunnies can stay with the rebred doe for as long as 2 weeks without compromising the developing embryos. Special Concerns Palpation - We highly recommend that you master the art of palpation to determine if your does are bred. It does take practice, but when accomplished successfully, it is a much better indicator than Test Breeding (placing the doe in the buck's hutch to see if she rejects his advances or not). You can most easily palpate the presence of embryos between 10 and 14 days after the doe is bred. Grasp the doe over the shoulders with your left hand. With your right hand under her belly (just forward of the hips), feel the area on either side with the thumb and forefinger, by sliding the hand gently forward and back, reaching upwards toward the spine, but just to the right or left. Embryos at this stage, will feel like firm grapes and are about the same size. Feces, on the other hand, are much smaller and are hard to the touch. If you know a breeder in your area that is adept at palpation, ask him or her to demonstrate to you what you should be feeling for. First Litter Does - Some first litter does fail to make a proper nest, feed their young, or may even cannibalize their kits. This is distressing when these things happen, but usually the doe will get things right the second time around. If she doesn't change her ways by the next litter, it's best to retire her - permanently.