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Can't get anyone to breed
Topic Started: Sep 17 2013, 07:43 PM (257 Views)
Disney
Somebunny is a awfully chatty
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Since my lutino doe delivered 1 kit a month ago, i've been trying to rebreed her with no succes. She kept grunting, the noise that pregnant doe's make to reject bucks. Well after 5 weeks she is still making that sound and running away from the buck while the other doe who kindled on the same day as her, was willing to breed at first but now she's out of the game too.

I waited the whole summer for the lutino doe to mature and breed her for the first time so i could get some daughters out of her who i could use for next year's breeding season. But she only had one kit, a male and now i'm kinda desperate to get another litter out of her but she doesn't want to and i'm scared she is not going to change her mind untill next spring and by then it will be too late.

Normally i find a reason why they aren't receptive but with her, i have no clue what's bugging her.. i'm trying to understand her to make things easier.
Is it the weather? I know from my last year doe's that they all went off-breed from august to february but they lived in a colony and these 2 doe's are in a hutch so different situation.

The thing is, there is another lutino breeder i work with and she has had a lot of litters which is making me jealous.
She is making a good start with her breeding project while i'm sitting still.. if this year passes without a new litter, the wole year would have been a waste. Thrown away.. and i would have NOTHING to use in 2014 while she started a good base with 10+ animals.
She has also been to the show and i'm just sitting here.. it bothers me so much that i want to give up.

I gave her appelcider vinegar for 1/2 weeks now and it doesn't seem to work while it did in february this year when it got my doe's go in heat all together.

There is one reason i can think of and that's molting.. i didn't know rabbits went off-breed during molting. Is that true?
My lutino buck is shedding and he stopped breeding. My orange satin buck stopped shedding and he still breeds, thank god.

So i put my satin doe with 2 bucks today, father and son. The lutino is the father as you can see, no action and why is he pulling her neck fur?
He does that non stop. The black young buck is very anxious, i got him 2 weeks ago and i can't go near him without flying circles in his cage.
He does breed when you walk away and give him space but not consistently, he stops at regular intervals and then just sits in a corner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lap95rzIJT0&feature=youtu.be
Edited by Disney, Sep 17 2013, 07:50 PM.
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ZRabbits
Love My Lions!
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Hi Disney,

So glad to see you posting again. I've always enjoyed your posts and have learned a lot.

Know how you feel, at that point myself. Just relax. Let go of the jealousy as I did. Wasted feeling plus it's really taking your eye of your own.

Your rabbits are trying to tell you that they are just not up to breeding right now. Molt does throw rabbits off. It throws them off their food, why not mating? They are itchy, and I think being that itchy will make me miserable too. I know it makes my rabbits grumpy.

I watched your video. Lovely rabbits by the way. I think the buck is pulling your doe's fur more over dominance than mating. He's dominating her and also the black buck, who is totally flat.

Take a step back. Take a breath. Then put total focus on your herd. You will get there at your own pace, with those lovely rabbits. You will find more joy that way.

eta: Just wanted to say, knowing your rabbits, not just their colors, genotypes, but their individual personalities, will also help you in the end.

Wishing you all the luck!

Edited by ZRabbits, Sep 17 2013, 09:37 PM.
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Disney
Somebunny is a awfully chatty
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Hi Zrabbits,

Yes i remember, glad to meet you here too!

Looking back at a few months back, i changed a lot of my ways physically and mentally and i'm still trying to figure out what i want and should do with my goals. I have taken some huge blows but luckily survived the hardships and now i'm on a more positive end but i'm still not where i want to be.. and this causes confusion and worries. Maybe i should just stop for now while i'm diminishing my herd instead of growing it and retry a few years later when i'm moved into my new home and settled.
I'm a student and about to get out of this house so that make's things more difficult and puts me on the edge.

But you're right.. let it all sink in and rethink and just enjoy their peronalities untill things get more clear.
Edited by Disney, Sep 18 2013, 05:13 AM.
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ZRabbits
Love My Lions!
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Disney
Sep 18 2013, 05:12 AM
Hi Zrabbits,

Yes i remember, glad to meet you here too!

Looking back at a few months back, i changed a lot of my ways physically and mentally and i'm still trying to figure out what i want and should do with my goals. I have taken some huge blows but luckily survived the hardships and now i'm on a more positive end but i'm still not where i want to be.. and this causes confusion and worries. Maybe i should just stop for now while i'm diminishing my herd instead of growing it and retry a few years later when i'm moved into my new home and settled.
I'm a student and about to get out of this house so that make's things more difficult and puts me on the edge.

But you're right.. let it all sink in and rethink and just enjoy their peronalities untill things get more clear.
My hats off to you for really thinking about everything. Some people just keep slogging through life trying to keep things going and all it does is make life stressful and everything looks bleak.

Finish your schooling (very important), then find yourself your own home, THEN get back into rabbits. It will be yours then and can really plan your rabbitry.

Until that time, definitely enjoy the personalities of your rabbits. They can help with the stress. Mine do. Definitely not failing by stepping back and re-evaluating where you are at. Actually a smart move, IMHO.

Wishing you the best! Definitely keep us posted.
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NeuBunny
Genetics Geek!
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I understand totally your frustration. I 'wasted' a year on a doe (my only French angora doe at the time) that never did take. But really, so long as you are learning, it isn't wasted.

Comparing yourself to others and becoming jealous is never good. That someone else had lots of litters and is off to a good start should cause you to be happy for them. And just maybe they could be a future source of bunnies for you too! Coincidentally stumbled across an article this morning on 'why generation Y isn't happy'. Boils down to happiness = reality - expectations. Ambition is good, but if you set your expectations too high reality will never be good enough and you will be unhappy. It's preventing you from enjoying what you HAVE accomplished and learned.

You said she had the kit a just a month ago. But you didn't mention what became of it. Did you foster to another doe? Or is she still nursing? Some does won't take while still nursing. And if you took the kit right away and fostered, perhaps she 'thinks' she is still pregnant? The bigger real concern is whether she could have retained a dead kit, in which case as far as her body is concerned she really is still pregnant.

In either case, 5 weeks is not at all long to recover after giving birth. Yes, some does are ready to rebreed immediately, but not all of them.

Sounds like you have a second doe with the same issue. That points more towards something environmental - weather, feed, water, etc. They could be picking up on your stress too!

That said, I've heard it is not unusual for a doe that has lost a litter to be receptive for a few days immediately after delivering, and then if she didn't get bred or take in that window to decide she needs a three month break.
Edited by NeuBunny, Sep 18 2013, 03:32 PM.
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Disney
Somebunny is a awfully chatty
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Good news!!

Videl suddenly lifted and took 3/4 times and kept grunting the whole time.. no idea why.
Tried Tanya aswell and she took twice. I'm really excited!

I agree, and i'm still downsizing for those reasons. I went way over my head with 35/40 animals, it made me sick and tired.
Now i'm at 12 and still have 3 that are for sale.. so 8/9 is my goal with litters now and then. That's good enough for me.
This way i can focus more on myself and my future.

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ZRabbits
Love My Lions!
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Disney
Sep 18 2013, 03:33 PM
Good news!!

Videl suddenly lifted and took 3/4 times and kept grunting the whole time.. no idea why.
Tried Tanya aswell and she took twice. I'm really excited!

I agree, and i'm still downsizing for those reasons. I went way over my head with 35/40 animals, it made me sick and tired.
Now i'm at 12 and still have 3 that are for sale.. so 8/9 is my goal with litters now and then. That's good enough for me.
This way i can focus more on myself and my future.

Glad to hear that Videl and Tanya accepted your buck. Fingers crossed they both took and that in 31 plus days, easy deliveries for the does and healthy kits.

I'd really want to know why Videl is still grunting. But that's just me. I'm a worrier, sorry. Hopefully it's just the molt she's going through. Hoping all is well.

Please let us know how it goes.

Also, sounds like a great goal for your rabbitry. Downsizing to help you focus on yourself and your future. Plus it will help focus on your rabbits as well, which should be fun and exciting, not making you sick and tired. I'm not going to have a big rabbitry, and will only have a couple of litters a year. I want to be able to really focus on the kits as I did with my first litter. Not just for show, but also to help with socializing and good manners.
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sidd-says-gimme
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sidd says stay gold
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Congrats!
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NeuBunny
Genetics Geek!
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:woot:
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