When should I rebreed my young doe? (Winter)

[Tbgb1912]

So my netherland dwarf x mini lop doe is five months old, and has two three week old kits. I'm wondering how soon is too soon to rebreed her, or how long I should wait?
It is coming into winter for us too, is winter not an ideal time for outdoor does to kindle? (We don't get snow, just frosty nights and mornings at around -4 degrees celcius / 25 fahranheit) or should I invest in an indoor cage for winter breeding?

 

[Becky]

My understanding is, that it depends entirely on how intensive a breeding schedule you want, and when you're going to wean the kits. Not at all intensive would be not breeding her until her kits are weaned, or even giving her a couple weeks break before rebreeding. Moderately intensive would be something along the lines of breeding two weeks before weaning the kits, so she has a two week break from babies. Very intensive would be something like breeding the doe a couple days after kindling, and weaning the kits at four weeks (I think this is what large commercial rabbitries do). How soon you breed her back can also depend on what her condition is like. So if she had a very large litter, you might give her more of a break than if she had a small one. This is all, of course, just what I've understood from my obsessive reading about rabbits

 

[Lopsided]

The kits will stay perfectly warm in the nest. It is normally 101-102 degrees fahrenheit in the nest where the kits are. I'd go ahead and breed her now and then wean the kits at 5 weeks so that she can have a two weeks break before kindling. Hope this helps!

 

[mystang89]

:yeahthat: I breed specifically for meat so I tend to be aggressive with my breeding. I used to do it the day after and they took will to that. I find that the longer I wait to breed the harder it is to get them bred. I'm try to wait a week after they've kindled now since I don't wean the kits till 4 weeks.

 

[Tbgb1912]

My understanding is, that it depends entirely on how intensive a breeding schedule you want, and when you're going to wean the kits. Not at all intensive would be not breeding her until her kits are weaned, or even giving her a couple weeks break before rebreeding. Moderately intensive would be something along the lines of breeding two weeks before weaning the kits, so she has a two week break from babies. Very intensive would be something like breeding the doe a couple days after kindling, and weaning the kits at four weeks (I think this is what large commercial rabbitries do). How soon you breed her back can also depend on what her condition is like. So if she had a very large litter, you might give her more of a break than if she had a small one. This is all, of course, just what I've understood from my obsessive reading about rabbits

Thanks for that! I think I'll rebreed her now then, since her kits are already eating solids, and since she only had two. I'm hoping for a bigger litter this time around! :3

-- Sat Apr 11, 2015 1:31 pm --

The kits will stay perfectly warm in the nest. It is normally 101-102 degrees fahrenheit in the nest where the kits are. I'd go ahead and breed her now and then wean the kits at 5 weeks so that she can have a two weeks break before kindling. Hope this helps!

So about 38 degrees in the nest, woo that's warm. This was super helpful, thank you! <br /><br /> -- Sat Apr 11, 2015 1:32 pm -- <br /><br />

:yeahthat: I breed specifically for meat so I tend to be aggressive with my breeding. I used to do it the day after and they took will to that. I find that the longer I wait to breed the harder it is to get them bred. I'm try to wait a week after they've kindled now since I don't wean the kits till 4 weeks.

Does waiting any longer to breed them make any difference on the size of their litter?

 

[Lopsided]

From what I understand, waiting longer to breed doesn't make a difference on the size of the litter. The number of "fall-offs" usually increases the size of the litter. When you breed them, make sure the buck falls off at least twice. He will usually mount the doe, grunt and then fall off, which indicates a successful breeding. I normally make sure that my bucks fall off around three times but sometimes it only happens twice. I had a doe deliver nine kits with only two "fall-offs".

 

[Tbgb1912]

From what I understand, waiting longer to breed doesn't make a difference on the size of the litter. The number of "fall-offs" usually increases the size of the litter. When you breed them, make sure the buck falls off at least twice. He will usually mount the doe, grunt and then fall off, which indicates a successful breeding. I normally make sure that my bucks fall off around three times but sometimes it only happens twice. I had a doe deliver nine kits with only two "fall-offs".

How long do you tend to leave the buck and doe together for then?
My two were originally living together, they were supposed to be both females :lol: so I don't know how many times they mated to begin with

 

[Lopsided]

:lol: Usually however long it takes for them to breed. Usually around 5-15 minutes, supervised.

 

[Tbgb1912]

:lol: Usually however long it takes for them to breed. Usually around 5-15 minutes, supervised.

Thanks for that!

 

[Lopsided]

You're welcome! Best of luck!

 

[3mina]

Actually, the number of fall offs has nothing to do with it, it's the number of eggs the doe has released. The doe controls litter size, I've gotten litters of 16 with one fall off.