Breeding in the Heat

[Miss M]

I've read that a buck can become temporarily sterile if temps are above something like 94* for a while. Well, it certainly has been here. Does a buck having an ice bottle every day make any difference? Should I try breeding anyway since the doe just had a false pregnancy?

 

[Shara]

I don't KNOW, but I would, worst your gonna get is a false pregnany. I used to have bucks that were fine in he heat, it may be an individual thing.

You just might get babies!

 

[MaggieJ]

The ice bottle should help prevent heat sterility, if you have given him one fairly consistently. You won't lose anything by giving it a try.

 

[Miss M]

Thanks, y'all! It is most certainly an exertion for them to breed... well, mainly on the boy's part. So I didn't want to put them through it if there was just no chance. Yet I hated to miss out on a chance for a litter, or at least the chance to keep Pearl semi-receptive (at least, as receptive as she'll get, I suppose!). I'll go ahead and give it a try!

I've missed giving him an ice bottle only one day that it went over 90*. Well... two. But the other one was like 3 months ago.

 

[MaggieJ]

Try to pick an early morning when it is not too hot for the breeding. It's more likely they will be interested then. Give the buck an ice bottle overnight, so he's perky. Breed them before you feed them and call a halt if your buck seems to be dangerously overexerting. I doubt there will be any problems; usually a buck will take a break if he gets seriously winded.

 

[Miss M]

I bred them in the morning before it got too hot. Thumper fell off only one time, as Pearl wasn't terribly cooperative. It wasn't for lack of trying on his part, though! I bred them again late that night (Wednesday). No successes as far as I know that time, so hopefully the one in the morning was good enough (and hopefully he wasn't shooting blanks!)!

 

[ottersatin]

I breed my rabbits year-round.
I try to plan my breeding for early morning
or early evening when it should be a bit cooler.
When the temps go above 85 degrees you do risk an
up to three month temporary sterility in the older Bucks.
The young bucks seem to be more resistant to the effects of heat.
The best way to combat the problem is to:
Keep breeding the Buck, this will cause him to
more quickly shoot out the blanks and regain his virility.
When the weather cools down he will definitely be back to his old self.
Anything you can do to coll him down in the hottest weather
is a great help in preventing the problem.
Dennis, C.V.R.

 

[Miss M]

Thanks, Dennis! Thumper is about a year and a half old, so maybe he's managed to stay... um... ready. :mrgreen: With the help of the ice bottles.

 

[ottersatin]

I would just continue to use him,
he is really not very old though he is not a youngster.
He is a Senior, but a young Senior at that.
Dennis, C.V.R.