Can rabbits mate if kept in a barn?

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Howdy folks! As on the tin, I’d like to know if rabbits can procreate if kept in a barn.

I’ve been told females need a full day of light if I intend to mate them.

I’m currently in the process of rehauling my barn’s interior, along with feeding them their rabbit “aphrodisiacs”.

However, I’m wondering if their aphrodisiacs will be at all effective if I’m not putting them outside enough.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!
 
I think rabbits would mate kept in a shoebox :ROFLMAO: . I know there are fancy breeds that are picky but most are not that picky, and the boys are ready to go 24/7/365.

That said, I do notice my does are much more into my buck with the lengthening days of spring, so I suppose some small amount of seasonal shift might be helpful...our winters here are DARK. I am up at about 48° N, so we have a big day length shift at the equinoxes. Not looking forward to it...
 
I think rabbits would mate kept in a shoebox :ROFLMAO: . I know there are fancy breeds that are picky but most are not that picky, and the boys are ready to go 24/7/365.

That said, I do notice my does are much more into my buck with the lengthening days of spring, so I suppose some small amount of seasonal shift might be helpful...our winters here are DARK. I am up at about 48° N, so we have a big day length shift at the equinoxes. Not looking forward to it...
Interesting…

We have a young buck who isn’t always so ready. I’ve read a little about heat sterility. In other words if kept too hot over a long period the bucks can’t mate. It has been quite hot this summer. Have you ever experienced this?
 
Yes, heat sterility is an issue for us. They say three days in a row over 90 degrees F or five days over 85 degrees F can cause sterility for the bucks. I have a friend with angora rabbits who keeps hers loose in a colony in an old chicken barn. The bucks stretch out on the cool concrete floor on the hot days (she keeps part of the floor swept clean), and she now has kits born all summer long, unlike when she used rabbit cages and they didn't want to breed, or didn't take.
 
We house our rabbits in our garage with both windows blacked out. We control everything. The lights are LED grow lamps with sunspectrum lighting, on timers for consistant cycles. We keep the temps at a constant 62°F all year long. We have also have an area designated for exercise that we rotate them in and out of all day long. Each rabbit gets time in the pen. In that pen, they have a dig box, a litter box, feed, water, treats, and toys. It is also where we do the breeding. It is a neutral space for them. We have been raising them for 3 years and they have happily, and enthusiastically bred every time we put them together.

In fact, we had a black doe whom we bred recently to our black buck. They had never met prior to this pairing. They looked identical except for size. She was a FW x NZ and he was a NZ x SF.

When she saw him, she moved so fast to hump on him it was hilarious. When he realized she in the pen, and humping him, he went in to action. They had 7 fall offs in less than 2 minutes. I swear they were in love at first sight, or she was just really, really horny. 🤣🤣
 
Yes, heat sterility is an issue for us. They say three days in a row over 90 degrees F or five days over 85 degrees F can cause sterility for the bucks. I have a friend with angora rabbits who keeps hers loose in a colony in an old chicken barn. The bucks stretch out on the cool concrete floor on the hot days (she keeps part of the floor swept clean), and she now has kits born all summer long, unlike when she used rabbit cages and they didn't want to breed, or didn't take.
When your buck is heat sterile does he stop trying to breed? or does he just shoot blanks?

With true heat sterility he should just shoot blanks. In the middle of a hot day a buck may be disinclined to breed, but by evening when it cools off I would expect him to resume interest, and that would not be heat sterility per se, but simple heat stress. Both things likely could occur at the same time--he could be stressed and subsequently become temporarily sterile.
 
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Interesting…

We have a young buck who isn’t always so ready. I’ve read a little about heat sterility. In other words if kept too hot over a long period the bucks can’t mate. It has been quite hot this summer. Have you ever experienced this?
Young bucks can just be a little slow sometimes--they don't really know their job at first.

Admittedly, I don't breed show rabbits. It is safe to say slow breeding bucks in my breeds of choice were just not bred, and went in a pot instead, for many generations. Undoubtedly that has been a strong selection pressure for easy breeders, for decades, and has colored my experience.

My answer above was a little tongue in cheek but may have come off as flippant, which was unintended.
 
That said, I do notice my does are much more into my buck with the lengthening days of spring, so I suppose some small amount of seasonal shift might be helpful...our winters here are DARK. I am up at about 48° N, so we have a big day length shift at the equinoxes. Not looking forward to it...




My winters are long too but I have had success in winter breeding. As for young bucks, I have a youngster that took to breeding like a duck to water. three fall offs and 7 kits later.
 
It is safe to say slow breeding bucks in my breeds of choice were just not bred, and went in a pot instead, for many generations.
There is no question that it is important to select for important traits. The hard part is starting with less than ideal stock and trying to get enough offspring to select from. Especially when you have bucks that just aren't interested in breeding. I had that problem with Champagne d' Argent rabbits, the bucks were so laid back, they had no interest in breeding. It wasn't weather related at all, and they weren't too young. I had purchased a group of the rabbits, beautiful, sweet, easy to work with, good conformation, in good condition. . .but the boys had no interest at all in the girls. None of the tricks I tried worked, not changing light conditions, nutrition, swapping pens with the girls, time of day. . .the boys got along with the girls just fine, they just didn't want to breed. No way to select for more aggressive breeding in the males when you can't get offspring.

With the Angora rabbits, especially the Satin Angoras, replacement stock can be very hard to come by, so when a buck doesn't want to breed, it's a major issue. Young males can quickly be frightened by an aggressive doe, it's hard for them to overcome that fear.

My husband wanted a nice uniform herd of black based Silver Fox rabbits, but the starter herd he purchased had some blue in the background. One beautiful big blue buck was born, grew spectacularly, fabulous conformation and personality. He kept the buck, but didn't really intend to use him, since he didn't want blue kits. But when the other bucks didn't want to breed, that blue buck was always ready to go--with quick, efficient breedings every time. He definitely had the right stuff as far as breeding went, but he was the wrong color. Which leads to another issue, often the rabbit with the 'right' color or whatever trait you deem important--doesn't want to breed. Leaving you with another you have to use that breeds well, but may transmit other traits you are not looking for.

My friend has solved this problem with a colony set up in an old chicken barn. Even the reluctant breeders, male and female, started breeding. She ended up with more rabbits than she imagined possible. Does that never conceived had litters, bucks that never wanted to breed sired kits. By stretching out on the cool concrete floor in the summer, bucks avoided the whole heat sterility issue, so she has litters all summer long.

Generally here, bucks not wanting to breed isn't a heat issue. Summer sterility is just that, the bucks breed, have multiple fall-offs, but the does don't conceive. I have a few bucks that are anxious to breed no matter the time of year, and have good aim, so they catch the doe early in the chase. They are treasured. Other bucks are more clueless, don't line up properly, and exhaust themselves in a position that will never breed the doe. Trying to reposition them properly just confuses them and they stop trying. And still other bucks just don't care, and just lay there and ignore the doe. When you are trying to breed for specific colors, patterns, or fiber types, and you end up with a single buck of that trait, and it is maddening when they don't perform to continue the trait.

It is so much simpler to select for one trait, such as meat conformation, and breed strictly for that one trait. Genetically, you can make tremendous progress in a short time that way. When you are trying to select for many lesser traits at the same time, progress gets stalled, as you are selecting animals as breeders that may not have the best growth rate, or the best personality, or the best breeding skills, simply because they have a color you want, or a fiber/fur type, or a pattern that interests you.

With sheep, there are breeders that select only the fastest growing, best-looking ram lambs from the spring crop to be their fall breeders, no adult rams are used. Only the biggest and best of that year's crop get a chance to breed, and only the most fertile will succeed, thus making quick progress in breeding for those traits.

My herd is separated into a half-dozen mini-herds, as some colors genetically do not combine well with other colors, and having a variety of colors of angora to spin of a very soft texture that doesn't mat on the rabbit is my goal. Satin Angoras are separate from English Angoras. The harlequins are their own mini herd with the fawn rabbits (the recessive to harlequin). The chinchillas (including ermine, which is chin plus the non-extension fawn gene, which I use as my 'white' fiber) are their own herd--as chin, like harlequin, can mess with other more dominant colors. Non-agouti black and chocolate are their own herd, trying to breed for darker, more uniform color on the hairshaft. . .you get the idea. So even though I have a fair number of rabbits, each little group only has a buck or two to choose from. And that is where trouble can begin, when you only have one buck to choose from, and he just doesn't wanna perform. Or he tries, but the doe never settles.

The quick solution is to go back and make a priority of strong breeding traits, get a herd that breeds well, and then start selecting for more minor traits such as fiber/fur and color. But it's hard to discard many years of breeding for the fiber in the process, the best fibered bucks are rarely the best breeders, and some color patterns have associated health issues (like broken and megacolon) that may impede selection of the best bucks. It is so hard to get a harlequin with the proper pattern, with the proper color changes on the face, ears, legs, etc., and the proper banding--that when one getting even close to that ideal is born, you want to use it as a breeder. But what are the chances that it will be a good and lusty breeder, and pass on those gorgeous pattern traits?
 
When your buck is heat sterile does he stop trying to breed? or does he just shoot blanks?

With true heat sterility he should just shoot blanks. In the middle of a hot day a buck may be disinclined to breed, but by evening when it cools off I would expect him to resume interest, and that would not be heat sterility per se, but simple heat stress. Both things likely could occur at the same time--he could be stressed and subsequently become temporarily sterile.
That’s the odd thing…

He’s now completely uninterested in does. He used to be quite interested; in fact he sired a litter of 10! Although now he doesn’t even try, even during the cool parts of the day. Any idea what his issue is? He was put off a lot by a NZ doe. Did she scar him?
 
That’s the odd thing…

He’s now completely uninterested in does. He used to be quite interested; in fact he sired a litter of 10! Although now he doesn’t even try, even during the cool parts of the day. Any idea what his issue is? He was put off a lot by a NZ doe. Did she scar him?
Dumb question: is he possibly injured in any way? Not just cuts and scrapes, but sore hocks, urine scald, anything that could be making him uncomfortable? Any infections, or loss of condition? I don't think this is sterility so much as loss of interest.

If he is physically healthy, it could be that the NZ girl was scary or just plain too much effort, and he is trying to be overly mannerly. Maybe you can try him on a different, more eager doe. Additionally, you could try a change of venue--If you currently put the doe in the buck cage, set up a puppy pen on the floor/ground, and let them hang out together longer, with supervision. sit near them and read a book or something, give him some time to think about it.

My does are also housed so that they can see and smell the buck all the time, and he can see and smell them. Sometimes I will notice somebunny sticking close to the buck and doing a lot of grooming thru the wire--a sign that they are receptive. My buck will also get active and excited when one of the does is coming into heat, running in circles, stopping closest to the one he wants me to bring over for a visit.

Also when choosing a doe for a young or reluctant buck, some of my older does will actively lift when just being petted if they are really in heat. That can be a major help, she will push him around and all but demand that he breed, so do watch for that behavior.
 
He seemed healthy.
Dumb question: is he possibly injured in any way? Not just cuts and scrapes, but sore hocks, urine scald, anything that could be making him uncomfortable? Any infections, or loss of condition? I don't think this is sterility so much as loss of interest.

If he is physically healthy, it could be that the NZ girl was scary or just plain too much effort, and he is trying to be overly mannerly. Maybe you can try him on a different, more eager doe. Additionally, you could try a change of venue--If you currently put the doe in the buck cage, set up a puppy pen on the floor/ground, and let them hang out together longer, with supervision. sit near them and read a book or something, give him some time to think about it.

My does are also housed so that they can see and smell the buck all the time, and he can see and smell them. Sometimes I will notice somebunny sticking close to the buck and doing a lot of grooming thru the wire--a sign that they are receptive. My buck will also get active and excited when one of the does is coming into heat, running in circles, stopping closest to the one he wants me to bring over for a visit.

Also when choosing a doe for a young or reluctant buck, some of my older does will actively lift when just being petted if they are really in heat. That can be a major help, she will push him around and all but demand that he breed, so do watch for that behavior.
I did an inspection and he looks fine. Some discoloration on his hocks but they’re not wet or missing fur. I might try putting them both in a dog pen in the garage and keeping it cool. I know this sounds extremely unorthodox but we’ve actually conceived a litter by just leaving a doe in the buck’s hutch for 72 hours. Somewhat risky to try but if they both have docile temperaments it might actually work.

It could just be this particular doe being difficult with him given he’s mated fine with at least one doe before. Maybe give that doe a different buck… or just cull her
 
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