new member

[Mannbuns]

Hello fellow bunny fans! My husband and I are just starting our rabbit journey. Looking to be more self-sufficient and so adding meat rabbits to our lifestyle. I look forward to sharing and learning here!

 

[MuddyFarms]

Howdy! Hope you enjoy raising rabbits!

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Hello and welcome to RabbitTalk :]

What breed(s) do you have?

 

[Mannbuns]

Hello and welcome to RabbitTalk :]

What breed(s) do you have?

Well... none yet. We were hoping to get rabbits during the winter but we had a setback preparing for them. We're finally ready and trying to find bunnies! We're looking for good meat rabbits, especially interested in NZ, SF or Rex. I'm not allowed to post a wanted post yet. But I'm calling everyone I can find on registries that are within driving distance!

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

I don't have any of those breeds but which state do you live in?

 

[Mannbuns]

I don't have any of those breeds but which state do you live in?

I'm in Ohio. Near the tri-state area (Indiana-Ohio-Kentucky)

 

[hotzcatz]

Aloha!

Bunnies are tasty, although ours generally hang around and grow wool instead since they're English angora and not NZ, Californians or another meaty breed. However, if I were looking for plump bunnies, is there a bulletin board at your local feed store? Or perhaps a bunny show sometime nearby?

 

[KelleyBee]

Welcome neighbor! I’m in the Pittsburgh area of PA. You’ve made a good choice coming to this forum. The experience and willingness to help from the people here is fabulous.

 

[Mannbuns]

Good news! We found someone who can sell us 6 month old NW REW!! Gonna get them in a couple weeks. Hooray!
Thank you for the welcomes! I'm excited to learn from everyone's experience.

 

[dyosuper]

Hi All,
I am a new member from Down Under. Our seasons are opposite to the North American but otherwise our experiences and problems are similar.
I recently purchased 10 Rex rabbits (8 does which are mature and and 2 bucks-one working and one still young). I have had them for 7 weeks, too date, there is no sign of any preparation for having kits.
Can anyone suggest what may be the problem. We have gone through a fairly hot summer, 30 to 40 degrees ((80 - 100 in your measurements). The thought crossed my mind that the heat may have affected the working buck. (a little more background-one of the young does I bought was small enough to get out. To save her from being picked up by feral cats, foxes, hawks etc., I put her in a small cage with the buck which I thought may not be working. He started to work immediately. Hence, I feel he is mature enough to work. however, the doe died, I suspect from heat, a couple of days later).
Comments would be appreciated.

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Wow seven weeks that's a very long time

Rabbits are due at 31 days

 

[dyosuper]

Yes. Any suggestions?

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

How many fall-offs?

I've had a Buck only get one with a Doe and she had a Kit, and another time (Maybe the next, I don't know) the same buck got 8 or 9 fall offs with the same Doe and no Kits at all

 

[MuddyFarms]

Hi All,
I am a new member from Down Under. Our seasons are opposite to the North American but otherwise our experiences and problems are similar.
I recently purchased 10 Rex rabbits (8 does which are mature and and 2 bucks-one working and one still young). I have had them for 7 weeks, too date, there is no sign of any preparation for having kits.
Can anyone suggest what may be the problem. We have gone through a fairly hot summer, 30 to 40 degrees ((80 - 100 in your measurements). The thought crossed my mind that the heat may have affected the working buck. (a little more background-one of the young does I bought was small enough to get out. To save her from being picked up by feral cats, foxes, hawks etc., I put her in a small cage with the buck which I thought may not be working. He started to work immediately. Hence, I feel he is mature enough to work. however, the doe died, I suspect from heat, a couple of days later).
Comments would be appreciated.

Temperatures over 80 degrees can often result in sterile bucks. They may still get the breeding done, but there won't be any kits. From what I have read, it can take three months sometimes for the sterility to reverse once they are in cooler temps. That is one of the big things that make breeding in the summer difficult. Some people will keep their bucks indoors or in an air conditioned building to prevent this. In multiple threads on RT I have read that younger bucks tend to not be as affected by the heat, and I think that was referring to bucks under 6 months? Maybe you could look up some threads on this topic if you haven't already; there are some good ones.

Do you know how old your bucks are? When the does were bred, how many fall-offs were there? Do you do anything for cooling the rabbits during this heat? It can be very hard on rabbits to be actively producing during temps like you are having.

 

[Rabbits by Accident]

Welcome I am in Texas where summer temps sometimes surpass 100F. I recently installed a misting hose in front of the rabbit cages.


They LOVE it! If you can't do that, you can put bottles of frozen water and wet ceramic tiles in their cages to help them cool off. I located it so that they have half their cage dry if they want to get out of the spray. However, they all line up as close to the water as they can get and get soaked! LOL

I bred my doe two weeks ago, so I'll know soon if the buck is working However, we've only had a couple really hot days. Mostly it's in the 80's - 90's and I haven't bothered turning on the hose or anything.

- Liz

 

[marshaclark52]

I'm in South Carolina and we have had a few hot days already and expect high 90s to 100 most of July and August. I put up a misting hose and the rabbits love it. I turn it on when temp hits 88. I too have it so only the front part, about 6 inches, of the cage gets wet. The rabbits seem to chose the mist over dry part of cage.

 

[arachyd]

For hot days I always kept a few water-filled milk bottles frozen and replaced them when the water melted. The rabbits would lay against them or on top of them to keep cool.

 

[Mannbuns]

It's nice to know we're not alone in this rabbit journey. I'm so glad we all have a place to share!
We finally got our rabbits. new Zealand whites. Two does and a buck. The man we bought from bred the does for us just before we brought them home and he's confident they are pregnant, so hopefully we will have babies by the end of June! Our kiddos are loving it, and honestly I am too. We were told to leave the does alone as much as possible while they're pregnant and since they're not used to a lot of attention, I've not pushed them to get comfortable with touch yet. But the buck is getting to really like his petting time when I give them water and I'm slowly getting him comfortable with the kids petting him too. Looking forward to babies to hold!