When to rebreed doe with nursing litter?

[MamaMandy]

My Netherland doe has 3 kits that are almost 3 weeks old. When should I rebreed her? I've seen people say to rebreed when the kits are 4 weeks old. If you do that, how long do you leave the babies with the momma and let them continue nursing? Thanks for any input you might have.

 

[grumpy]

Unless you want an accelerated breeding schedule, you can re-breed the doe when the kits are 42 days old and wean them at 56. That will leave the doe 17 days alone before she's due to kindle again. She'll dry up and wean the youngsters without too much difficulty.

Your location isn't available, so be careful of the hot weather.

grumpy.

 

[akane]

That's a huge question. Everyone does things differently for different reasons. Some rebreed immediately, some wait 2 weeks, some wait 4weeks, some wait until the kits are all sold at 6-8weeks, some only breed 2 or 3 times a year....

If the doe is in good condition I rebreed within days year round. The smaller breeds tend to over pull fur though and need breaks to regrow their fur even if they are in good condition otherwise. I turn all extras that don't sell in to dog or cat food depending on size so it doesn't matter to me if I breed excess of anything so long as the does stay in good condition.

 

[toastedoat37]

grumpys answer is what i was taught when started raising rabbits , if you breed sooner than that , you need to watch your does they get wore out, its hard work . When i had rabbits,,42 days is what i did and kept getting more does and having more rabbits..

I got carried away,, way carried away ,of rabbits in the freezer , no buyers to start,,,and i was havin to work my butt off to aford the feed. i told my dad that i had to go to the auction, he said,,you DONT NEED MORE RABBITS, LOL,,,i told him no, i need to sell some.,,,,,

if your just starting out, 42 days after kindle is often enough ,that gives you five litters a year i think.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

That is only if you breed all year round. I dont anymore. So i breed back when the babies are 3 weeks old. BUt i only breed 3 litters a year. Some rabbits are only one litter and some are only 2 litters a year. So it does depend on what you are doing. WIth the amount of rabbit that i have and still increasing. There is plenting to go around even only breeding in the summer time.

 

[MamaMandy]

Thanks for all the tips! I plan on only breeding through the summer, so I'd like to not wait too long. Plus, it seems Netherlands average only about 3 living kits per litter.

 

[Disney]

My doe had a litter on april 21 and i rebred her on 18 may, 4 weeks later. The kits were doing fine, she was fine too. Great condition, she is very energetic and bouncy. She is on the 27th day today so she will kindle again soon. She lives in a enclosure so i just left the kits with her, they continued to nurse on their pregnant mother but she handles them fine. I don't breed all year round, just a few litters to increase my colony population, so the doe will be off-breeding for the rest of the year. I wouldn't have bred her while nursing a litter if i was a all year round breeder, but i just have pet rabbits so i guess it's okay if i do it just one time.

 

[MamaMandy]

That's what I was thinking Disney...it's not like I'm breeding year round, so it shouldn't hurt to do it once or twice. These will be for pets or 4-H.

 

[OneAcreFarm]

As long as your doe maintains condition, you can rebreed her as soon as she is ready. If you are breeding for meat and your does cannot handle a 14 day breed back, then you need better stock.

 

[MamaMandy]

Thanks to everyone!