Will extra light help?

[GBov]

I read just lately that extra light helps get rabbits in the mood this time of year and helps to increase the litter sizes.

Is that true?

With 5 litters we only got 18 kits which sounds good until I break down the litters into one doe with 8 kits, one with 5, one with 3 and two with one each.

And all does had between two days and three weeks with the buck.

 

[3mina]

What's your day length? I use supplemental light because the day length here during the winter goes down to about 6 hours a day in the depths of winter and we get an eight month winter. In Florida I'm thinking it's not going to make as much difference as it does here but it never hurts to try it either.
I'd be looking hard at the does who had very small litters. Personally, I'd do a quick breed back on a singleton litter since its not going to be a hardship on the doe to raise one kit. Alternatively, I'd do the quick breed back and foster the singletons to the doe with 3, whichever makes you feel better.

 

[GBov]

Day length is 10 hours and 23 min. It sounds long but it has dropped LOTS over the last month.

 

[3mina]

The extra light can't hurt

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Optimum day length is 14 hours. You are trying to simulate the longer days of late spring and summer. Animals time their breeding cycles for when there is plenty of feed available, and our rabbits have not caught on to the fact that we will provide it for them in the winter.

I would foster the single kits to another doe and rebreed the does. Often they will have larger litters when bred back immediately. You could give the two to the doe that had three, making two litters of five and one of eight. If you want you could even take two kits from the litter of eight and foster them to the other does, making three litters of six each. If you are keeping pedigrees, you may want to mark the fostered kits ears with a Sharpie if the kits look alike.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

I have to disagree on the lighting.. This plays no role in this ... I breed all year round. Except in heat of the summer and cold of the winter. AND I have rabbits outside with natural temp and humidity and the sun. THey are not chickens .. Chickens need the light to lay good and then they burn out from doing that. The rabbits are not like that. There is allot of myths out there on this subject. I had rabbits on timer and in a barn when i was a commercial rabbitry. Now i have less rabbit and outside .. The reason why you have less kits on some. Is one.. the does is to old or to young or to fat.Just spread the kits around so everyone have babies to look after. THen the ones that had babies under 5 can breed back in week to two weeks spand. If a doe isnt breed when she is young , and if you wait until she is 9 months old to breed. THAT IS when you get one to three kits. But not all the time.