7 Easy Ways to Troubleshoot Breeding Rabbits
Breeding rabbits for meat sounds like an easy task! After all, we now have the saying “breeding like rabbits” because the animal is KNOWN for their active breeding in the wild.
So what happens if your meat rabbits are not wanting to breed? How do you troubleshoot the rabbit breeding process?
Here are 7 easy ways to troubleshoot breeding rabbits!
1) Cool the buck down.
Surprisingly, your rabbits may not be breeding successfully because it is too hot. Male rabbits (bucks) go sterile in hot temperatures. So while your rabbits might do the act of breeding, no fertilization is occuring.
If you want to keep the buck fertile all year long, try bringing him into a climate controlled area or plan to stop breeding for a few months until the weather cools down.
2) Alleviate stress.
A doe (female rabbit) may have trouble breeding because she is stressed. The doe could also be stressed by the heat. Try moving her to a climate controlled area.
New rabbits are often stressed due to the change in environment. Give a new rabbit a month to acclimate before attempting to breed.
3) Change of scenery.
Because of the stress, some does may feel uncomfortable going to the buck’s cage to breed. Instead, try bringing the buck to her in her own space. She may be more open to breeding.
But WATCH! Does are also very territorial and may attack the buck while he is in her cage. Watch the breeding carefully and be ready to pull the buck out quickly if needed.
4) Try an aphrodisiac.
For rabbits, apple cider vinegar is an aphrodisiac and may help the breeding rabbits get in the mood. Add 1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar to 1 gallon of water. Putting a little apple cider vinegar in their daily water may help your rabbits get ready to mate.
5) Maybe she’s pregnant.
Does that are already pregnant will refuse to breed. If you have tried to breed a doe, thought you were unsuccessful, and try again later only to find she is refusing, this may be a sign that she is already pregnant.
Refusing to breed due to pregnancy can happen the day after breeding. Begin treating the doe as pregnant, and do not try to breed her again until the litter is born.
6) This is the LAST resort.
If you have tried to troubleshoot breeding rabbits and nothing is working, here is your last resort. When a doe is refusing to breed, she will tuck her tail in order to block the buck from entering and breeding.
Slip a wide rubberband over her back legs and tail in order to keep her tail up while the buck mounts. Obviously, this is not comfortable for the female, so work quickly to breed her and then take the rubberband off.
7) Replacement
Sometimes a doe will refuse to breed no matter what you try. In this case, it best to get a new doe that is more willing to breed with your buck.
Breeding rabbits for meat often requires troubleshooting in order to get successful litters. These 7 tips should help you to breed successfully every time!
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