So You are Thinking of Breeding Your English Lop?
First, please let me advise you to show your rabbit several times before you decide to breed him or her. Ask other English Lop breeders who a good EL judge is and if you cannot show under him or her, please ask for his or her opinion. Most judges are very willing to look at animals for new or experienced exhibitors. If what they tell you seems like a lot of mumbo jumbo or they are speaking in a foreign language, just come right out and ask them if this rabbit should be bred or not. The breeder or judge has nothing to lose in telling you the truth and a great deal of credibility to lose if they lie. If they say that the rabbit is good enough to breed, get another opinion. If they say he is not, get another opinion anyway. The more you ask, the more you learn, and the faster you will be able to make these decisions on your own.
If you own the buck and a friend or breeder asks for service with your animal, there are several things you are responsible for. First, make sure your buck is in good health and clean. Check the vent area for any redness or blemishes that are not normal. It's best to wait or even forego a breeding rather than breed an animal that is not going to produce healthy stock and/ or will spread diseases. Also, check the doe over because you are ultimately responsible for the health and welfare of your buck. If you see a problem with the doe, do not risk your buck. Next, you are responsible for getting a copy of his pedigree to the owner of the doe if she does have a litter, about 31 days after the breeding takes place. The time can vary a little, usually they have the babies 28 to 33 days after the breeding. I had one doe who would kindle at 36 days and always had beautiful, live healthy litters. This is not the norm, however. Make sure you write on the pedigree that this is a copy or a breeding certificate only. Be sure the pedigree is complete or the future brides owner knows that it is not. All blanks should be filled in with the ear number of each animal, color and weight. This is all the necessary information to have animals registered, and it may well happen that the babies will go to homes which will want to register the babies. Last, but not least, make certain what you expect to get from this breeding. If all you want is to do a friend a favor, fine, but put it in writing. If you expect pick of the litter, put it down on paper. Often a piece of paper will keep a friendship intact. You are dealing with animals, worse, pets... someone's hobby! If there is not a clear understanding what is expected or if one of you has a short memory, feelings are bound to be hurt and accusations fly. I have seen good friends become bitter enemies over a litter of rabbits. Each party feeling the other was trying to "pull" something. You are not dealing with mere rabbits- they couldn't care less. You are dealing with something breeders have put a great deal of effort into. Their hobby.
If you own the doe, you need to do several things, also. The same as owning a buck, but obviously, you have more work ahead of you (also, more fun, but we won't tell the owner of the buck that!). Always take the doe to the buck. Never put a buck inside the does cage. Rabbits are very territorial, but does much more than bucks. Many a fine buck has been maimed and ruined because he has been put in a doe's cage. You may find on your examination of the doe that she has a deep red, almost purple color to her vulva. This is not unusual. Many breeders prefer it thinking that the doe is cycling and in an area of the cycle that will produce babies. I do not recall having had better luck with that approach, although it certainly doesn't hurt. A doe ovualates when she is bred. So, in theory, you should be able to breed a doe at any given time and have her conceive, right? Uhhh... no. First, they like to have a certain number of hours of light. This indicates to them that they will no longer be having their babies (or kits) in a snowstorm. Well, the chances are good that a snowstorm will not hit then. Who knows what tricks Mother Nature will be pulling on us? Increasing the light in your barn or where ever your doe is housed to around 12 to 16 hours a day is helpful. You do not want to breed a doe for the first time if she is too young or too old. How old young? For an English Lop, anything under nine months, in my opinion is too young. I prefer waiting until they are at least a year old, even older isn't bad. English Lops are big rabbits and need time to mature. Many people say when they reach show table weight she is old enough, but some rabbits get big fast without becoming physically or mentally ready to care for young. Remember, breeding is just the beginning of the strain put on her. Kindling (birthing) is just the beginning of raising a litter. Your doe has to be able to handle many more processes than the buck.
Which ever you own, the buck or the doe, both owners should witness the breeding for the simple peace of mind that something has taken place. Hopefully, at least one of you has some experience with the act, and can tell if it was a good breeding or not. If not, wait a while and try again. Some people repeat the breeding even if it was a good breeding the first time. They wait five minutes and try again. Some wait a couple of hours and still others wait two days.
Your doe may be palpated after nine days although I find changes in attitude even more reliable than palpating. Palpating is feeling the abdominal area to see if she has conceived or not. In an English Lop, this is often difficult. There is a lot of room in that tummy for babies to hide. If I am uncertain at nine days, then I try again at fourteen days. Even if I am still uncertain, at 28 days, she gets a nest box. I would have lost a litter this spring if I had not used this practice. The breeding did not go well, I palpated on both the days, and the doe did not act any differently. But, all does that I bred get a nest box 28 days after being bred. This doe was hopping around her cage and just acting silly the day she was due. The next day, she started carrying hay in her mouth and built a nest. While I was doing chores that morning, she had four beautiful babies. What a pleasant surprise. Nest boxes can either be made or bought. English Lops need the ones meant for giant breeds. Most equipment companies have the dimensions listed in their catalogs if you want to make one. Along with the nest box, the doe will appreciate material to make a nest. She will scoop up mouthfuls of straw or hay and take them into the box. Some does make the nest outside of the box, but generally just moving the material into the box will give her the idea. If she insists on making it outside the box, I simply line the entire cage with several inches of hay. That way, no matter where she makes her nest, the babies will be fairly sure of not falling out of the cage through the wire or catch major drafts if she does not pull enough hair. It is a little messier to clean, but far better than finding dead kits all over the cage.
The birthing process is quick. At least it should be. Before the doe kindles, she makes her nest, then, often days ahead of time or, just as often, minutes before, she pulls mouthfuls of hair from her own body and lines the nest with it. It usually only takes a matter of minutes for the doe jumps in the nest, has her babies, cleans them, and jumps back out. This can last anywhere between 10 minutes and 30 minutes. This is an average only. If your doe appears to be getting tired or there is obviously a baby stuck, seek help. Often, first time mothers are not able to keep their litters. Especially if they are bred young. Most breeders tell you to breed them right back, but I prefer waiting until things have a chance to heal. Let your conscience be your guide. There are no right answers for everyone, just right or wrong answers for you.
English Lops are domestic rabbits! This is important enough to repeat. English Lops are domestic rabbits! They do NOT kill, ignore, or harm in any way their babies because the person they love and trust has checked her babies every day to make sure they are safe and alive. If they appear to be nervous about you looking at them, take the nest box out of the cage and check them. But, check them! One dead kit will cool down and lower the temperature in the nest box risking the lives of the others in the nest. At the very least, a dead baby will attract flies and the natural decomposition process will be extremely unhealthy for the kits that are left. I check mine at least twice a day. My does trust me enough that the only issue with them is that they require me to stroke their heads at least as long as I play with the litter. If your English Lop is not this amiable, I would reconsider breeding her again. English Lops are known for their wonderful temperament, and this characteristic should not be overlooked when you are considering whether to breed or not. During the birthing process, new mothers do sometimes mistake the ears on the little ones for the umbilical cord and will occasionally nip one or more off. It renders the baby not show worthy, but does not mean the baby will not survive. It is up to you and your conscience what is to be done with the baby.
I think I have covered most of the breeding and pregnancy of your English Lop. There is a lot more involved in picking the right couple, as it were, but not enough space (or time) to go into it at this point. Color genetics is not my forte, although I will mention here that it is very acceptable to breed a broken animal to a solid animal. This way, you should get brokens and solids in your litter. It is also acceptable to breed solids to solids. With this breeding, you will get all solids. Breeding brokens to brokens is somewhat controversial, although nothing bad will happen as far as the health of the babies as a result. You may get some miscolored rabbits, but only one quarter of the litter should be mismarked.
As I think of things for any of my pages, I will add to or delete from my them and try to keep things up to date.
