I can hardly believe it has been a month, but it has. Canyon is still leery of me, but she is also pregnant so I did not bother her more than necessary. I had gotten about a week behind with everything because I was laid up with back pain and could not do much. Not exactly the kind of Spring Break I was looking forward to having, but the sharp muscle spasms have mercifully calmed down today and I am able to move around a bit better. Although I was having some back pain on Sunday, I was able to get Misty Blue and Lancelot weighed and nails clipped with my daughter's help, and they were bred as I stated in my last post.  I also weighed the BMB-5 kindle, but I did not get their photos updated on their page. Monday morning, the upper back pain was much worse and it stayed that way most of the week until today, even after a chiropractic adjustment on Monday. Just sitting at a computer to try to type was painful. Obviously, I was not up to handling the rabbits much this week...

Plan: Breed Lancelot x Misty Blue using an introduction approach. Goal: Change Lancelot's status to proven; try to get Misty Blue to accept breeding without assistance; testing Misty Blue to see if she carries Chocolate: a Lilac kit. Conclusion: Misty Blue lifted for Lancelot as two fall offs were witnessed. About an hour later, she again was receptive and two fall offs were witnessed. Before the breeding, I cut the nails on Lancelot and Misty Blue as well as weighed them both. I checked Misty Blue's genital area which appeared a deeper color. This suggested that placing her in the cage next to Lancelot a few days before breeding had the desired result, because Misty Blue has been rather difficult about accepting a buck in the past. aa Bb C_ Dd E_ sisi aa B_ Cc chd dd E_ sisi Although Lancelot is the younger of my two bucks by just three weeks, he is also the largest. He is just over six months old so it could be a bit early for him, but judging by the int...

Today I have moved Misty Blue into the empty cage next to Lancelot so that they will get a bit acquainted before I breed them together on Sunday. Misty Blue is one who is difficult to accept a buck. Moving the does away from the bucks did calm down their spraying thankfully, but now I want this pair to get interested in each other, so there may be some spraying...again. The things we rabbit keepers have to put up with! Although I have Canyon bred and in the kindling suite due in just over a week, this pairing will be the first purebred Silver Fox breeding in house for two years and I cannot wait to see what the breeding of these two will produce! Lancelot carries Chocolate and Blue, but I do not know if Misty Blue carries chocolate. If she does, I could see our first Chocolate and maybe even a Lilac! 

The NZW buck we culled on Sunday was a sprayer. All bucks are to some extent, but this one was really determined to set three records in our rabbitry for amount, distance, and number of animals and persons (yes, that would be me included). I could hardly clean him up enough, being that he was supposed to be a pristine white, to take pictures for a listing that did not show him as bright yellow. Then there is this little fact of life that rabbits should never be bathed, because they freak and some have died during the process.  Because the rabbitry was crowded and we have Canyon in quarantine, we ended up with bucks in cages next to does. The does were also sprayed, of course. Their fur is...well, they needed cleaning and all their cages needed a deep cleaning. So, that is what we spent the day doing Sunday, besides processing. My husband and I decided that we need to have another plan for the bucks, so they do not see each other or the does, until we are ready to breed the...

I confess that I have been rather discouraged this rabbit breeding season, but I finally have the number of Silver Foxes for breeding I wanted and I have hopes with the upcoming breedings as I will have only purebred Silver Fox kits! Yesterday, I thought out what I would like to accomplish with the end of the breeding season fast approaching, because breeding in the heat of summer in the Southeast is not a good idea. Being that I am visual type, I had to make some charts as I thought it all out. My original breeding plans had to change because I bought two Silver Fox does who would need to be added in the rotation.  Then, there is the other problem of space that probably every rabbit breeder understands. Presently, we have eleven cages. Seven years ago, we started with just six cages and that worked well enough with a New Zealand trio and their large kindles that often had to be separated for grow out. Then we added a pair of Silver Foxes and added a couple more cages and ...

As Easter approaches, the number of listings by breeders trying to sell cute little bunnies as pets increases. Nothing wrong with that. However, when I see ads selling commercial rabbit breeds such as New Zealand Whites or Silver Foxes as pets, I cringe. Typically, commercial breeds grow quickly and that cuteness wears off in just a few weeks. When they reach their senior weight, most people have what I would call pet buyer's remorse, because the rabbit grew to be between 9 to 12 pounds and it is not all that cute and cuddly as it seemed just a couple of months ago. They often get left in the cage more and more with less and less interaction or attention. A few thumps with those back legs, deep scratches anywhere on your body a rabbit could reach while being held, or even one intentional spraying by a maturing buck can change one's mind about even keeping the rabbit at all. Craigslist allows listings for selling livestock and asking for small rehoming fee for pets, but it ...

I have mentioned a few times that my does are not young. Whoops just turned four years old at the the beginning of the month. Her fertility has been in question, which is why we were having her kindle here (before the buyer backed out). Her first breeding with the young NZW-A buck did not take, so I had bred her again with the proven NZW-B.  I was certain she was pregnant this time and she was, but while I was gone all day yesterday doing errands, my husband texted me to say she only gave birth to a single kit. He reported that it was alive and regular sized. That made me think that she was not done, but he said she had been out of the nest for a long time. I could not wait to get home and palpate her, because having just one regular size did not sound likely to me. I was sure there was more to come and I was concerned it might just be one more, which would make it likely that it would be a fetal giant . I felt her abdomen and I was pretty sure I felt a large mass in her b...

I know it is customary to get a deposit to hold a rabbit, but I did not request that for the simple reason that Whoops did not take her first breeding and her age was a large factor. At this point, I have more reason to think the first buck was too young than Whoops was too old. Whoops is due on Sunday and this time I am pretty sure she will be kindling. I believe I felt a defined leg movement just this week, plus she feels full and heavy. I had not heard back from her prospective buyer when I sent updates by email for the past week, so I texted last night. As I feared, he backed out...not because he did not want my rabbits or that he bought rabbits somewhere else, but because his business was overwhelming presently. He was still interested, but for a later time. Unfortunately, a later time would mean that I would not have the Red Eyed Whites his wife thought would keep their children from getting attached. Next time I am in this situation (that I hope not to be in again),...

I decided to wean the BMB-5 kindle just before they turned seven weeks old because I was not seeing them nurse at all and Misty Blue seemed to be drying up. I placed them all in a cage neighboring their mother and the next morning I placed the two smallest back in with her, but only one tried to nurse and was not really able to do so. This, in addition to their weight gain seems to still be on track, confirmed to me that it was a good call. I am very happy to see now large BMB5, the black with Silver Fox fur, is at seven weeks old, I might offer him as a hybrid brood buck. BMB4 lost the nail on the toe that was injured and it is still healing, but there is no infection and the swelling has reduced, so I am pleased but she is labeled as a cull rabbit, being that she is small. BMB3 is the second largest and could be a good hybrid brood doe. BMB2 is a pretty cottontail bunny that is in the middle with weight and temperament. BMB1, the chinchilla I am considering, is the one who com...

I met with Hannah from  Renaissance Farmstead  on Thursday, a wet, rainy, and a bit windy morning. Beth at  Silver Lox Rabbitry  has quality Silver Foxes that have done well at shows. Hannah was buying a breeding pair with three legs and with another leg she would have a Grand Champion. I was there to buy a two-year-old, proven, Blue doe that cannot be shown simply because Blue is not an accepted Silver Fox color by the ARBA presently, but Beth had taken her for comments and they were good in the areas that some of my others are not as good. I brought everything with me, except my rabbit binder with all my pedigrees, but I recognized several names on Canyon's pedigree from Black Ivy's pedigree. That was because Black Ivy's mother was from High Rock's lines, which is why I had been trying to find that breeder. When I got home and looked at both pedigrees, I realized that Canyon and Black Ivy not only share ancestry, but that Canyon is in fact Black Ivy's gra...

A doe can build her nest at any time during the pregnancy, but they seem to have an urgency to do so in the last week, or even the last few days. Many breeders do not place in a nesting box until the last week or few days because some does will use it to stay warm and/or use it as a bathroom, if it is placed in the cage before they are feeling that urge to build a nest.  Whoops has been in our "kindling suite," a two compartment cage that has a drop nesting box on one side with its own door and cage with baby catching wire all around that is not as deep as our other cages on the other side. I love that I can close off the nesting box hutch until it is needed or to inspect the kindle in the nest without the mother being protective and pestering. Whoops is not due until March 11th, but she began haystaching —probably not a real word (unless you are a rabbit breeder)—rather early. I opened up the nesting box side because once she builds a nest, it is used for nothing el...