How to Be a Responsible Rabbit Breeder

Breeding rabbits is not particularly hard; however it is more difficult to be a responsible breeder. There are right reasons to breed and wrong reasons to breed. These are a few things you should take into consideration before you breed your rabbit.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Rabbits

1. 
   Rabbit in cage

   Your local law regarding rabbits
   
   Always verify that your city ordinances allow you to keep the number of rabbits you plan to have. Some cities will not allow more than a few rabbits per household and many rabbits will deliver large numbers of kits, with some rabbits delivering up to 11 at one time. It is very important to make sure you are obeying the law when breeding rabbits.

2. 
   Rabbit babies

   Where you’ll keep your rabbits
   
   Prior to deciding to breed your rabbit you should have a plan of how you will care for them after they are born. All rabbits will need a cage, food, and protection for their safety and comfort. If your rabbit was to deliver four bunnies they will need four cages when they are about three months old. They start out very cute and get along well as a group but if they are not separated (at least boys and girls in separate cages) you can have another litter very quickly. If you have a buck (a male rabbit) and three does (a female rabbit) in the same cage, and they all become pregnant, you can end up with 30 additional bunnies in no time!

3. 
   Why are you breeding rabbits?

   Why are you breeding rabbits?
   
   Will the bunnies be your life long pet? Will you be selling the rabbits for other people as pets? Are you working to improve the quality of your rabbits breed and for showing in organizations like 4-H? Will you be breeding the rabbits to sell the wool they create? You should always have a plan for the rabbits prior to breeding them.
   With any of these reasons you should investigate to make sure there is a true need for the rabbit or what the rabbit can offer. If there is not you should only breed as many as you can personally care for.

4. Some of the wrong reasons to breed rabbits are:
   
   You should never breed a rabbit just for the bunnies. Remember they start out very cute and small but everything grows up and you should take this into consideration prior to breeding your rabbit.
   
   You should never breed rabbits as an experience or experiment. If you want to breed the rabbit just for the experience of birth or to see what color of rabbit you will get you are breeding for the wrong reasons! Rabbits are a lot of responsibility after they are born and no one should play with nature without taking responsibility for the outcome.

5. 
   How to be a responsible rabbit breeder!

   How to be a responsible rabbit breeder
   
   To be a responsible breeder you should consider the long term needs of your rabbits and new bunnies. Remember when you first start breeding your rabbit to go slow because less is more when it comes to rabbits. Your mother rabbit has physical and emotional needs that should also be taken into consideration before breeding her. Also after your bunnies are born they will have physical and emotional needs that must be taken care of. Remember if you keep a small number of rabbits you will be able to give them each an adequate amount of attention. If you regularly handle and work with your rabbit you will keep them use to people and they will respond to you better when you have to groom them.

Resources

• How to Breed a Rabbit
• How to Care for New Born Rabbits
• How to Groom Your Pet Rabbit

[harrisdy]

on 11/6/2009 cute pets... thanks for the tips. 5*