RaBbIt QuEsTiOn?

Question

I have lionhead rabbits and they had babies (im new to this). The babies are 7 weeks old. We are selling them when they are 8 weeks. But anyway we thought she wasnt pregnant we had the due date off by 10 days but she had babies then we put them together before she had the babies and now im not sure if she pregnant because she is grumpy )she was grumpy with her first litter. But it might be because she is tired of her kids. I want to learn how to tell if she is pregnant by the grape in her belly.

Thanks for the advice. It would really help. :) :D

PLEASE ANSWER!!!!

missyscove its acually better if you breed your pets in a less chance of cancer.

Answer 1

Here is a site about palpating rabbits: http://islandgems.net/palpating.html It can be a bit difficult to tell, however. You may want to take her to the vet to be sure.

Answer 2

A rabbit's gestation period is 28-32 days. Normally they will have their babies about right at 30 days after they are bred.

If you put the male and female together during her gestation period before she has the babies, there's a 99% chance or better that she won't have babies. Even by chance if she did conceive a second litter before her first was born, she would have had them by the end of about the end of 30 days. And since the babies are only 7 weeks old they are much too young to breed their mother.

It sounds like she is just grumpy from her babies trying to milk her all the time. You'll probably notice her hopping around trying to avoid them a lot. If you are trying to breed and raise more rabbits, the sign that she is grumpy like that is a good sign that if you did put her in with the male she would most likely get pregnant. I normally watch their attitudes closely when I'm looking to breed rabbits. Especially when you are having trouble getting rabbits bred.

Normally grumpiness in the pen means they will take when they are bred. However if you have already put the female in with the male before recently and she acts mean to the male, it may be a sign that she is bred.

The grape thing you were referring to is called palpating or palpation. Normally the best time to check is exactly 14 days after you have tried breeding the rabbit. At 14 days old the babies will be about the size of a marble and feel round. Use your index and middle finger or index, middle and ring fingers to feel for the babies you'll need to press somewhat firmly into the abdomen of the doe (female). Palpating can be hard to do and even many experienced rabbit breeders have trouble palpating so don't feel down if you have trouble.

As far as having your rabbit fixed. I have yet to over 24 years have one single rabbit get cancer and that's after raising thousands of rabbits. It doesn't help as far as litter training. That is due to the genetics of the rabbit and not due to their reproductive organs. Also, spading/neutering can prevent you from being able to show your rabbits if you would ever like to do that. The majority of so-called "benefits" from spading and neutering I believe to be false.

Answer 3

Rabbit gestation is 4-5 weeks. So, if she and the male haven't been together since before she had the last babies, she shouldn't be pregnant. You really ought to get your rabbits spayed/neutered. You don't sound like someone who is breeding for the betterment of the breed to me, and altering a rabbit helps its temperment, litter training, and is essential for its health. Female rabbits have about an 80% chance of getting uterine cancer by the age of 5.