I hate the cold. No, really hate it. Which is really the only reason why I think anyone who has rabbits and continues with them through the winter has nothing but sheer love for the rabbits. And honestly, anyone trying to breed in the winter is just a saint.

Rabbits don't have an estrus cycle. The does release eggs only 8-10 hours after contact with a male. In a rabbitry setting, does may constantly be releasing eggs. Bucks sperm count, on the other hand, is severely affected by the number of hours of light there is in a day. The shorter the day, the smaller the count. Not all bucks go sterile in the winter, but it does become infinitely more difficult to get the does pregnant this time of year. To give you an idea, I bred 9 does, I received one litter. That's success for you.

There are a ton of theories of you can use to get them to breed better. I don't know that any of them is better or worse than another. Myself, I leave the doe in with the buck for 2 days or so. If I'm breeding multiple does to the same buck, I give him a day in between to rest. But I've heard about leaving the barn lights on longer, making them breed on a table, and few others. Look them up and let me know if they work for you!

And of course Convention is in November, so every breeder seeking to attned needs to try so that we have that Senior at the optimum age.

Once you actually get a litter, the fun really begins. In NJ, and much of America, the temperatures are much too cold for a litter to serve. The kits are born without fur and really without the ability to move. It's entirely up to the number in the litter and the quality of nest the mother builds that they'll stay alive. In my own experience, a litter of 5 and up is optimal. Of course, the bucks' sperm count is lower, consequently, litter numbers are often lower. To compensate, I add "bunny saver". It's a light, synthetic fur that helps keep the heat in the nest.

I'm lucky I have a sided barn. Even in 16 degree weather is usually about 26 inside. I  still put heating pads under the nest boxes. You need to watch out with those, though. The heating pads now turn off after 8-12 hours (when I began, no one cared how long you left a heating pad on for), so you do need to check them, and greedy mothers often push the nest box off the heater and sit on it themselves. How kind. 

For breeders with rabbits outside in the elements (and last year, I accidentally had a litter out in an outside cage in the middle of February), I have found packing the bottom of the cage with hay, and just replacing it every other day immensely helpful.

By the way--the oopsy February litter was one of the best I've ever had. Go figure.

Another trick is to actually bring the nest box inside for the evening. This will not disrupt the feed schedule. Dams don't feed their babies all day long. Once a day, for about 5 minutes. In 22 years, I've probably only seen a doe feed her litter a couple hundred times. You know the babies are fed when they're round and fat, and not squeaking when you touch them. Even with the barn, I sometimes do this on the coldest nights.

And even with all the best care in the world, you may still lose the litter. Welcome to Winter Wonderland.

Did I mention I hate the cold? I really hate it.

It's that time of year when we all dream of a cute baby bunny under our Christmas Tree!

Except, as great as that is for us, it isn't so great for the baby bunny.

Most 8-week-old kits (baby rabbits) are taken directly from their mother and littermates. While they are technically of age to be weaned away, that technicality doesn't make it any less stressful on them. Moving from a home they have always known to a new home that is complete with people that want to get to know them, family and friends over partying, and loud noises serves to make a bad situation worse.

Stress can kill a rabbit. Most often, it isn't right away, but occurs slowly. Baby rabbits may go off feed and disrupt their digestive system. This can sometimes cause GI Stassis (halting of the digestive process) or severe diarrhea. Both conditions may lead to the death of the rabbit through starvation or dehydration; and if it doesn't lead to death, is still very painful.

More often, the problems are psychological. The baby will become jumpy and possibly nippy. This is rarely permanent, but a reaction to fear. This will go away in time, but not the fear some children acquire as the unwilling victims. 

If you must get a 8 week old for Christmas, leave it in it's cage for at least Christmas day! If possible, get a rabbit that is at least 3 months old. They've been separated for their mother and littermates for awhile; more emotionally mature; and more trusting of humans. Plus, you can see a 3 month olds personality when you're picking him/her out. An animal that grunts and is jumpy will likely stay that way; a calmer animal will likewise remain the same.

Around this time of year my 4-H leader always gave us a speech on getting rabbits ready for winter. "Winterizing Your Bunny," she called it, and it was never early December until we heard the speech. Most of us actually go to know it by heart as she'd read from the same script every year. Of course, the truth is, what you need to do to make sure your rabbit is ready for winter never really changes. Therefore, in honor of that leader... I present you a summary of what we should do for rabbits that are outside in the winter. (Those of us with barns, garages and house pets don't need to follow this)

1. Put your cage somewhere you can get to it even during and after large snow falls. You don't want the rabbit to be snowed in!
2. If your rabbits are in outside hutches, block off two sides of the cage to give him/her shelter from the wind and other elements. Do not block all of the sides as you may suffocate him and we don't want that.
3. If you use a water bottle, switch to a plastic crock. That way even when the water freezes, your rabbit can still lick at the ice.
4. Put hay in the hutch for him to burrow into. Don't forget to change it every week--you don't want him living in his own filth.
5. Up the protein level in the food. This will help put just a little bit of fat on the rabbit to help him withstand the cold.
6. If your rabbit is over 7 years old, consider moving him inside the house. Older rabbits simply can't handle the weather changes like a younger animal can.

Have other ideas? Leave them in the comments!