← Rabbits H24-04 · Module 4 of 7 · Pages: 19 · Worksheets: 6

Mating, kindling and kits

From first mating to weaning: when and how to mate, the nest box, kindling, the kits' first weeks, fostering and choosing breeding stock

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Mating, kindling and kits

In short

  • A medium-breed doe is first mated at 4½–5 months, a buck at 5–6 months. Giants later.
  • The doe goes to the buck, never the other way round. Check pregnancy by palpation 10–14 days after mating.
  • Pregnancy lasts 31 days (28–35). The nest box goes in on day 27.
  • A doe feeds her kits only once a day, for a few minutes. Not sitting in the nest is normal.
  • Kits can be fostered onto another doe up to 3–4 days old, with an age gap of no more than 2–3 days.
  • Weaning at 6 weeks (day 42 after kindling): the doe moves out, the kits stay in their hutch on the same feed for two weeks.

What's inside

Chapters

  1. A doe's year
  2. Before mating
  3. Mating
  4. Is she pregnant?
  5. Pregnancy: 31 days
  6. The nest box
  7. Kindling
  8. Kits in the nest
  9. Fostering kits
  10. Weaning
  11. Choosing breeding stock
  12. Common mistakes
  13. Printable checklist

Worksheets

  • Date calculator
  • Mating records
  • Kindling and litter records
  • Hutch cards
  • Doe output
  • Mating calendar through the year

Fields and checkboxes can be filled in with Adobe Acrobat Reader (desktop and mobile), and the calculator adds up by itself. Filling in may not work in some browsers. A print version comes with the screen PDF.

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