Makes Cleaning Time a Breeze

The Super Pet Premium Rabbit Hutch is a versatile cage, with both a cozy, secure sleeping and nesting area and a spacious open section that is available with either conventional wire floors or sturdy solid flooring that some rabbits may find more comfortable.

The top of the hutch opens completely, with provides easy access, and is a great help when it comes to cleaning time. The removable plastic litter tray is another great extra that helps you keep your bunny’s home as clean as possible at all times.

Great Craftsmanship and Functional Styling.

The Super Pet Premium is constructed from high quality, exterior grade wood, which is stained with a weather resistant coating to make the hutch especially durable. All of the wire on the hutch is rust proof and non toxic. The roof of the hutch is made of durable water resistant shingling. The hutch comes ready to assemble right out of the box, with clear step by step instructions. A screwdriver and a small hand drill are the only tools needed to finish constructing the Super Pet Premium Hutch. The great craftsmanship that goes into this hutch, which is made completely made in the USA, means this is a home that is built to last, and is a worthwhile investment indeed.

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Do’s and Don’ts of Rabbit Breeding Genetics

Genetics play a huge part in the production of healthy, attractive rabbit lines that appeal to both breeder and potential owners alike.

Rabbit genetics is a science unto itself, and a good rabbit breeder will take the time to educate themselves in a little depth in the subject. However there are a few basic dos and don’ts that should be followed, whatever breed you are trying to raise.

Do:

• Make sure you begin your breeding program with the healthiest, quality specimens you can afford. A high pedigree is not an essential to successful rabbit breeding, but using animals free of major and noticeable genetic defects such as misshapen limbs and teeth certainly is.

• Concentrate your first efforts on breeding healthy rabbits with good body types before experimenting with color. New and experimental colorations are often accompanied with poor body types until the shade has been properly developed.

• Take the time to research the specific breed you are hoping to raise. Each different one is prone to its own genetic strengths and weaknesses.

Don’ts:

• Breed two “broken” rabbits together if you hope to produce a litter for show purposes. This pairing almost always results in one or two “Charlie Marked” kits in a litter, babies who are almost all white in color with only patchy spots of color.

• Attempt to cross breed species as an inexperienced breeder. The genetic difficulties that may result can be recessive, and not show up until the third or fourth generation of the line.

• Breed a rabbit of attractive color but with visible bodily defects into a quality line. Breeding out the physical defect will take far longer than adding new colors and patterns into a healthy line.

As the public in general tends to adore the dwarf or mini breeds of rabbit, such as the Holland Lop or Mini Rex, some breeders are tempted to try to produce a Dwarf strain of their own line.

If two true Dwarf rabbits are bred together it is almost certain that at least a few of the litter will be born with a double dwarf gene, which is invariably fatal.

Sadly, these kits are almost certainly destined to die in a few short days, and the kindest thing a rabbit breeder can do is allow nature to take its course.

Inexperienced breeders should not really attempt any genetic experimentation until they become skilled at breeding healthy, quality livestock.

Responsible Rabbit Breeding – What Every Beginner Needs to Know

Rabbit breeding is something not to be taken lightly. Unfortunately there are thousands of rabbits to be found in animal shelters worldwide, mainly as a result of irresponsible “back yard breeders”. These people mean well, but fail to consider the overall outcome, a number of rabbits looking for a good home.

If you have however decided to begin breeding rabbits, and have a reasonable plan for their life beyond babyhood, there are basic equipment and environmental concerns that must be taken care of before a breeding program is started.

Housing and Space Concerns

Adequate cage space is essential. You will need cages for the parents, one each, as it is not advisable for them to be housed together. A rabbit can produce as many as twelve kits per litter, so their living space must also be be spacious and comfortable.

Although sibling rabbits can be successfully housed together in the first weeks of life, by the time a kit is three months old, they should be housed in their own separate living enclosure. That is an awful lot of space, and a large number of cages.

A system for needs to be planned out in advance to ensure all the rabbits are properly fed, cleaned and groomed. Taking care of a large litter of rabbits, in addition to their parents, can be more than a part time task.

The Best Time to Begin a Breeding Program

Weather and the changing seasons also play a major factor in breeding success. Most breeders agree that spring is the optimum breeding season.

Extreme summer heat and the freezing temperatures of winter can prove fatal very quickly for tiny kits. Fall, traditionally is a difficult time to produce litters, although no one has a concrete explanation for why that is.

In addition to her regular cage you will need a clean nest box for your doe. Metal next boxes with the corrugated board removable flooring are popular and easily available but many choose all wood nest boxes for their does.

Wood is certainly retains warmth more easily, a great bonus, especially for those breeding rabbits in colder climates. The box need only be big enough for the doe to turn around in it, and house the babies in the first few weeks of life, before they are weaned.

The nest box should be lined with a nesting material of some variety. Many breeders recommend clean grass hay, but straw and wood shavings can also be used.

Why Should I Spay or Neuter my Pet Bunny? Why not Breed?

It may be an attractive idea. Breeding your cute pet bunny, to produce a few more cute bunnies that you could put into a show or sell to the local pet store.

However, rabbit breeding is a serious business, and thousands of rabbits are left homeless every year as a result of a “back yard breeding” experiment gone wrong.

Get Rich with Rabbits?

Most serious rabbit breeders will tell you, if you think you will become wealthy breeding bunnies, think again. If you are willing to breed rabbits for the love of it, and have the considerable resources and available space to do so successfully, it can be incredibly rewarding.

Experienced rabbit breeders take great pride in the development of new colors, patterns and even breeds.

A rabbit bought from a chain pet store is rarely ever suitable for breeding purposes. It is hard to find out enough about the pet store rabbits ancestry and genetics to use them in a breeding program that will have a chance of being a successful one.

Thinking Ahead Before You Begin

In the event that you did decide to breed, and began properly, with quality stock, what will become of the kits once they are born? Are you willing and able to house those less desirable rabbits that don’t sell as babies?

Will you take back an unwanted rabbit if the purchaser finds them unsuitable, or just no longer wants them?

Many people buy rabbits, especially as pets, on a whim, and have no idea the amount of work involved in keeping them happy and healthy.

If you are not able to face these kinds of responsibilities rabbit breeding is not for you. That isn’t to say no one should breed rabbits outside of large “bunny mills”.

If undertaken in the knowledge that there is a good deal of hard work and financial investment involved, rabbit breeding can be a fulfilling and enjoyable experience for bunny lovers anywhere.