Cross Breeding Pet Rabbits

Cross breeding means mating of rabbits of two separate breeds. Breeding in animals is not simple as it sounds. Cross breeding in pet rabbits is preferred only after the doe (female rabbit) is at least 6 months old. The age for the buck (male doe) should be at least 4 months before mating. All the domestic rabbits are of the same species and can be safely cross bred.

Crossbreeding does not occur in popular breeds. For example, Holland lops, if one needs to improve the affirmation of the herd for breeding standards, simply find a rabbit from another breed that fits the rabbit’s needs.

The problem in crossbreeding of rabbits lies in genetics of each breed. By cross breeding, there is a great deal of risk as a genetic default could be bought into the breed. Hence, before crossbreeding, the owner should understand the standards which the breeder has to follow when introducing the new breed.

Mating

At the age of 6 for females and 4 for males, rabbits reach their sexual maturity. For mating of rabbits, they have to be placed together. One should put the doe in the buck’s hutch. If the buck is left in the doe’s hutch, she may become violent with him and will not accept him as a mate. The pet owner has to write down the mating date of the rabbit to check further developments in the doe.

Some people like to check whether the doe is pregnant or not. To check this after a few days of the breeding date, the doe should be placed in the buck’s cage. Usually if she is pregnant, she will avoid the male and will run around grunting and squealing. This test is fairly accurate; some of does will still allow breeding again.

A most confirmatory test to check the cross breeding in pet rabbits is to palpate the doe two weeks after exposing her to the buck. Check whether the marble-like embryos are felt in the doe’s belly. Every mating session need not turn into pregnancy for rabbits. Sometimes, it takes several attempts for a doe to get pregnant. Keep the doe and the buck in the same cage for 2 weeks. This can be done depending on the nature of the doe as female rabbits are aggressive than males.

The Doe gives birth to bunnies, 31 to 32 days after breeding. In the doe’s nest, add a generous amount of hay which can be timothy, oat or grass. This will make a comfortable and secured place for her and her bunnies.

Crossbreeding implies the mating together of animals from two distinct and pure, or relatively pure, breeds. It sometimes happens that the first generation progeny of these mating may be excellent, in fact the average quality may be better than the parents. This is due to the fact that generally, good dominant genes from one breed, acting together with good dominant genes from the other, suppress the effects of undesirable recessive genes which might have been homozygous in one or other of the parents. It may also be due to the combination of the good characteristics of both parents. The grave disadvantage of the system, however, is that if the crossbred animals from the first generation are mated together, a very variable, and often very unsatisfactory, second generation is produced.

The undesirable recessives have segregated out after being temporarily covered up in the first generation. For any satisfactory system of crossbreeding therefore, two distinct lines or breeds must be maintained, and animals only from these lines used for breeding, with all the crossbred stock being utilized for other purposes. This system is adopted with success in many cases, but it is doubtful whether such a system would greatly commend itself to rabbit breeders, except those producing large numbers of animals for meat and fur. It should perhaps be added that the majority of the present breeds of domestic rabbits have been produced by crossbreeding in some form or another, but after the initial type of animal has been produced, it is usually many years before the new breed is improved to a reasonable standard.

Cross breeding in pet rabbits has to be done with a proper knowledge about the breeds of rabbits which are going to be bred.