young about already PICS

[max abell 196]

could not belive it the snow has only just gone and after bolting 4 nice rabbits out of a burrie young rabbits started hole hopping the ferret got hold of the one in the picture so it had to be dispatched we picked up the ferrets and knocked it on the head for the day hope this is not the end of our season already anyone else had this yet ??

[The one 8,461]

Last week during the snow you could see the blood in there urine showing the doe rabbits are in season ,so unless they reabsorb there young there still going to be breeding in roughly three weeks .So i guess the snow didnt bother them to much.

[DeerhoundLurcherMan 997]

The one, could you explain what you mean by "reabsorbing the young"? a mate of mine had a pet rabbit that was separated from the buck before giving birth to a few bunnys , then had a few more three weeks later........................ and stayed separated from the buck the whole time...

[bobcullen79 1,495]

The one, could you explain what you mean by "reabsorbing the young"? a mate of mine had a pet rabbit that was separated from the buck before giving birth to a few bunnys , then had a few more three weeks later........................ and stayed separated from the buck the whole time...

 

 

Did the later babies look like your mate? only joking. Sheep can do it aswell,if they get stressed or conditions become less than ideal,the can absorb them back into their bodies so theres no nutrient wastage and nothing left on the ground to attract predators or disease. Theres probably a few animals that can do it.

[John-B 4]

I think with the climate the way it has been the last few years rabbits are having to do everything they can to survive, I bet that in a few years time rabbits will be breeding all year round and ferreting will be extra hard...

[ellir0305 9]

i had one when we went out new years eve up and hopping about got caught by the ferret and the hole entrance. still best get them now before they do more damage. but that depends purely on the land you are ferreting and the reasons for the control.

 

atb

[runforyourlife 361]

Rabbits have already bred all year round, just not all of them....

[comanche 2,923]

could not belive it the snow has only just gone and after bolting 4 nice rabbits out of a burrie young rabbits started hole hopping the ferret got hold of the one in the picture so it had to be dispatched we picked up the ferrets and knocked it on the head for the day hope this is not the end of our season already anyone else had this yet ??

Look at the bunny baby in that picture . It was born over a month ago. Then factor in that a doe is pregnant for a month . That means that little scuttler was concieved around Halloween . This is quite normal as there is a lull in breeding during the hotter ,longer days of summer and a brief flurry of sexual activity (usually involving the older bucks ) as the days shorten in autumn.

Rabbits are triggered into breeding cycles to some extent by daylight levels .Onc e the winter equinox has passed they become more frisky. The recent laying snow by reflecting light and effectively extending "daylight" might actually have encouraged the breeding cycle to kick-in a bit early but this will be balenced by hard conditions that will kill youngsters or more likely prompt the doe to reabsorb the litter . From now on it would be quite normal to catch does that are in-kindle but many of these litters are destined for reabsorbtion not birth .

Its one of the reasons that rabbits have become so successful. Does can carry a litter up to about 16-18 days without too much physical cost to themselves .

At that point if the external stresses such as bad weather ,overcrowding or food shortage are too bad she will absorb the feotal nutrients back into her own body rather than waste energy trying to carry and give birth to a litter that is destined to die any way .

Down here we are not surprised by the occasional scuttler from an Autumn mating(like the one in the picture ) around New Year and also expect to find lined does from the January onward . There is never much serious trouble caused by nests of young until Late March/ April. Mind you if the weather warms up the buns may breed like stink to make up for the numbers lost to the hard weather .

 

That little chap in the picture did very well to survive the hard weather though .

Edited January 2, 2011 by comanche

[stevethefish 80]

We have had plenty carrying young and the odd milky doe, last year we were bolting young in january.

[The one 8,461]

The one, could you explain what you mean by "reabsorbing the young"? a mate of mine had a pet rabbit that was separated from the buck before giving birth to a few bunnys , then had a few more three weeks later........................ and stayed separated from the buck the whole time...

 

 

Its when the doe rabbits pregnant and the conditions are bad she has the ability to reabsorb the young inside her and put all the energy in to her own survival . for the last four weeks we have had a foot or two of snow i thought it might put them off breeding but no seems like rabbits are a lot tougher than i thought i haven't seem a young or pregnant doe since October and the ones I'm getting have a good covering of fat round the kidneys

[johnmac666 2]

could not belive it the snow has only just gone and after bolting 4 nice rabbits out of a burrie young rabbits started hole hopping the ferret got hold of the one in the picture so it had to be dispatched we picked up the ferrets and knocked it on the head for the day hope this is not the end of our season already anyone else had this yet ??

Look at the bunny baby in that picture . It was born over a month ago. Then factor in that a doe is pregnant for a month . That means that little scuttler was concieved around Halloween . This is quite normal as there is a lull in breeding during the hotter ,longer days of summer and a brief flurry of sexual activity (usually involving the older bucks ) as the days shorten in autumn.

Rabbits are triggered into breeding cycles to some extent by daylight levels .Onc e the winter equinox has passed they become more frisky. The recent laying snow by reflecting light and effectively extending "daylight" might actually have encouraged the breeding cycle to kick-in a bit early but this will be balenced by hard conditions that will kill youngsters or more likely prompt the doe to reabsorb the litter . From now on it would be quite normal to catch does that are in-kindle but many of these litters are destined for reabsorbtion not birth .

Its one of the reasons that rabbits have become so successful. Does can carry a litter up to about 16-18 days without too much physical cost to themselves .

At that point if the external stresses such as bad weather ,overcrowding or food shortage are too bad she will absorb the feotal nutrients back into her own body rather than waste energy trying to carry and give birth to a litter that is destined to die any way .

Down here we are not surprised by the occasional scuttler from an Autumn mating(like the one in the picture ) around New Year and also expect to find lined does from the January onward . There is never much serious trouble caused by nests of young until Late March/ April. Mind you if the weather warms up the buns may breed like stink to make up for the numbers lost to the hard weather .

 

That little chap in the picture did very well to survive the hard weather though .

 

 

excellent reply,

[auld salmon 28]

think this was reabsorbed young which i found in a rabbit last year if you look closely you can make out a young one

[tubba 38]

think this was reabsorbed young which i found in a rabbit last year if you look closely you can make out a young one

 

 

Auld salmon thats well mad just had my t :sick:

[comanche 2,923]

think this was reabsorbed young which i found in a rabbit last year if you look closely you can make out a young one

yucky! That looks like one that went a bit wrong-neither reabsorbed ,born or aborted . Sometimes you find a little lump that on inspection is best described as a "mummyfied" or fossilised baby that somehow got left behind in the doe . I think the one in the picture might have been on the way to becoming one of those . Yucky but a neat pic!.

[auld salmon 28]

if i remember rightly it was not connected to owt inside and was about the size of a plum and was as hard as f k took a bit of cutting if you click on the pict to enlarge it you can definately see some young in there