Baby Bunnies!

Much excitement here today! Rosie AND Violet both had their first litters today!

We knew Rosie (our black Holland Lop) was pregnant and due but we had thought Violet had a false pregnancy. Violet surprised us today when I walked out to check on her and found her nest box full of fur and 5 little ones! This is a good number for her first litter. One did not make it but 4 are alive and seem to be doing well so far. Rosie followed later having 4 kits born. Though we were sad that 2 of hers were not alive 2 of them seem to be doing well. It is not unusual, especially in first litters, for not all the kits to make it. Sometimes only one does in a Holland's first litter, so we are thankful!

Above is proud Momma Violet above her nest box with 4 healthy kits.

Below are Rosie's two surviving kits (Lion-Lops) amidst all the fur she provided for them to keep warm

Counting down until Rosie's first litter!

We bred 3 of our does between October 22nd and 24th. Rosie is the only one of the three that has shown sure signs of pregnancy. Though I am hoping one of the other rabbits might surprise us with a litter too.

Around 2 weeks the pregnancy hormones were definitely making some changes in Rosie's temperament. That sweet girl suddenly became irritable. One day growling at us a couple other days charging and trying to bite when we messed with her hutch area more than she liked!

The third week she became obsessed with digging! She kicked everything out of her litter box digging. When she'd get put in the exercise area she'd scoot around on her tummy pushing the mulch in the funniest fashion on some mission of sorts. The changes in her have been amusing to see. Around the 23rd day I went ahead and put a nest box in. Not as much for nesting purposes yet but due to cold temperatures we were having. Well, within 2 days (on the 25th day) she arranged straw in the nest box and apparently was satisfied. She stopped digging like crazy and now seems to content to rest in her litter box in anticipation of delivery day.

This was the crazy girl on one of the days she was obsessed with digging and kicking everything out of the litter box.

Multiple litters expected in coming month!

If you are looking to add a rabbit to your family this winter please check back here in the next month for rabbit birth announcements! We are hoping for multiple litters before Thanksgiving 2014! They will be weaned and ready for their new homes at the end of January.

Klubertanz cages ordered!

So very excited that we will be moving our rabbits from a large outdoor hutch to an indoor setting in the coming month! We have an extra shop area behind our garage, that is seperate from it. I recently got my husband's blessing to use this space for our rabbitry! Our outdoor hutch is very nice but with Northern Indiana winter approaching bringing the rabbits indoors will make it much more pleasant for both the rabbits and us! Not only will it make the care easier but bringing them indoors will also help to provide more viable months for litters of kits to be born.

I have read nothing but good things about Klubertanz and the quality of their cages so I am pretty excited. They must be busy with lots of orders as the current wait time for my order to ship is one month! I'm confident it will be worth the wait though!

New Rabbits join our little herd

This weekend George & Rose joined us! They are brother and sister Holland Lops.
They are a year and 4 months old. We got them from the Moore family who met up with us in Columbus, OH.
We had planned to only get George. They brought Rosie along and offered for her to go with him to the same home. How could I say no!

Shedding: The First Molt

Where did my rabbit's fluffy coat go?
Do not be alarmed if your fluffy rabbit is suddenly not so fluffy! This is very normal around 4 to 5 months of age. This is usually the time when rabbits begin to lose their baby coat. The baby coat is replaced by an intermediate coat, and after this molt the adult coat develops. Molting usually starts at the head and then goes down the back. Molting naturally occurs seasonally but may also be brought on by stress and diet. When the adult rabbit is molting it's coat may appear very sparse, until it grows in again. Your rabbit may groom itself more helping rid itself of the molting fur.