How old until they can be bred?

[independant1]

I bought my first to does. One is a year old californian and has had one litter already. She was bred before we left with her. The other doe is a month old half californian/half harlequin. How old must she be before she is ready to breed?-Thanks!

[6e]

Small and medium size breeds mature when they are 6 months old. This would be rabbits up to about 7 pounds. Large breeds mature when they are about 8 months old. This would be rabbits up to about 11 or 12 pounds and I've heard that the mammoth breeds mature when they are a year old. For Californians I would wait until she is 8 months old before breeding.

[Jennifer L.]

If she is well grown, I'd breed her when she hit 9#, but not less than 6 months in age.

Jennifer

[independant1]

Thanks for the advice. She will be left alone until next winter.

[awfulestes]

Merck Veterinary Manual, 8 th edition, Rabbit breeds of medium size are sexually mature at 4.5 months, giant breeds at 6 to 9 months, and small breeds at 3.5-4 months of age.

I love this book.

[rabbitgal]

I've started breeding mine when they weigh about 8 lb. (That's usually 5 or 6 months old.) I was waiting too long to breed my does, and they got so fat that they wouldn't concieve. Waiting longer probably would have worked if I hadn't fed them as much and they'd stayed thin.

Some commercial producers will breed their does even earlier: but those are strains that have been selected for fast growth and early maturity.