Babies!!!!  One of the funnest parts about farm life is the ever constant wonder and excitement of birth.  I get giddy as a kid at Christmas everytime I have a doe getting close to kindling, or a hen who has eggs close to pipping.  And, when you have bunnies, or dogs, or cats, it isn't just a spring time phenomenon, but carries on throughout the year.

We probably won't get into breeding dogs anytime soon, after the long, emotional drama of whelping Loki and his litter mates, and loosing Ash.  We don't feel the need to breed cats, with a bevy to choose from at the humane society, but bunnies, that's another story.

I have three Angora does who are of age to breed right now.  Angoras are by far my favorites.  I LOVE the little bunnies, I love the wool, and their sheer size.  All of my girls adore affection and attention, so playing with their babies is even more delightful.  And, considering I don't breed my Angoras as often as my Rex, it is an extra treat when I have fuzzy litters in the barn.

If I am lucky, I get two litters a year from each doe.  I have very specific schedules I like to follow with them, according to their shearing days, and the daytime temperatures.  Summer is out for all the rabbits as far as breeding goes.  It is enough having to shear the rabbits weekly to keep them close cut enough to stay half way cool.  I would never consider putting a bun through the internal furnace of pregnancy during summer.  Here, we don't have long, hot summers, but still, that kills about 3 months of the year for breeding. 

Of those other 9 months, I get three chances to get the doe bred, since I shear every 3 months and I only breed within a week of their scheduled shearing dates, with the shear happening a week after they are bred.  If they miss, I have to either let them go until their next shearing day, or rebreed right away, and do a sacrifice shear.  I have had a couple of does miss, and bred them back right away, let them carry their coats, and had night mares with the ever growing wool.  So, I decided to be as fair as I can to the girls, and have the wool be my primary goal with each one.  This approach allows for one miss each cycle, and almost always gives me at least one litter per doe each year.  I tend to let the girls have a rest after a sucessful breeding, before trying for one more litter, if I have time and the room, before summer hits.

The Rex I can be a bit more busy with, but for their sakes, I don't want to over load them, either.  They are my 'working' breed, for meat and fur, but the breeders always end up being cherished pets in the end.  Rex are fun, too, especially with the varieties I chose to work with.  The tris, you never know what patterns you will end up with, and each kit is always unique.  I love the calico cat look of the tris.  And the yummy, dark chocolates, or the pinkish silver tint of the lilacs.  It is always exciting to watch them grow and develop into that rabbit you always dreamed of breeding, of taking them to the show table and winning all the legs.  As I see more and more consistancy in my litters, the more excited I get each season.  I will have more and more to take to the shows! 

And, soon, I will have Beverens.  An old, rare breed that is in desparate need of breeders and fanciers to rebuild its numbers.  I haven't even met any of these in person, but just from what some of my friends say, who do have them, I am in love already.  These will probably excite me even more than the angoras, simply because each litter will be a step in the right direction of helping this grand old breed.  I have always been a preservation breeder at heart, so this will be just one more way I can devulge in that passion of mine.  I am super eager to head to the show in Chehalis, WA this  year, so I can meet some of my friends Bevs.  And, who knows, maybe bring some home!

Now that this litter, pictured above, has finally come (I have been waiting nearly 3 months for these guys, due to hang ups and misses), I am anxious for them all to survive and thrive.  I can't wait to see how their coats develop, and their colors!  Having the goal of high percentage, clean, deep red German hybrids, I am hoping they turn out to be exactly as I had hoped!

Two more litters of Angoras, and two litters of Rex are 'in the pot', so the excitement level is at an all time high here for this year.   

How FUN!

K