Multiplying like Rabbits

At the beginning of April we had two American rabbits, Lavender and Jefferson.  Now we have five total.  I wanted at least a trio, two does and one buck, but when I went to pick up our second doe I couldn't help myself.  I found a breeder in Sun Valley that had 6 week old Californian/New Zealand crosses for sale, $15.  She made me a deal and for $25 I brought two does home.  Adam helped me name them Grace and Stevie.

Grace has slightly darker coloring compared with her sister

Stevie is a little more docile, the sisters currently enjoy sharing a cage

About a week later a woman on Craigslist was looking to unload a Californian buck because of a messy divorce. I thought it might be nice to have a back up stud.  Via text she told me he was five months old.  I was surprised to find him a little small for my taste but rationalized that perhaps he was not free fed, and the constraints of his cage could affect his growth.  His current digs are a big change of pace from the indoor cage equipped with a litter box that he had before.  Now he is sharing the rabbit tractor with Jefferson.  I named the newbie buck Harvey. He has beautiful markings and is gentle when handled.  He has a couple months before his stud services will be needed, hopefully he can pack on some pounds by then.

The size difference is particularly noticeable in this picture of the bucks side by side,  keep in mind Jefferson is a month younger than Harvey

Yesterday we bred Lavender and Jefferson for the first time.  I was apprehensive.  Maybe Jefferson wouldn't know what to do, maybe he would be territorial and attack her... I need not have worried.  As soon as she entered the cage and he got one sniff of her, Jefferson was all about business.  It took a couple mounts, Lavender was playing hard to get.  Finally he succeeded, though he did bite her once to achieve compliance for the final act. I was happy that things had gone so well and then immediately distraught when Lavender did not respond to Jefferson's post-coital kisses. He was hopping around snuffling her face, very sweet.  But Lavender was just lying there eyes closed, breathing alarmingly slow.  Rabbits are known to break their backs easily, maybe Jefferson's loving had been too rough! I yelled for Adam.  I lifted the tractor lid and he whisked her back to her cage. She was lethargic in her cage.  We just left her alone.  Maybe she was just processing her deflowering, physically and emotionally.  An hour later  I checked on her and she was hopping around same as always, whew! Tomorrow we are going to let Jefferson have another go just to confirm the breeding. In about a month we should have a nesting box full of fuzz balls!