First comes the question of when you give up on a doe. It's not unusual for a doe to miss or have a dead litter the first try or two. So those don't count. By the third litter, you are thinking it is a trend, though. That's when I ask myself whether there is an extraordinary reason to keep trying to get babies from a particular doe. For an ordinary quality doe (just a nice one, not a stupendous one), three strikes is generally enough for me.
But I know from experience that some does don't start having live litters until the fifth or even sixth litters. Then, after that, they have litters with no problems. I had one doe that had four live babies on her fifth litter. I was already mentally planning who to breed her to next when I reached in her nest and was shocked to find them all nestled in there perfectly.
Now you may say that I just perpetuated a problem breeding. She had three daughters that I kept track of. Two had live babies on their very first litter. The third daughter had live babies on her fourth attempt (a couple of the attempts were misses). She was a bit more like her mom.
With even an outstanding doe who has had her fourth or fifth attempt with no success, I generally give up, unless the circumstances are extra special. In one case, I had paid a good deal for a doe from a successful breeder no longer in bunnies. I couldn't get a replacement and I couldn't sell her to recoup my investment if she wasn't producing. But after six attempts, I donated her to a 4-h auction as a show-only rabbit and a note about her history. If they ever manage to get a live baby from her, it will be a bonus for them. I finally just took my loss and moved on.
[Note: as the quality in my barn has improved, I can afford to be pickier about mothering skills AND show quality, since I have more of both. A doe that seemed worth the effort in the past would probably not even make the cut today. My goal is to consistently produce rabbits who do well on the table and then make great mothers.]
Now we are back to what to do when you decide to give up, whether it is after 3, 4, 5, 6, or more attempts. I've already mentioned with a show quality rabbit that a show-only home is a possibility. Those are fairly rare, but there are some.
I have sold three does to breeders with the understanding that they pay only if the doe has live babies for them. In two of the three cases, OF COURSE, the does had live babies the very first time!
I do not like to sell does as pets, but if I have a family who is planning to spay, selling the doe as a pet is a possibility.
I have lent a problem doe to a friend. Now this doe had produced in the past, especially right after a move to a new barn, but was having a long dry spell. Our hope was that the change of barn would get her hormones flowing and help her produce. Our plan hasn't worked well in this case, but it could have. If I had lent those other does to friends instead of selling them, 2 out of 3 would have had live babies and I would still own the does. So that's a possibility that might work, especially if you have a friend who has more experience breeding than you do and you are dealing with a doe that doesn't want to breed or doesn't catch.
Here are a few things I think that should not be done with does that do not produce:
- They should not be sold as proven does if they have only had dead litters
- They should not be sold as unproven does unless you include information about their failed production history
- They should not be placed in the raffle, unless you include a note saying you have not gotten live babies from them
- They should not be petted out without explaining to the new owners the pitfalls of does as pets or the new owners are planning to spay
- They should not be sold to 4-Hers unless the situation is explained clearly.
Processing for human consumption, donation to a raptor center, donation to zoos for food, or putting down the rabbit may not be options you would consider, but for some, those are preferable to passing on a problem to an new owner unaware or feeding a non-producing rabbit for the next 7 to 12 years.
One ARBA judge mentioned that when he first built his herd, he culled very hard for good mothering skills. Now he has very few problems in his herd with mothering ability. As I look back over the times I gave rabbits lots of chances, I'm not sure it was really worth it in the long run. I think in the majority of cases, I would have been better off to cut my losses early.
But I'm still not sure I can do it.
One of my favorite does, GC The Nature Trail's Brook, has had 2 misses and 2 dead litters. She's due again on Christmas Day. Will I get a wonderful Christmas present or have to make a hard decision? We shall see.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
Holland Lops Of Distinction
Precious Pet Rabbits
Pet Rabbit Care Information, Quality Pet Rabbit Breeders, and Rabbit Fun
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