Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Keeping Records
I cannot over-estimate how important keeping records is to your breeding program. While it's not imperative that you have a computer program to keep up with these various records, I personally can't see how I could handle it otherwise. There are large rabbitries, though, that operate successfully without them. My hat's off to anyone who can keep good records without a computer in this day and age.
I recently got a doe back, GC The Nature Trail's Belle. Let me take a moment to say that she was in great condition and obviously well cared for. Anyway, Belle has not been a great producer. So far, she had one kit for me and one for the other breeder.
Normally, I wouldn't spend any more time with a doe of that track record - been there, done that. But, in this case, I certainly have the cage space and I was down to just May, Hope, and Lexus for granded broken senior does.
Here's where the good record part comes in. My friend had kept wonderful records. I had Belle's earlier records. From those accounts, I can see that Belle tends to have small litters and deliver her kits late. The one time she had a live one from me, she'd had 6 in the litter, which was the exception.
All of this leads me to believe that she has large kits and/or weak labor. By the time she passes them, they are all dead.
So, I'm using the information from her records to make a plan. I have never used oxytocin before, but I believe it is called for in her case. If she misses this time or has a dead litter, then I will make sure that I breed her on the full moon and breed her as many times as she will consent to, to try to increase her litter size. I will also keep her feed on the low side if she palpates positive, but with few kits, to keep the babies on the smaller side, hopefully.
So I have a plan. I don't know whether it will work. But because there were good records, I can at least make a reasonable attempt to get babies from her.
(By the way, if I get daughters and they a problematic moms, then I will not repeat the effort to get babies.)
I've also used my records to track the REW gene in my herd. Against all odds, I've had two tort herd bucks that were REW carriers. One became a cornerstone of my herd, so I have the REW gene running around here and there.
The REW gene, by the way, if great for producing properly-gened sable points and for testing for c-series genes in other rabbits.
Even when I can't see the REW gene for a generation or two, when it pops up, I can trace it back because of good records.
If you've been reading my BLOG for any time at all, then you probably know that I keep close tabs on productions rates (production of worthy rabbits, that is). I want to always know which rabbits produce the good stuff. I keep an eye on production numbers in general, too. That can help you spot a subtle feed and/or conditioner problem. I've even used my records to check out the full moon-new moon theory of breeding.
It's true that sometimes you need to take the raw data you've collected and work with it a bit to give you the answers you need. For example, if I wanted to track which rabbits produce short ears in my herd, I'd have to do a bit of tabulating. But at least I have data to help me out.
I probably need to start putting photographs into my program. Right now, I can remember a lot about each rabbit that I've kept in my barn long enough to breed. But I'm sure that over time, some of the details might be lost. If I photograph them and associate it with their file, then I'd have more clues about the characteristics of each.
I also should find a field in my software program somewhere to list the strengths and weaknesses of each rabbit. That might provide even more useful information for the future.
When my teenage daughter, 17, is in a battling mood, she claims that I'm always harping on the past. Well, the fact is that the past is the best predictor we have for the future. And the history of your barn is the best information you have to help guide you to your future.
Laurie ¶ 9:22 AM
I recently got a doe back, GC The Nature Trail's Belle. Let me take a moment to say that she was in great condition and obviously well cared for. Anyway, Belle has not been a great producer. So far, she had one kit for me and one for the other breeder.
Normally, I wouldn't spend any more time with a doe of that track record - been there, done that. But, in this case, I certainly have the cage space and I was down to just May, Hope, and Lexus for granded broken senior does.
Here's where the good record part comes in. My friend had kept wonderful records. I had Belle's earlier records. From those accounts, I can see that Belle tends to have small litters and deliver her kits late. The one time she had a live one from me, she'd had 6 in the litter, which was the exception.
All of this leads me to believe that she has large kits and/or weak labor. By the time she passes them, they are all dead.
So, I'm using the information from her records to make a plan. I have never used oxytocin before, but I believe it is called for in her case. If she misses this time or has a dead litter, then I will make sure that I breed her on the full moon and breed her as many times as she will consent to, to try to increase her litter size. I will also keep her feed on the low side if she palpates positive, but with few kits, to keep the babies on the smaller side, hopefully.
So I have a plan. I don't know whether it will work. But because there were good records, I can at least make a reasonable attempt to get babies from her.
(By the way, if I get daughters and they a problematic moms, then I will not repeat the effort to get babies.)
I've also used my records to track the REW gene in my herd. Against all odds, I've had two tort herd bucks that were REW carriers. One became a cornerstone of my herd, so I have the REW gene running around here and there.
The REW gene, by the way, if great for producing properly-gened sable points and for testing for c-series genes in other rabbits.
Even when I can't see the REW gene for a generation or two, when it pops up, I can trace it back because of good records.
If you've been reading my BLOG for any time at all, then you probably know that I keep close tabs on productions rates (production of worthy rabbits, that is). I want to always know which rabbits produce the good stuff. I keep an eye on production numbers in general, too. That can help you spot a subtle feed and/or conditioner problem. I've even used my records to check out the full moon-new moon theory of breeding.
It's true that sometimes you need to take the raw data you've collected and work with it a bit to give you the answers you need. For example, if I wanted to track which rabbits produce short ears in my herd, I'd have to do a bit of tabulating. But at least I have data to help me out.
I probably need to start putting photographs into my program. Right now, I can remember a lot about each rabbit that I've kept in my barn long enough to breed. But I'm sure that over time, some of the details might be lost. If I photograph them and associate it with their file, then I'd have more clues about the characteristics of each.
I also should find a field in my software program somewhere to list the strengths and weaknesses of each rabbit. That might provide even more useful information for the future.
When my teenage daughter, 17, is in a battling mood, she claims that I'm always harping on the past. Well, the fact is that the past is the best predictor we have for the future. And the history of your barn is the best information you have to help guide you to your future.
Laurie ¶ 9:22 AM
