If you have both male and female bunnies and you allow them to socialize, chances are your rabbit family is going to increase sooner or later if they are nor spayed or neutered, so you should be familiar with the gestation period of a rabbit. You may be a pet owner who has space and does not mind having more rabbits, however when we say more rabbits we mean a lot more! Sometimes pet owners become breeders over time. Breeders are especially interested in what gestation entails. It can be a lucrative business if you want it to be. In either scenario, you should know what to expect when your rabbit is pregnant. Your knowledge will ensure that the baby rabbits make it safely into the world.
How do you know when your rabbit is pregnant?
Of course, you will need to know what to look for to determine whether or not your pet rabbit is pregnant. While you can take your bunny to the veterinarian, there are signs that are pretty telling. We will discuss them below.
- Change in eating habits – Your pregnant rabbit will start consuming more food. She will clean up her trays at a faster rate. She may nose around her tray trying to sign to you that she wants a bit more food.
- Mood swings – She may not respond to you or other rabbits in her usual manner. She may be less affectionate with you. She may exhibit more aggressive behavior that seems out of character for her. The fact is she has switched focus. Her body is preparing her for the parental journey.
- No interaction with males rabbits – If you have male rabbits, your pregnant rabbit will shun their advances during her pregnancy.
- Growing belly – This one may seem obvious. Your pregnant rabbit will start to gain weight. Her belly will look larger and rounder as you would expect with gestating mamals. On closer examination, if you feel your pregnant rabbit’s stomach you will feel bumps. These are the baby rabbits starting to grow.
- Nesting behaviour – This happens closer to birth. Maybe a week or so before she is ready to deliver. Your pregnant rabbit may start gathering hay, pieces of cloth, like the blanket you gave her to sleep on. She will pile all her items in a corner. She may also start pulling out her own fur to add to her nest. So do not be afraid if you see her doing this, it’s quite normal. It usually means that the baby rabbits will be born within days.
What is the gestation period of a rabbit?
As you may expect rabbit pregnancies are relatively short. They are not particularly large mammals. The gestation period lasts 31 days. That’s basically a month and you will have baby rabbits to take care of.
What preparations can you make for your pregnant rabbit before she gives birth?
If your rabbit has her own cage, she is going to need a larger area to accommodate her new babies. You will need a larger cage if you can get your hands on one. Sometimes, pet owners use large playpens. They are easy to clean and give both mother and baby rabbits a comfortable area to live in.
The area should be large enough to accommodate a box. Your pregnant rabbit will most likely use this box as her “nest”. As she comes closer to the end of her term she will drag hay and a variety of materials to the box to make a suitable birthing area for her newborns. The box can be made of plastic, cardboard or wooden. Plastic options are easier to clean.
Are there any changes I should make to my pregnant rabbit’s diet?
As mentioned before, your pregnant rabbit’s appetite will increase. Some veterinarians recommend Alfalfa Hay throughout the gestation period. During pregnancy, your rabbit may sometimes experience loose stool. Alfalfa with its robust fiber content helps to prevent this.
Usually, vegetables and fruits are given to rabbits sparingly, However, during gestation, you can ramp up the vegetable and fruit intake of your bunny. She is eating for two now and needs all the vitamins and minerals that she can get. You can also increase her pellet rations. This will ensure that your baby rabbits have the best chance of being born healthy.
You should also keep hay in her cage at all times and clean water in her water bowl. Change her water regularly during the day to make sure it’s fresh and clean.
How many babies can a rabbit have at one time?
Rabbits can have up to 14 babies at once time. However, the average size of a litter is usually between 6 and 7. The mortality rate of baby rabbits is higher if you have show rabbits. Show rabbits like Giant Flemings and Jersey Wooleys are usually prone to certain hereditary health issues that affect their birth rates. Mixed breeds and smaller breed rabbits have a better chance of the entire litter surviving.
How many pregnancies can a rabbit have per year?
A female rabbit reaches sexual maturity very early in her life. Usually between 3 and 6 months. So, she can become pregnant if she is around male rabbits. Bucks can mate several times a day with available does. However, his fertility can be affected if he mates too often.
A rabbit’s pregnancy lasts 1 month and after your pregnant rabbit gives birth. She is pretty much ready to mate again. So that would mean that a rabbit can theoretically have 12 pregnancies in a 12 month period if she is around males. Female rabbits or does do not have a heat cycle like other mammals. They do not menstruate either so, there is no specific time when a pregnancy can occur. In fact, when the female has intercourse with the male, ovulation is induced.
So if you are not vigilant you can soon have more rabbits than you can handle. Since rabbits have so many pregnancies during the year, there is often a fear of rabbit overpopulation. When you get a pet rabbit, your veterinarian will usually recommend that your bunny is spayed or neutered. If you are unfamiliar with the terms. Here is a short explanation of the terms:
- Spay – This process is the sterilization of the female rabbit or doe by the removal of the ovaries and or uterus. The procedure has its benefits. Female rabbits often succumb to ovarian and uterine cancers. Your bunny usually lives longer. This surgery is usually safely performed when your pet rabbit is about 6 months old.
- Neuter – This procedure involves removing the testicles after they have descended. It can be performed anytime between the 8th and 12th weeks of the rabbit’s life.
What are some of the problems that can develop during rabbit pregnancies and delivery?
Most of the time rabbit pregnancies go smoothly. However, sometimes issues do crop up in specific circumstances.
- Your rabbit may have gotten pregnant too young – Pregnancy that occurs when the rabbit first reaches sexual maturity, may not go smoothly. She may become disoriented. She may not exhibit the expected nesting behavior which leaves her babies vulnerable to exposure. She may also run away from them not allowing them to nurse. If you want to save your baby rabbits you can resort to hand feeding. Unfortunately, handfed baby rabbits have a higher rate of mortality.
- The female rabbit is smaller than the male – This scenario usually occurs with mixed breed rabbits. If the buck is a larger breed than the female. The pregnant rabbit may have problems delivering babies that are bigger than her body can handle. This can be fatal to both mother and babies.
- Health issues of pregnant – If your rabbit was not healthy, to begin with. The stress of the pregnancy may worsen already existing health problems.
- False Pregnancy – This one is not really a problem during gestation, but can be categorized as an irregularity. Sometimes a rabbit is not pregnant at all. However, she may exhibit nesting behaviors. Thankfully, this scenario does not last long just a few weeks.
Does a rabbit need any human intervention during delivery?
Rabbits do not need any help to deliver their kits. They usually have their babies at night. So chances are you will wake up and surprise! Baby rabbits! The downside to this is if on the rare chance, your pregnant rabbit runs into difficulty you may not get the opportunity to rush her to the veterinarian.
So now you know what to expect if your pet rabbit becomes pregnant. Rabbits have a one month gestation period. Since female rabbits are mammals who experience induced ovulation (where intercourse stimulates ovulation), their reproductive rate is quite high. Once your female rabbit is in contact with a buck, you can expect babies. It is recommended that you spay or neuter your rabbits if you don’t want kits. Since trying to constantly keep males and females apart may prove tedious. However, if you have a reasonable amount of space and the resources to take care of baby rabbits. you will not have to wait long!