Find a Stud Rabbit or Breeding Doe Near You

“Type” is how closely a rabbit matches the written breed description (body shape, ear set, head, coat); the US reference is the ARBA Standard of Perfection. Temperament is calmness when handled and tolerance of lifting; the HRS behavior pages document it as partly heritable, partly learned in the first eight weeks. For pet-scale litters, temperament should weigh at least as heavily as type.

• Dental. The Merck noninfectious diseases chapter calls malocclusion (misaligned teeth that grow into each other) “probably the most common inherited disease in rabbits.” Lift the lip; look for a clean scissor-bite (top incisors closing just in front of the bottom incisors). Asymmetric wear or any visible gap fails. A line with malocclusion in any parent or grandparent is not a candidate.
• Pasteurellosis history. Ask whether this rabbit, dam, or sire has ever had recurring nasal discharge, eye discharge, head tilt, or unexplained sneezing. An honest “yes, but it cleared” beats a defensive “no.”
• Encephalitozoonosis. Encephalitozoon cuniculi (a common protozoan parasite, often shortened to E. cuniculi) is common; blood-testing is not actionable enough to require as a screen. Ask whether either parent has shown head tilt or hindlimb weakness.
• Older breeders. Does past 4 and bucks past 5 deserve a heart check (a stethoscope listen by your vet), ear-mite inspection, and eye-discharge check.
• Body condition. Body condition is the rabbit's overall weight relative to a healthy weight for the breed. Over-conditioned (overweight) does carry the highest pregnancy-toxemia risk.

Mini Rex velvet coat is recessive (two carriers produce a mix; not lethal). Lionhead mane is copy-number: one copy thins with age, two copies produce the breed-standard double mane. Lop ear-set in Holland, Mini, French, English, and American Fuzzy Lop “drops” between 8 and 16 weeks; both parents with textbook ear set raises the kit rate but does not guarantee it.

The American Rabbit Breeders Association is the dominant US registry (~30,000 members). It publishes the Standard of Perfection and maintains the recognized breeds list. To register, a rabbit must be 6+ months old, weighed and examined by a licensed registrar, checked for disqualifying faults (disease, malocclusion, eye defects, or wry tail, a permanently twisted tail), and accompanied by a 3-generation pedigree of registered ancestors. Registration is per rabbit, in person.

State cooperative-extension services publish handbooks covering husbandry, showmanship, record-keeping, pedigree reading, and breeding biology. The Oregon State University Extension 4-H rabbit projects page is representative. A first-time pet breeder who reads one state's guide cover-to-cover will know more about routine husbandry than most pet-store buyers, at zero cost.

Paid fees show up for: registered ARBA bucks with documented show records (especially Grand Champions, Chapter 4); breed-club-recognized rare lines where stock is scarce (the ARBA recognized breeds list is the starting point); unusual color genetics where the buck carries an in-demand recessive.

The buck owner selects a single kit at weaning (week 6 is when breed-type traits become assessable). The doe owner pays no cash and keeps the remaining kits. The single-kit case belongs in writing before the mating.

Buck-for-buck or buck-for-doe trades work because the pet-scale rabbit world is small; the downside is enforceability if the relationship sours. Trades belong in writing.

Above $100 (especially when income may be reported), a written invoice is the default. Cover six items: breeding date, buck's name and registration number, doe's name, fee and payment method, live-cover clause (fee due at the in-person mating regardless of whether the doe conceives), return-to-pen clause (the buck owner re-services the doe for free if she does not conceive).

Flat fee on mating works for proven buck + proven doe (rare in pet circles). Pay-on-confirmed-pregnancy (deposit at mating, balance on day 10 to 12 palpation: gently feeling the doe's belly for kits) covers most mid-tier pairings. Pay-on-live-kits at 24 hours is most generous to the doe owner; common in 4-H and tight breed clubs.

Standard practice: 25 to 50 percent non-refundable deposit at the mating; balance due at confirmed pregnancy or live kits; one free re-service within 6 to 8 weeks if the doe fails to conceive; if re-service also fails, deposit refunded in full or in part.

Does do not run a regular reproductive cycle (estrous cycle), do not bleed, do not enter a fixed-day fertile window. The buck mounts and ejaculates; 9 to 13 hours later the doe releases eggs to meet sperm already in the tract. The Merck breeding and reproduction chapter is the standard reference. Rabbits share induced ovulation with cats and ferrets; dog-breeder intuitions about “catching the heat” do not transfer.

Combine signals; no single one is reliable alone.

• Vulva color. Non-receptive (not ready to mate): pale pink to whitish. Receptive (ready to mate): deeper purplish-red (“ripe-cherry”).
• Lordosis (the receptive posture). Stroked along the back, a ready-to-mate doe lifts her hindquarters, raises her tail, and stays still for the buck.
• Chinning. Scent-marking; often increases in a breeding mood.

Purplish-red vulva + positive lordosis is the green light.

Does are territorial. A buck dropped into a doe's cage lands on her home turf; the most common outcome is she attacks or refuses to allow a mount. Reverse the direction: carry the doe to the buck's cage. The buck is on home ground and confident; the doe is preoccupied with unfamiliar smells.

Buck mounts within seconds when the doe is receptive; thrusting is rapid, ejaculation in under 30 seconds. The buck convulses briefly and falls off to one side (“fall-off”). Most pet breeders aim for 2 to 3 covers in a 30-minute supervised session, sometimes with a second session 8 to 12 hours later. Return the doe to her cage and record the date.

It confirms ejaculation, not conception. False pregnancies (pseudopregnancies) follow stimulating events including non-fertile matings and last 17 to 18 days before resolving. Confirmation: leave alone days 1 to 9; palpate days 10 to 12 (experienced hands feel implanted kits like a string of grapes, ~70 to 80 percent accurate); X-ray or ultrasound days 14 to 21 if palpation is inconclusive (rarely worth the cost).

Separate fixture, not the doe's regular sleeping corner. Sizing: ~10 x 12 x 6 inches for Netherland Dwarf and Holland Lop; ~12 x 16 x 8 for medium breeds; 14 x 18 x 8+ for large breeds. One side wall lowered to 4 inches for doe entry. Solid wood or double-walled cardboard, never wire-mesh bottom. Paper-pulp floor plus grass hay or straw; the doe adds belly fur during kindling. Cooler, quieter end of the cage. Day 26 default; before day 25 she soils the bedding, after day 28 she may kindle on cage wire.

Most does kindle at night or early morning, alone, in 15 to 30 minutes. First-time mothers deliver smaller litters (3 to 5 kits vs 6 to 8 for medium breeds). Hands-off: do not disturb, do not lift the cover, do not bring children or other rabbits in. First physical visit waits 6 to 12 hours after the suspected kindling.

Wait 6 to 12 hours. Offer the doe a favorite green outside the nest and lift her into a carrier while she eats. Open the nest, lift the fur layer, inspect every kit. Count the litter (first litter 3 to 5; multiparous does (those with prior litters) 6 to 8; large 8 to 12). Remove any kit that is cold or not breathing. Dwarf-breed cross: look for “peanut” kits (Chapter 3) and remove (visibly smaller, domed forehead, rarely survive past day three). Weigh each viable kit (40 to 60g for medium-breed newborns). Return the doe. She nurses once or twice in 24 hours; rabbits do not nurse continuously like puppies or kittens.