A litter before spaying/neutering?

[Pixie.rosa.love]

My mom seems to think it would be better for Bendi and Cotton if we were to let them breed once before i spay/neuter them once Bendi is of age (like 7-8months old, probably older). She feels it would make them less fusterated because of the sex, i have no idea and i though i would ask, since i am taking Cotton to the vet on the 19th and might set it up to get him fixed or not! Help please, i looked on the forms and couldnt really find any question like this again lol
thanks
Cotton below (about a year and a half old)                                    Bendi below (currently 7/8weeks of age)

[Mikey]

Can you care for babies? Are you comfortable knowing the first litter often dies?

Having a litter wont make them happier or sadder. Dont force them to have a litter, either. Also be ready for possible fighting as hormonal rabbits fight as well as breed. Remember that rabbits can fight to the death if theyre scared or feel threatened.

Note: this website isnt for purposely breeding rabbits. I believe rabbits.org would be a better place to post if you do decide to breed them.

[Q8bunny]

I’m not going to comment on your question since the subject of intentional breeding is prohibited as per forum rules, but I do want to suggest that unless the picture is misleading, you might want to place a piece of coroplast or something similar on tne bottom of Cotton’s cage. The grids, even with just a fleece on top, can painfully injure a rabbit’s feet – sore hocks, broken nails or toes, etc.

[LBJ10]

There are no known benefits to allowing them to breed once before spaying/neutering. Sexual frustration arises from not being spayed/neutered and not being able to mate, yes. But that goes away as soon as the hormones have left their bodies (post-spay/neuter). Allowing them to breed isn’t really going to make a difference in that regard because mating once does not make the frustration go away. Bunnies will “do it” again, even shortly after giving birth.

I don’t know how true it is for rabbits, but I do know that spays become more difficult in dogs or cats that have already had litters. This is because the uterus changes once it has experienced pregnancy. There are more blood vessels and the uterus is larger. Young, “unused” uterus = easier spay. So that is something else to take into consideration.

Now, are there benefits to waiting to spay/neuter? This is highly debated, but there is evidence that suggests the hormones are needed during bone growth/development. So waiting until 6 months to spay/neuter is something some people do. If you need your bunnies to be bonded sooner, rather than later then having them spayed/neutered as soon as it is safely possible may be the way to go. IMHO, there are a lot of things to take into consideration but whether or not to allow them to breed “just once” should not be one of them. Hopefully that helps.

[Pixie.rosa.love]

This is what i was looking for, i never said i was going to intentionally breed them, but you have answered my question 100%.
I dont want babies, i never have. I just didnt know if it would be better for the bunnies or not. This says it wont hurt them if i just fix them.
Thank you
(this didnt quote the one i wanted but its to the post above this)

[Pixie.rosa.love]

Posted By Q8bunny on 7/09/2017 10:59 PM

I’m not going to comment on your question since the subject of intentional breeding is prohibited as per forum rules, but I do want to suggest that unless the picture is misleading, you might want to place a piece of coroplast or something similar on tne bottom of Cotton’s cage. The grids, even with just a fleece on top, can painfully injure a rabbit’s feet – sore hocks, broken nails or toes, etc.

I have never had any issues with this cage at all, and even if i put stuff on it, they both tear it up to the point that it doesnt matter, or that it gets pushed through the bars anyways.
No i didnt want to intentionally breed them, you didnt understand what i was asking, i wasnt going to force anything at all, i would never do a thing like that to my babies.

[Pixie.rosa.love]

Posted By Mikey on 7/09/2017 10:45 PM

Can you care for babies? Are you comfortable knowing the first litter often dies?

Having a litter wont make them happier or sadder. Dont force them to have a litter, either. Also be ready for possible fighting as hormonal rabbits fight as well as breed. Remember that rabbits can fight to the death if theyre scared or feel threatened.

Note: this website isnt for purposely breeding rabbits. I believe rabbits.org would be a better place to post if you do decide to breed them.

I never said i was going to do it, i just wanted to know if it would make a differance

[Q8bunny]

Apologies that my post tickled your defenses. I would have told you the same thing LBJ did but did not want to violate forum rules. So I’m glad a forum leader answered your question.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By Pixie.rosa.love on 7/10/2017 12:21 AM

Posted By Q8bunny on 7/09/2017 10:59 PM

I’m not going to comment on your question since the subject of intentional breeding is prohibited as per forum rules, but I do want to suggest that unless the picture is misleading, you might want to place a piece of coroplast or something similar on tne bottom of Cotton’s cage. The grids, even with just a fleece on top, can painfully injure a rabbit’s feet – sore hocks, broken nails or toes, etc.

I have never had any issues with this cage at all, and even if i put stuff on it, they both tear it up to the point that it doesnt matter, or that it gets pushed through the bars anyways.
No i didnt want to intentionally breed them, you didnt understand what i was asking, i wasnt going to force anything at all, i would never do a thing like that to my babies.

Just because you’ve not had issues yet doesn’t mean you won’t. You need to properly cover the wire bottom. They’re only young, they will develop issues as they get older/spend more time on the wire flooring.

[Pixie.rosa.love]

Posted By sarahthegemini on 7/10/2017 5:06 AM

Posted By Pixie.rosa.love on 7/10/2017 12:21 AM

Posted By Q8bunny on 7/09/2017 10:59 PM

I’m not going to comment on your question since the subject of intentional breeding is prohibited as per forum rules, but I do want to suggest that unless the picture is misleading, you might want to place a piece of coroplast or something similar on tne bottom of Cotton’s cage. The grids, even with just a fleece on top, can painfully injure a rabbit’s feet – sore hocks, broken nails or toes, etc.

I have never had any issues with this cage at all, and even if i put stuff on it, they both tear it up to the point that it doesnt matter, or that it gets pushed through the bars anyways.
No i didnt want to intentionally breed them, you didnt understand what i was asking, i wasnt going to force anything at all, i would never do a thing like that to my babies.

Just because you’ve not had issues yet doesn’t mean you won’t. You need to properly cover the wire bottom. They’re only young, they will develop issues as they get older/spend more time on the wire flooring.

cotton isnt even in the cage he is in his play pen and the only reason bendi is in the cage is because they are not fixed and im not going to risk having babies, she will be perfectly fine until i get cotton fixed

[tobyluv]

In case you don’t know, males can still be potent and impregnate a female rabbit for a month or more after they are neutered, and they can even manage to impregnate a female through cage bars, so you really have to be careful and not let them be together. Since Bendi is very young, it will be a while before she can be spayed (most vets prefer to wait until a female is 6 months old) but it would be best if they weren’t put together until after Bendi has been spayed and recovered. The first step in bonding is always for both rabbits to be spayed or neutered. Once Bendi starts into puberty, her hormones can bring aggression, which can lead to fighting and injuries. That’s why it’s important to wait however long it takes for both rabbits to have their surgeries, with a few weeks of recovery and waiting for the hormones to abate, before you attempt bonding.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By Pixie.rosa.love on 7/10/2017 12:23 PM

Posted By sarahthegemini on 7/10/2017 5:06 AM

Posted By Pixie.rosa.love on 7/10/2017 12:21 AM

Posted By Q8bunny on 7/09/2017 10:59 PM

I’m not going to comment on your question since the subject of intentional breeding is prohibited as per forum rules, but I do want to suggest that unless the picture is misleading, you might want to place a piece of coroplast or something similar on tne bottom of Cotton’s cage. The grids, even with just a fleece on top, can painfully injure a rabbit’s feet – sore hocks, broken nails or toes, etc.

I have never had any issues with this cage at all, and even if i put stuff on it, they both tear it up to the point that it doesnt matter, or that it gets pushed through the bars anyways.
No i didnt want to intentionally breed them, you didnt understand what i was asking, i wasnt going to force anything at all, i would never do a thing like that to my babies.

Just because you’ve not had issues yet doesn’t mean you won’t. You need to properly cover the wire bottom. They’re only young, they will develop issues as they get older/spend more time on the wire flooring.

cotton isnt even in the cage he is in his play pen and the only reason bendi is in the cage is because they are not fixed and im not going to risk having babies, she will be perfectly fine until i get cotton fixed

So essentially, one of your rabbits has to put up with uncomfortable flooring…Seriously, just cover it. Chloroplast as previously suggested is cheap and easy to put down. Even thick towels and fleece would work if you anchored them so they couldn’t be ripped up.

[Bam]

You could cover it up with cardboard even, then put fleece on top. She might destroy both the fleece and the cardboard, but if you get really cheap fleece, that wouldn’t matter much.

If you choose not to cover the grids, because wire bottom cages are legal in most countries, you could just take really good care to check the feet daily. If you see undue wear on the fur under the feet, then you know there’s sth going on that needs to be seen to.

[Deleted User]

I have never bred rabbits and I am a new owner, but I do work in the medical field and from a medical standpoint, I don’t see any benefit to mating prior to spay/neuter. Rabbits do not breed rapidly because they are sex-crazed animals, it is because they are prey animals with a short lifespan in the wild, so they have evolved to breed rapidly to sustain the population. They do not have sex for pleasure like humans, they do it instinctively. Because of this reason, I cannot think of any reason why mating before a spay or neuter would be beneficial. In fact it could be dangerous simply because there is no guarantee of uncomplicated pregnancy. Someone else also mentioned that having a litter could increase potential for complications during the spay, which I honestly agree with due to the fact that the reproductive system will undergo so many changes in a pregnancy. You also have to factor in recovery time- you cannot bond these buns until both are spayed and neutered. If you breed, I am certain that you will have to give the doe time to recover from having her litter before you bring her to get spayed. She will have to nurse the babies for at least 8 weeks so that’s two months minimum wait before you spay. I’m not sure how long she would need to recover, that is a question for your vet but I can only assume you will need to give her time to recover from birth before an invasive surgery is performed. After the surgery she will need even more time to recover from the procedure. And what will you do with the babies? If you plan on keeping them then you will have to either keep them all separated or spay/neuter them all. Not to be rude, but there isn’t really any point in even considering mating them, it just complicates things for them and for you. Just get them spayed/neutered and work on bonding and they will be plenty happy.

[Dface]

I know its not the topic of the thread, but I’m just gonna hop onto the part about the cage flooring; my female lived in less than ideal circumstances and as a result had broken toes and torn out nails-her feet are a total mess.

Clipping nails that grow upwards is really unpleasant for her and me.
She also has postural problems-meaning she is prone to sore hocks, and my vets have said that I will have to watch her for arthritis as she ages.

Their floor is really important, even temporary flooring.

Please look into some form of covering for it. Just because something hasnt happened doesnt mean it wont, and there are such simple solutions, that could mitigate potential life long issues for a young rabbit

[Author]

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