Gestation is the word for pregnancy in rabbits (and many other species). The gestation period (length of pregnancy) in rabbits is typically 28-32 days, with 31 being the average. During the pregnancy, you may notice several changes in your doe, and there are several things you should know so that you are prepared.
Many does will not show any outward signs of pregnancy. They may look slightly rotund and may gain a few ounces, but they rarely grow as large as most species. Because of the extremely short gestation period, rabbit kits are born very small and underdeveloped compared to most other newborn mammals. They are essentially fetuses, just outside the mother's womb.
Pregnant does will experience a rush of oxytocin, a mothering hormone, which will often improve the condition of their coats. Many people will plan their breedings around important shows so that the doe is 10 days pregnant at the time of the show. This is the time at which the doe is in prime condition, is not likely to absorb the kits, and is not likely to have any resultant pregnancy complications. It is strongly advised to keep your pregnant doe at home closer to kindling time.
When your doe is about 11-14 days pregnant, you can palpate her. The purpose of palpation is to check whether the doe is pregnant, and estimate litter size. At around that time frame, the kits are the size of grapes and are easily palpable if you know what to look for. Have an expert help you when palpating a doe for the first time, otherwise it's really hard to tell what you're feeling.
Typically, pregnant does go through some behavior changes, sometimes within 24 hours of breeding. It can mean that many does that are normally very sweet will become nervous, territorial, or even aggressive. This is because their hormones are going crazy and they aren't thinking straight. While I'm not normally one to remotely excuse bad behavior in rabbits, I tend to be very forgiving of grumpy pregnant does. As long as they chill out again after their litter starts popping out the nestbox, this is perfectly normal. As such, I don't usually handle my pregnant does a whole lot, other than nail trims etc..
On day 26 of the doe's pregnancy, you can install her nestbox. You can either use metal or wooden, but if you choose wooden be careful that there are no splinters that could injure young kits.
At any point in her pregnancy, even up until minutes away from giving birth, the doe will usually start nesting. She will carry hay back and forth in her mouth, and start pulling fur from her dewlap and belly. Good moms will put their nest in the nestbox, but new mothers or bad mothers may decide to nest on the wire of the cage. Let her nest wherever she wants, but if the kits are born outside the nestbox you can put them inside it once the doe has finished the initial nursing.
When the doe gets close to kindling, leave her alone. If you constantly check up on her and bug her, she'll be more likely to have kindling complications. Now, with some of my more trusting and experienced brood does, I sometimes like to watch them kindle from the other end of the barn. It's pretty cool to watch. But you'll eventually get to know which does you can do that with and which you can't, but for at least your first few litters, it's best to leave them alone. Don't get her out of her cage for any reason, as it could really stress her out and cause her to be a bad mother.
Many does will not show any outward signs of pregnancy. They may look slightly rotund and may gain a few ounces, but they rarely grow as large as most species. Because of the extremely short gestation period, rabbit kits are born very small and underdeveloped compared to most other newborn mammals. They are essentially fetuses, just outside the mother's womb.
Pregnant does will experience a rush of oxytocin, a mothering hormone, which will often improve the condition of their coats. Many people will plan their breedings around important shows so that the doe is 10 days pregnant at the time of the show. This is the time at which the doe is in prime condition, is not likely to absorb the kits, and is not likely to have any resultant pregnancy complications. It is strongly advised to keep your pregnant doe at home closer to kindling time.
When your doe is about 11-14 days pregnant, you can palpate her. The purpose of palpation is to check whether the doe is pregnant, and estimate litter size. At around that time frame, the kits are the size of grapes and are easily palpable if you know what to look for. Have an expert help you when palpating a doe for the first time, otherwise it's really hard to tell what you're feeling.
Typically, pregnant does go through some behavior changes, sometimes within 24 hours of breeding. It can mean that many does that are normally very sweet will become nervous, territorial, or even aggressive. This is because their hormones are going crazy and they aren't thinking straight. While I'm not normally one to remotely excuse bad behavior in rabbits, I tend to be very forgiving of grumpy pregnant does. As long as they chill out again after their litter starts popping out the nestbox, this is perfectly normal. As such, I don't usually handle my pregnant does a whole lot, other than nail trims etc..
On day 26 of the doe's pregnancy, you can install her nestbox. You can either use metal or wooden, but if you choose wooden be careful that there are no splinters that could injure young kits.
At any point in her pregnancy, even up until minutes away from giving birth, the doe will usually start nesting. She will carry hay back and forth in her mouth, and start pulling fur from her dewlap and belly. Good moms will put their nest in the nestbox, but new mothers or bad mothers may decide to nest on the wire of the cage. Let her nest wherever she wants, but if the kits are born outside the nestbox you can put them inside it once the doe has finished the initial nursing.
When the doe gets close to kindling, leave her alone. If you constantly check up on her and bug her, she'll be more likely to have kindling complications. Now, with some of my more trusting and experienced brood does, I sometimes like to watch them kindle from the other end of the barn. It's pretty cool to watch. But you'll eventually get to know which does you can do that with and which you can't, but for at least your first few litters, it's best to leave them alone. Don't get her out of her cage for any reason, as it could really stress her out and cause her to be a bad mother.