What Better on the First Day of Spring?

     This is a love story...

     ...No, it's not.  But it is a post about our rabbits and our hopes of breeding them.  Our females, Sunflower and Buttercup, were born in July of 2014 and brought home that autumn.  Buttercup is an English Lop, a large breed developed in the Victorian Era for its fancifully long ears and docile temperament.  Sunflower is half English Lop and half Rex.  The Rex breed originated in France in the early 20^th century, and remains the top choice in the US for meat and fur production.  Bucky, our male, was brought home last spring.  Like Sunflower, he is half Rex and half English Lop.  All three were purchased from Buckleberry Fern Farm in northern NJ, and have been healthy, hand-tame, and truly entertaining from their first day home.
     After copious research and planning, we finally set Bucky and Buttercup on a date last August.  However, Dr. Ian Malcolm’s statement, “Life, um, finds a way” might not have been intended for small, furry non-reptiles.  Poor Bucky couldn’t quite figure out how things were supposed to work, and, probably because of the heat, Buttercup was NOT having any of his shenanigans.  We let them be for a few days, but despite Bucky’s many attempts, he was NOT the father.  Buttercup threw us for a loop when, at about day 30 she began nesting.  We suspected a last-minute conception before they were separated, but by the 35^th day it was clearly game-over.
     Springtime is for bunnies and eggs and fertility, so here we go again!  The topic of spring breeding came up recently, so I thought I’d take a look at the calendar to plan litters around any road trips or festivals we might have coming up.  We want just one litter this spring, and would prefer to breed Buttercup for her Lop ears and larger size.  However, if she isn’t cooperative, we’ll still need to wait just over a month before putting Sunflower in the ring to avoid a double litter.  Leaving calendar space for all of this, it dawned on me that breeding time was upon us!
   All three rabbits were brought inside for their regular nail-trimming and cage scrub-down today, after-which Bucky was sent to visit his lucky lady.  Luckily, I don’t think I’ll need to supply Barry White or candlelight this time.  I could tell within a minute or two that his time alone was well-spent on learning the right moves, and Buttercup was much more receptive to this second date.  We’ll leave them be for a day or two, just to be sure things take.  Stay tuned, and hopefully we’ll have some good news by mid-April!