This breeding information is taken directly from Raising Rabbits the Modern Way by Bob Bennett. Please get this book.
For the small breeds of rabbits, your does and bucks should be at least five months of age.
The medium breeds should be six months and the giants must be at least eight months of age.
Look at the doe. She should be at just the right weight. Not too fat. Her fur condition should be excellent - no shedding and plenty of sheen. Now, check the vulva. For best results, it should be a reddish purple color, not a pale pink. If it has the deep color, this doe probably is ready to breed, provided she is otherwise in perfect health.
Look at the buck. His fur should be in good condition - his coat should shine, indicating his health is good. His eyes should be bright. Whether his is fat or thin is not as important as it is for the doe, but if he is too fat he may be too lazy to service the doe. Next, check his testicles. If they are completely descended into the scrotum, and if the scrotum is full and large, he is a good buck to use.
If both prospective parents look just right to you, take the doe to the buck's hutch and put her in. NEVER take the buck to the doe. And NEVER simply leave the pair alone together. Put the doe in with the buck and observe the mating. Don't blink, or you may miss it. Rabbits are rabbits. They mate like rabbits. If everything goes right, it will be all over before you close the hutch door. The buck will have mounted the doe. The doe will have raised her hind quarters. The buck will have serviced the doe and fallen over backwards or on his side. Now remove the doe.
Note: Rabbits do not have monthly cycles.
The gestation period is 28-34 days, but most bunnies are born on the 31st day.
On the 27th day, it’s time to put in the nest box. You want the doe to have the box in time to get used to it, in time to build her nest in it, but not too early. If it’s there too soon, before she’s overcome by the maternal nest-building impulse, she may use it for a bathroom.
On the day the litter is born - the doe will burrow into the hay, pull fur from her underside and build a nesting place for the young. After they are born, she will pull more fur and cover them up. If she does a good job of this, her litter will survive in below-zero weather.
The doe needs peace and quiet a few days before the litter is born and a few days after. Dogs and children can be particularly disturbing at this time.
After the doe has kindled (had her babies) it’s time to bring her a green tidbit. The doe will really appreciate it at this time. If you put it in the cage, she will be so intent upon it that you will be able to remove the nest box with little or no opposition. Take it out of her sight and carefully push the fur aside. If you can count the babies without picking them up, so much the better, but it’s okay to put them aside and add up the tally. Remove any dead ones, and if there are more than eight, you may want to foster the extras off to another doe who has fewer than eight, which is how many nipples a doe has. Repeat this process at least for the first 3-4 days.
With the new litter looking for milk from the doe, it’s a good idea to give her some extra feed. You will want her to have all the pellets she can eat. Be sure she has plenty of clean, fresh water in front of her at all times.
In about 10 days the litter will open their eyes, and before three weeks they will come springing out of the box.
Before they come out, disinfect the hutch floor with bleach and rinse well. Remove the nest box when the litter is three weeks old in warm weather: four weeks in winter. Weaning. Start anywhere from 4-5 weeks. Remove only one baby a day because you want the doe to dry up gradually. Take out the biggest and huskiest of the youngsters. Let the little ones stay in for some more milk.