Lyle Creek Rabbitry

The snow is melting but is still pretty in some of the big fields.  I have been lucky so far in not having any water bottles freeze.  It has been in the mid 20s at night so I am surprised but thankful.  I love winter time except for waterbottle freezing.  Today was beautiful with a cool breeze and the sun shinning. 

I cleaned the rabbitry this morning and tattooed everyone that needed to be done.  I still need to clip nails but I will do that my next day off.  All four litters of rabbits continue to do well.  Looking in a nest box at new babies is very much like opening presents Christmas morning as a child.  I think when that feeling is gone it will be time to get out of rabbits.  I still enjoy baby bunnies just coming out of the nest and four week olds bouncing around their cage.  I adore seeing a baby sleeping on top of their mommy to keep warm.  Or a mother peeking in her nest to check on her babies.  Babies in the rabbitry are one of the reasons I love this hobby.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas Day!!!

Friday we had about 6 inches of snow fall!   I love the snow it is so pretty, I did NOT like driving home from work Friday night during the heavy snow fall.  I am very thankful to have got home safe as there were car wrecks all over and many stranded cars.  God was certainly with me.

The four litters of rabbits are doing great.  QT's two buck babies are for sale and are ready to go.  I am going to grow out the little Doe before making a decision on her.  Charmed's two are ready for their first show on 1/2/10.  I need to tattoo them on my next day off.  After the show I will decide if I am keeping both or selling one of them.  Delaney and Maddy's litters are the same age and are growning fast.  Both Moms are doing great keeping their babies fed and warm.  Maddy is still raising one of Delaney's babies with hers.  Her baby needed a littermate to snuggle with.

I have put some rabbits on my For Sale page and all will be available at the Taylorsville show on 1/2/2010.    I am looking forward to this show and am hoping the weather will be decent so there will be a nice turnout. 

QT's babies are doing great!  They are growing fast and will be weaned soon.  Charmed's two are also doing great and ready to be weaned.  I am hoping to show them at the Taylorsville show the first of January.  The REW baby doe is Jenga and the Sable point baby buck is Jinx.

Friday morning Lil Bit Farm's Madeline (Holland) had her first litter.  She had two with one being a DOA. It was 21 degrees outside and the other baby was a little chilled.  I warmed it up and it is doing great.  Maddy is being a great mother, she built a great nest and pulled lots of fur to line it with.  I only have to watch that she does not over feed this baby as she has lots of milk.

Wooligan's Delaney was due at the same time as Maddy but showed no interest in her nestbox.  While Madeline was giving birth I guess Delaney finally realized she needed to get busy and began to franticly build her nest and pull fur.  It was amusing to watch her.  Sunday morning she had four little babies.  Today I moved one of her babies in with Madelines baby to help keep each other warm.

I am very pleased with these litters.  It is fun to have a barn full of babies.  I did put two rabbits on my For Sale page.  I don't want to sell either of these but need to make room for the babies I decide to keep.

I hope everyone is keeping warm and is planning on the Jan. 2 show in Taylorsville!

It has been a cold, cold week.  We have had frost most mornings.  So far the water bottles have not frozen.  That is the part of winter I dislike the most.

Two of QT's babies started to "Fade".  I loaded them with hay and kept a crock full of water as well as their water bottle.  The two are doing much better and looking like they will make it.  I am convinced some babies are lost from dehydration.  The water crock is easier for babies to take in plenty of fluids.

I also opened my email the other day to find a catalog for a show in Taylorsville on Jan. 2nd.  Since I was already going through show withdrawls, I was very excited.  Some of my juniors will be just old enough to show so I will be able to get comments on them.  I need to start working with them more and get them tattooed.

Hope everyone is staying warm!!

      The cold of winter has set in.  This morning cars, buildings and the yards were covered in white frost.  It almost looked like it had snowed overnight.  I like winter time but it does make it harder to enjoy spending time out with the rabbits.  Yesterday I got the cages cleaned before the cold rain set in.  I still need to get some juniors tattooed but with the next show being the end of January I have plenty of time.

     Yes January will be my next show.  Sigh.  There is a show this weekend in Columbia SC, but I have two rabbits who are not molting, pregnant or on a litter.  The show is 2 1/2 hrs away and I just cannot justify the drive even as much as I want to go. 

     I have two litters of babies that are 4 and 5 weeks old.  Both babies in the Wooly litter look very promising.  The Holland litter is also looking nice and chunky.  Hopefully there are some future show bunnies.  Of the other Does that were due one missed and the other had a litter of DOAs.  I still have three Does due so hopefully will have some more babies to adore. 

    Stay warm!!

The rabbitry facelift is almost complete.  The new floors for the cages arrived today.  I was hoping yesterday but some things cannot be controled.  I managed to get five of the nine cages complete.  The new floors look great!!  It was actually very easy as soon as I figured out to twist the old ringer off instead of trying to cut it.  The new floors were just as easy to install.  My hands are sore from the work so even if time allowed today my hands were done.  I will finish the last four floors over the next couple days.

With Thanksgiving here I felt I should post about something I am Thankful for.  I am thankful for many things but feel I should keep it rabbit related since this is my rabbitry blog.  I am a very shy person who finds it difficult to do things outside my "safety zone"  I have to force myself to do new things, go new places and to meet new people.  I am very thankful to my rabbit hobby for making me live outside my "safety zone" .  I drive further than I ever would to new places, I have met many many wonderful people, and have done new things like going to Nationals last year. 

I hope everyone has many things to be Thankful for this year.

The rabbitry is getting a face lift!!  The linoleum floor I originally purchased was not very thick, in fact liquid tended to soak through it.  I removed all the old linoleum and put in a nice wood plank floor look linoleum.  The linoleum wraps up the walls about 8 inches and is then sealed with sealing tape to the wall.  This makes the floor of the shed like a large tray.  It looks beautiful!!!   My other project in the face lift is my three sets of stacking cages from TSC.  All nine of these cage's floors are rusty.  I looked into purchasing wire as opposed to ordering precut 24 X 24 replacement floors.  The replacement floors were only 2.50 each and there is no wire waste for me in cutting the wire.  I went with the precut floors and am hoping they will be delivered Monday.  The other two -6 hole stackers will get a good pressure washing today to be ready for winter.

I spent yesterday in Asheville visiting a friend and going through her rabbits with her.  I had a blast and was able to hone my skills in looking at what faults or qualities a rabbit had.  I finally feel like I am able to look at a rabbit and ignore color to look at type first.  I still love a rabbit with short wide ears and a larger head.  In Hollands I LOVE the massive look in a small rabbit.  I want to pick up that rabbit and feel like it has mass to it, not like it is weightless.  I love the "bull dog" look to a good Holland.  In Woolies I love the short ears on a rounder shaped head.  I like the body to be equal in depth, width, and length.  A coby look.  I had a great visit and really enjoyed spending the day talking rabbits without a show to interupt the visit.

Now I need to go through my own Hollands and woolies and do a hard cull.  The only way to move ahead is to keep only the best of the best.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.

Yesterday's show in Taylorsville was alot of fun.  Woolies and Hollands were first up so that gave us a nice break inbetween Show A and B to visit.  After the show was over I was able to get Onyx and Mo registered.  I was hoping to send in their three legs as well to grand them, but was told I had to wait til the registration paper comes back then apply for Grand Champion. 

I was able to move out some rabbits and ended up bringing in two new bunnies.  A nice little Broken Black Doe from Tresia.  It is borderline Charlie marked as it would be very very close to the 10% color rule, but I got her to produce broken colored Woolies so she will do quite nice for me.  She is out of Erb's Lilly Bell, a doe of Tresia's that I love.

I also brought home a cute little blue buck from Brandi and Pete of BL's bunny barn.  I'm such a sucker for blue and this little guy is nice.  He is out of Shazaam a buck of BL's that I like.

Charmed and QT's litters of babies continue to do well.  Charmed's babies are out of the nestbox and are adorable.  Both have chunky bodies, tiny ears and big heads.  Hopefully they will continue to develope into nice Woolies.  QT's babies are too young to tell anything about them, but the two broken torts are nicely marked.

I am hoping to have something to show at the Columbia, South Carolina show.  This weather going from warm to cold and back again is not helping coat condition.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.  I know I am thankful to have my family coming up to spend a couple days with me.

"Breeds like Rabbits"

     Hmmmm, must not be show rabbits that they were talking about.  You breed a rabbit and 31ish days later a cute litter of babies.  At least one of those babies turns out to be a fantastic show rabbit!!  Well at least thats supposed to be how it works.  Seems like if you are breeding for a specific show season or show this does not work.

     This morning I went out to what I thought would be two more litters of babies.  One Doe had one DOA and the other had two DOAs. "sigh"  Its sad to see this, but part of breeding dwarf rabbits.  The very chilly nights do not help out and the fact that we are breeding during a time when Rabbits do not usually have babies.  I also have one other Doe that had one DOA earlier this week.  I left her nestbox in because I felt more babies in her.  (Well not being great at palpating, I "think" I felt more babies)  Could have been full intestines.  Anyway I left her nestbox in and this morning she has pulled a bunch of fur for the box. 

     On a good note, Charmed's two babies are growing and now have their eyes open.  The sablepoint/smoke pearl (?) looks very very promising.  QT's four are also doing well.  All are fat little babies and growing fast.

I have two more rabbits due but not for three weeks.  The Does that had dead litters will be rebred.

     I am also looking forward to next week's show in Taylorville.  It will be so good to talk to friends and show some rabbits.  I really need to trim nails of the rabbits I will be taking. First  I need to get a list going of the rabbits I am taking as.  I pretty much have in mind who will be going but need to check them to be sure. 

Congratulations to all the winners at Nationals in San Diego!!!!  Wish I could have been there.  Going to a convention one day is on my list of "things I want to do". 

2010 will be MN and 2011 will be Indianappolis!!

I have not had much to report being in between shows and not having any Does due.  This past Sunday I did have a Doe poduce a litter of babies so thought I would post my upcoming litters.

Hare's Mystic Moon (smoke pearl) X Lyle Creek's Charmed (REW)

Born Sunday a litter of two.  One REW and one Smoke Pearl (?)

Jersey Wooly

Keep's Burlington (Black) X Wooligan's Delaney (siamese Sable)

Due Nov. 7

Holland Lops

Lyle Creek's Quizno (black) X Lyle Creek's Opal (tort)

Due Nov. 7th

Lyle Creek's Deja Blu (blue tort) X Lyle Creek's QT (broken tort)

Due Nov. 5

The Nature Trail's Crazy Horse (broken tort) X Keep's Salsa (seal)

Due Nov. 5

I have two does that did not take and need to be rebred, but the above breedings will hopefully poduce some nice juniors for the Spring shows.

I have plans to replace the linoleum floor in the rabbitry.  It was cheap and thin and is not holding up well.  I plan on buying a thicker gauge linoleum and replacing it during some days off work next month.  I am even concidering another pressure washing of cages before winter sets in.  The weather right now is beautiful with cooler nights and absolutely gorgious days.