Summer has finally hit full-force here in Kansas, and I’ve been spending the past few weeks keeping the rabbits comfortable. I do continue to breed through the summer, although not as many litters as in the spring or fall. It does get hot here, but I’ve never had my bucks go sterile, even the old guys who are pushing 5. (I don’t know why; they live in the barn with everyone else. I guess Dutch bucks are just studs!) Over the years I’ve experimented with several ways of keeping the animals cool, and here is what works for me:
The most basic thing is planning your barn or rabbit area so it will do as much of the work as possible. Obviously shade is the best, but in the prairie we don’t have that luxury! When we built our new barn, we used radiant heat barrier insulation on the roof and walls. It comes in a roll and looks like foil; we just laid it over the framework of the barn and stapled it down before putting the panels on. It makes the inside of the barn look kind of like a disco ball, but it alone will drop the temperature 10 degrees. We also used silver metal for the roof and white for the sides in order to reflect as much light as possible. For air circulation, we left the bottom 2 feet of the walls open and covered with wire and added flaps that we can put down in case of storms or high winds. An exhaust fan helps for those rare still Kansas days. Sometimes we hose down the roof and this will drop the temperature further.
Most of the rabbits do well with just fresh, cool water a few times a day. Some require special attention, especially does that are pregnant or have litters. I have found that this often has to be tailored for the individual animal(s). Plastic bottles filled with water and frozen work very well for those inclined to use them. For those who won’t, dampening their ears with water or even taking them for a swim in a tub of water works well. I do this for my very pregnant does and most of them really seem to enjoy it. You do need to be careful using this if they are close to their due date as I have seen a dunked doe begin kindling shortly after her swim!
As for the litters, vigilance is key. I check the does several times a day and as soon as the litter is born, remove extra fur and/or hay. When they are a few days old I remove all of the bedding and replace it with plain aspen. I also use metal nestboxes. Some people assume they’ll be hotter because metal is a conductor. I haven’t found that they get hotter, but that conducting property works both ways and I use it to my advantage by placing a frozen water bottle between the nestbox and the side of the cage, which turns the box into a cool little cave for the babies.
Good luck to you all…stay cool!
