It’s January, and I know every other rabbit breeder in a temperate climate is thinking the same thing I am. Only I’m going to say it:
I friggin HATE raising rabbits in winter!!
I realize that a lot of people live in places where it gets much colder than it does here, but hey, frozen crocks are frozen crocks and they really suck. And a few live in places where 60 degrees is considered “chilly.” I deeply envy them.
Like a lot of things about this hobby, it’s either dedication or insanity. Mostly, I lean toward insanity. Removing one’s coat to wrap around a nestbox of newborns while dashing into the house with only a T-shirt and jeans on is probably the act of a very unbalanced person. And I’m sure that being seen standing outdoors on a frigid Kansas night with a howling north wind and subzero windchill while unzipping one’s coat, then coveralls, then pulling up one’s sweatshirt to put a chilled baby on one’s bare (and momentarily warm) tummy could result in some sort of involuntary psychiatric hospitalization.
Sometimes I fantasize about not breeding anything from September to March. I wouldn’t have to worry about does not being interested or going behind my back and not pulling enough fur for a nest that looked pretty good beforehand. And it’s so nice not to have to keep litters in cardboard boxes in the spare room and run them in and out of the house to nurse. As annoying as all this is, the prospect of having no juniors for spring shows (NDS included) is worse.
So for this reason (along with basic good animal care and welfare, which I work hard to provide, but isn’t as exciting) I will lug hot water from the house three times a day (including my lunch break) to pour in frozen crocks. I will waddle around like the Michelin Man in coveralls with a coat on top and a couple layers beneath to scrape out trays, and hope that I can get them all done while I can still feel my hands. I will pull every prank I can imagine on my does to try to convince them it’s springtime. Fortunately, Dutch bucks do not care.
But still, I will keep on doing this (and hating it) with those spring shows in sight. While I know that I should just congratulate myself for giving good care to my animals through the nasty weather, I really hope there is more reward for me than just that “participation” ribbon!
