Breed or show 1st

[rebelshope]

I have an English Angora doe. I was thinking of showing her for the 1st time this Oct. She was born May 4th 2008. I bought her around Jan. I have not bred her yet and after reading the other thread I am wondering if I should try to breed her now, since she is over a year and it sounds like she will be harder the breed the longer I wait. Or if I should show her first.

 

[JoieDeViveRabbitry]

At this age yes I would breed her first and then show. The older the doe gets the harder it can be for her to concieve as they tend to put on "doe fat".

 

[rebelshope]

Thanks. . . I see that you raise angoras also.

SHould I trim her whole body or just around her. . . ummm. . . well the parts the buck will need to get too?

 

[JoieDeViveRabbitry]

Yep, just a little trim of the genital area should be fine

Good luck with the breeding! Do you have your own buck?

 

[rebelshope]

Yes I do. I bought them both from the same breeder but they are unrelated.

 

[trestlecreek]

Yes, you can breed now, but be warned that by breeding her, she may become a brood doe instead of a show doe.
Do you have a show you can go to in the next few weeks? Find out how she measures up; then breed her.....

 

[JoieDeViveRabbitry]

Another alternative would be to ask your breeder (if they are serious about showing) how your doe measures up, though I would take whatever they say with a grain of salt because since they bred the animal they are prone to be a little biased.

Also, once bred, when close to kindling you may want to trim her belly as our very wooly Angoras rarely pull all the hair from their nipple area and the kits need to be able to nurse without sucking on wool.

 

[dbunni]

I know I'm late coming into this. Just found the site. EAs are our breed, life and love (not in that order). As a general rule, we show first, breed second. The EAs best show coat is often their first. The baby wool creates a beautifully dense look for the table. We get the first two legs from the junior class and then move them up to senior around 5 months (my line contains larger does who senior weight usually by 5 months). They are then shown until the coat blows out ... usually 11-15 months. The BIS coat usually is around 10-13 months old. So, my top does are not bred until a year or better, often. Have never had a problem getting babies on the ground with older animals. Hope all is going well with your little lady.