Daring Breedings

Ask any breeder you know if you should do a broken to broken breeding. Go ahead- I'll wait.

Just kidding, let's pretend you've asked. The answer you get will depend on the type of breeder you speak with! There is no right or wrong answer, just the difference between the daring breeders and the play it safers.

For instance, breeding a broken to broken can result in Charlie marked animals Some folks refuse to mess with charlies and pet them out or sell them at 8 weeks old as brood animals. Some folks flat out refuse to breed a broken to a broken, others will only breed heavy pattern to heavy pattern.

So what should you do?

Well that depends. Are you the kind of breeder that wants perfect, showable babies out of each litter? Or are you the kind that will take a hit for a single generation, such as getting excellent type on a charlie/unshowable color, then breed that animal in again to the herd to produce showable animals?

Personally- I'm the daring breeder. I've got a broken/broken (light pattern on the doe) breeding that should come to fruition in the next few days. I've bred a blue tort to a sable point, well aware I could end up with unshowable colors. I could go on and on. I'm breeding because of the extreme compatibility of the type and lines!

I think the best course is to know what you could be getting in to and how to counteract any "daring breedings" you do. Make sure it's absolutely worth it as far as lines and type compatibility go. Know that if you breed and get a certain unshowable color, how you can use that in your herd to your advantage. What colors will work with the unshowable to make the offspring showable? You don't want to do constant daring breedings and end up with a color so messed up there is no way to ever use the animals you create!

-Kristen
Keep's Rabbitry