# How early can bucks become sexually active?



## Thumperina (Oct 6, 2012)

We have 4 rabbits: Mom (unaltered) , Dad (neutered), a son (almost 12 weeks old) and his sister (same age). 
I am trying to find new families for the children, 2 boys (out of 4 bunnies) already went to new home. Today I noticed (oh, NO) that the younger boy tried to mount his mom (she ran away). I thought it was kind of early for his age? 
Do I understand correct that female's smell attracts them? When is younger girl supposed to start smelling? 
We have only one hutch for all of them where they spend a night all together. I didn't expect him to start doing it this early. Are both females in danger or just the older one?


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## KittyKatMe (Oct 6, 2012)

I have seen stories of rabbits impregnanting their siblings at as young as 8 weeks. If he is mounting them, there is a very high chance that his his mother and sister are both pregnant. I would separate them immediately.


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## Thumperina (Oct 6, 2012)

*KittyKatMe wrote:*


> If he is mounting them, there is a very high chance that his his mother and sister are both pregnant.


the father was trying to mount the mother since we got them (they were 3 months old) but it took time till they were 7 months old to make her pregnant


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Oct 6, 2012)

Thumperina wrote:


> *KittyKatMe wrote:Â *
> 
> 
> > If he is mounting them, there is a very high chance that his his mother and sister are both pregnant.
> ...



Yeah, I wouldn't say there is a high chance. Bucks will mount things earlier than they can successfully breed- especially if they're housed with other rabbits (gender doesn't matter).

As soon as you notice mounting, it is best to separate the bucks into individual enclosures. The does can stay together if they are getting along, but mature bucks MUST be separated.

The earliest I have had a buck successfully breed a doe was at 16 weeks (4 months) old. Most will not be able to breed before that but some will try. In rare cases, bucks may successfully breed a doe earlier but that isn't average.

Does mature later, they are usually ready for a buck around 5-6 months old. Any earlier typically results in a failed litter.

Anyway, definitely keep all these rabbits separated. A mature buck should never be unsupervised with any other rabbit. Young bucks should be separated by 10-12 weeks. And mature does should never be housed with other rabbits except for their offspring. But at this age, the litter should be separated anyway.


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## majorv (Oct 6, 2012)

:yeahthat: There are certainly exceptions to the rule, but your little buck is a bit young to be shooting anything other than blanks. I had to keep a mom and her son together a little longer than I wanted to. The boy was right at 3 months old when I took him out...Mom is not pregnant.


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