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Do you believe in breeding?

Do you believe breeding is okay?

  • Yes

    Votes: 35 29.9%
  • No

    Votes: 59 50.4%
  • Other...Discuss.

    Votes: 23 19.7%

  • Total voters
    117

Ambience

Warren Veteran
Just curious on who here believes in breeding? This is only purchasing from reputable breeders of course- not some of the conditions we see when bunnys are rescued.
 
I don't mind breeding when done properly. But sometimes I think it would just be great to have a breeding ban of certain breeds of dogs, even for a few months or a year, just because there are so many! Like greyhounds and staffies for example!
 
Done properly with healthy genetic lines, no inbreeding, no selectivly mutating them to be unhealthy, and fantastic living conditions then I have no problem with it.
When it's done for fun it :censored: me off
 
I don't see a problem with it as long as it is done properly! Like if its a family pet, and the person knows 100% whats involved!! and not just made for breeding, say on a breeding farm etc, I think its great to see tiny baby animals grow and develop into healthy animals, I don't agree with breeding, when their bred for only monitary gain, and so if their ill etc they are just dumped
 
I don't believe in breeding any pet when there are thousands of the same species in rescue, and thousands of them being PTS as there are simply not enough homes.
 
I believe there are some breeders (very,very few) who manage to have a neutral effect on the state of animal welfare.

I know one ethical breeder in particular (she bred RubyTed's Teddy and Ruby) who is a lovely person and she does no harm by carefully and very occasionally breeding her rabbits. She keeps in touch with all the people who buy her bunnies, ensures that they never breed from them, fully educates them on every aspect of rabbit care that RU holds dear etc...

But I wouldn't say she is making a positive impact at all, not like rescues are.
 
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I have friends who breed rabbits, all who do it properly and not for pets but for improving the breed. I don't see a problem with it at all. It's the back yard breeders who I hate! :censored::censored:
 
Whilst there is so many thousands of animals in rescues right across the world, there is absolutely no place for breeding.
 
If done properly I have no problem with it. I always try to rescue but I will buy from a breeder if necessary. Like I want to get a chi pup next year. In the future I will rescue dogs but for my very own first dog I want it to be a pup so I can train it the way I want and it needs to get along with my other animals. Its just not the right time for me to rescue dogs and I figure I've got my whole life to, so no reason to rush it.

Same with rabbits, just not the right time for me to rescue them, but in the future I'd love to take on some rabbits to foster and maybe even adopt. I adopted Timmy, Ben, and Jack, when they were 10ish wks old (Timmy & Ben were bought at a pet shop and then the owners decided they didn't want them after 2 wks, and Jack was abandoned) but for my next rabbit, if I can't find a baby holland lop or a baby nethie to adopt I'll buy from a good breeder. Right now I don't feel comfortable adopting an adult because there aren't any rescues here with rabbits so I can only adopt off craigslist/other online ads. And very rarely are rabbits ever fed correctly, and dentals really scare me.. I hate them being put under, I was scared enough having my boys put under to have them neutered... I'd be fine adopting a baby someone didn't want though, like I did with my 3.
 
How do you define a good breeder?

We once took in 11 rabbits from a BRC accredited breeder, a title that people rave about.

One died a few days after getting here, after her body paralysed. On post mortem, it revealed advanced liver disease. The breeder claimed she was self medicating as the rabbit appeared to have worms. If she had got her to a vet, she may still be here.

Liz's bridge bun Eddie was also from this rescue case.
He had horrific tear duct problems, and dental problems amongst other things, and yes, she had bred from him before :evil:

I wonder how many of the kits he had fathered have problems now :(
 
Anyone can become a BRC accredited breeder just by paying for a membership so thats really easy but does mean that the rabbits will be well cared for.
When i did breed i remember going to a breeder thinking omg she has to many rabbits for her to look after and were in poor conditions and there is no way i want to be like that:cry:
I also went to another breeder and thought yeap she really cares about her rabbits and they were all very clean and well handled and she has helped me lots of times with advice:love:
People that breed thinking they are going to make money are breeding for the wrong reasons but people breeding to improve a breed i think is a good thing :)
The same as rare breeds what would happen if no-one breed rare breeds of rabbits?
 
I don't believe in breeding any pet when there are thousands of the same species in rescue, and thousands of them being PTS as there are simply not enough homes.

Agree with this, I don't see the need for it at all at this moment in time.:(

Someone made a commnt on another thread (can't remember which) that rat people seem to have it better sussed than rabbit people. Rats are generally bred for health and temprement first and appareance second and the good breeders have waiting lists for kittens no matter what colour they are.

With rabbits it seems to be the opposite and I keep seeing the excuse of "being bred to improve the breed" which seems to mean "being bred to win more prizes at shows" rather than to actually improve the health of the animal. If it were the case that breeders wished to "improve" the health of rabbits then we'd probably see a lot less rabbits with oddly shaped heads, ears etc that left them prone to health problems (but which win prizes at shows).

Conservation of breeds (and lets not mix up the word "breed" with "species") doesn't matter a jot to me. I wouldn't care less if rare breeds of rabbit died out when the only reason they exist in the first place is not because they're particulary docile or hardy but because their looks are appealing or they were bred for something they're no longer needed for (angoras).
 
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Good point I meant species...although white tigers are a breed of tigers aren't they...so maybe I mean both...:?:? Bad example as albino rather than breed but panther/ jaguar are same species but diff breeds? Sorry not very awake so mumbling!
Agree with this, I don't see the need for it at all at this moment in time.:(

Someone made a commnt on another thread (can't remember which) that rat people seem to have it better sussed than rabbit people. Rats are generally bred for health and temprement first and appareance second and the good breeders have waiting lists for kittens no matter what colour they are.

With rabbits it seems to be the opposite and I keep seeing the excuse of "being bred to improve the breed" which seems to mean "being bred to win more prizes at shows" rather than to actually improve the health of the animal. If it were the case that breeders wished to "improve" the health of rabbits then we'd probably see a lot less rabbits with oddly shaped heads, ears etc that left them prone to health problems.

Conservation of breeds (and lets not mix up the word "breed" with "species") doesn't matter a jot to me. I wouldn't care less if rare breeds of rabbit died out when the only reason they exist in the first place is not because they're particulary docile or hardy but because their looks are appealing or they were bred for something they're no longer needed for (angoras).
 
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Good point I meant species...although white tigers are a breed of tigers aren't they...so maybe I mean both...:?:?

White tigers are a breed yes, the white is caused by a recessive gene that shows when there are two copies of it (i.e. one from mum and one from dad).
 
Sounds like what is needed are much tighter controls.

Rabbits in the wild have shorter lifespans because of predation and illness. Their evolved response to this is to reproduce in large numbers, quickly and frequently.

We have interfered with this natural state, resulting in longer lifespans, and so must also seek to exercise some control over the timings/frequency of reproduction.

Without breeding there'd be no bunnies and this site would be called Rabbits Remembered :lol:.

I've come across excellent breeders but have also seen the large numbers in rescue. I have also seen the appeals for the rescuing of uncovered huge numbers from a single location.

Better education of the pet owners of the future is called for ie., make it part of the curriculum, involve local rescues and rspcas and other national rescues.
 
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