Ok so now I am even more confused. If this is what is may be should keep Cookie quarentined away from the other rabbits? We just got her yesterday, and I thought I had checked her out before taking her, but missed this obvious issue. Should I try to return her to the seller? We intended to use her for breeding with our LH buck, but if this is something that will always have a chance to pass on to the kits is it worth dealing with? Agian we are just learning about rabbits etc.
Thanks so much for all you help
Firstly PLEASE research BEFORE even thinking about breeding. It is not just a case of putting a Buck with a Doe.
Do you know the full genetic background going back at least 2 generations of both the Buck and Doe ?
Do you understand the responsibility of bringing more Rabbits into the world when there are already 33,000 unwanted Rabbits in Rescues all over the UK ?
Can you afford to vaccinate ALL your Rabbits against both Myxomatosis (vaccination needed every 6 months) and VHD (vaccination needed every 12 months) ?
Will you be able to home check for every Rabbit you rehome/sell and will you promise to take them back should the person you rehome them to not be able to keep them for any reason and at any time ?
If you were unable to rehome/sell any of the Rabbits you breed would you be able to keep them and accommodate them appropriately- minimum hutch size recommendation for 2 medium sized Rabbits is 6ft x 2ft x2ft with a LARGE and SECURE run PERMANENTLY attached ?
You say that the Rabbits are your son's. If he is a young child then are you prepared to retain overall responsibility for the day-to-day care of ALL the Rabbits, including feeding, cleaning, grooming, health checks etc ?? Children often lose interest, a very common reason for Rabbits being handed into already full to bursting Rescues.
Back to your Buck. Well, personally I would be more concerned about taking the Rabbit to a Vet than getting my money back from the Breeder. I cannot say for certain that the Buck has an EC induced cataract, but it is a possibility. He should definitely NOT be used as a stud Buck until the exact cause of the problem is established.
Over 50% of Rabbits will have been exposed to EC and have a positive titre test indicating this exposure. Not all Rabbits exposed to the parasite become ill, some do.
Here is another link in a less 'medical' format
http://www.houserabbit.co.uk/resources/content/info-sheets/ecuniculi.htm
I apologise if this post reads as curt, but I am personally 100% against breeding Rabbits having seen first hand the exact situation re all the thousands of unwanted ones in Rescues. If you remain determined to persue breeding then I would advise you to find an established and respected Breeder with a proven track record re his/her practices to mentor you. Please, please do not start breeding if you have no idea what you are doing. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem as far as Rabbit Welfare is concerned.
Please take the time to watch this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqpHe9_kZL0
and read these links
http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/care/breedingrabbits.asp
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/breeding.html
Finally, you can find a lot more advice and information re Rabbit Welfare here:
http://www.houserabbit.co.uk/index.php