Good/Bad Breeders

Was just wondering, now that I understand how rabbits are bred for good genes and what a purebred is, how do you know if you are visiting a good breeder or a bad breeder :?:

I am not thinking of getting a rabbit from a breeder but am interested to know how someone would recognise the good from the bad :? :? Apart from being BRC registered, and I know a few breeders on here will also refuse a potential new home if they think it is unsuitable, and will except the bun back if the new owners circumstances change, but how would we really know :?: what should people really look for :?:

Claude and miffy were both from breeders
Claudes breeder was a lovely lady,i went to see claude when he was 4 weeks old (so cute!) she asked me loads of questions,let me see all her rabbits which were kept in lovely large hutches and get free run in the garden everyday,when i went to collect him she was a little concerned about him going as a house rabbit i told her he would be free range and would also get to go in the garden (she has her own house rabbit now!),i was given a weeks supply of food and a care sheet,she rang and emailed to ask how he was getting on and she has looked after him twice when we went on her holidays she says he is so spoilt hes runied!!!!! she is brc reg and doesnt keep many rabbits at a time

Miffy was from a byb i went to see another rabbit a dutch that this lady had but then i saw miffys litter she was only 3 weeks old i said i wanted to reserve one of those instead, miffy was the only chin coloured one,i saw the mum and dad the hutches were quite small ,it was only when i went to collect her i realised they just breed these cross breed rabbits for money and the money they get doesnt get spent on the rabbits they had the cheapest brand of feed and no hay they did get veg though and they buy there rabbits from markets and auctions,soi they dont know the back ground of them and they get them cheap
they buy pedigree rabbits but just cross all different breeds
The other thing that shocked me was when i found out that miffys mum had been dropped and they thought her leg was broken they were going to have her pts rather than pay vet bills
I bought miffy and that was it i never heard anymore from her
I dont regret buying either but since having my rescue rabbits and piggies id never buy another just rescue

Blimey :shock: what a difference. I bet you were mortified to see the conditions that Miffy was in thanks Marie you have experience of both good and bad breeders its such a shame that a license could not be enforced to stop the bad breeders

I know this is a different slant on the topic but I am always alarmed at the way some pet shops just seem to buy off anyone to fill their sale pens. They do not appear to make any checks on the breeders. I currently have Cuthbert and Dibble on RR, Cuthbert has no tear ducts as a result of inter breeding. They are really difficult to home as Cuthbert needs to have his eyes bathed every day and it is quite a commitment to take on. We have also had buns in previously bought from PAH who have had spinal problems or needed to have their front teeth removed - all from bad breeding. I once had 3 guinea pigs come in who were blind from inter breeding! They found a lovely home, thank goodness, and have been taken under the wing of an older piggie who they all follow!

Alice

awww, it is sad to hear such stories of interbreeding Alice I think this is so important to stop getting rabbits sold in pet shops (Mind you, I think all animals should not be sold in pet shops) and so someone who potentially seeks a pet would have to go to a reputable breeder who would give the right advice regarding their health and requirements

Does anyone know how they managed to stop selling puppies and kittens in pet shops :?:

Denny said:

awww, it is sad to hear such stories of interbreeding Alice I think this is so important to stop getting rabbits sold in pet shops (Mind you, I think all animals should not be sold in pet shops) and so someone who potentially seeks a pet would have to go to a reputable breeder who would give the right advice regarding their health and requirements

Does anyone know how they managed to stop selling puppies and kittens in pet shops :?:

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You need a seperate licence to sell puppies and kittens one of my local pet shops was selling kittens last summer poor things only looked about 5 weeks old

bluebunny said:

Denny said:

awww, it is sad to hear such stories of interbreeding Alice I think this is so important to stop getting rabbits sold in pet shops (Mind you, I think all animals should not be sold in pet shops) and so someone who potentially seeks a pet would have to go to a reputable breeder who would give the right advice regarding their health and requirements

Does anyone know how they managed to stop selling puppies and kittens in pet shops :?:

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You need a seperate licence to sell puppies and kittens one of my local pet shops was selling kittens last summer poor things only looked about 5 weeks old

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Thats interesting - I always thought that pupps and kittens had been made illegal to sell in Pet Stores not that they could trade if they have a separate licence - luckily it obviously seem then that not many take on the additional licence these days.

The additional licence costs more and there are strict regulation on space nedded so its not practical for most petshops.

Tam

Tamsin said:

The additional licence costs more and there are strict regulation on space nedded so its not practical for most petshops.

Tam

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Thanks Tams - I heard from one of our local petstores (who have now stopped selling bunnies - Yayyyyy!) that they found even the Licence for small animals difficult to cope with and gave that as one of their reasons for refraining from the bunny selling. They mentioned that they had to have visits from local Vets to ensure space and housing was correct - this almost sounds too good to be true :?

Soz Denny Gal - gone off drift of the post a little here.

bunnytales said:

Soz Denny Gal - gone off drift of the post a little here.

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You carry on Lany :wink: O/T or not, it is interesting reading and more heads are better than one if we can figure a way of making headway for rabbit welfare :wink:

aliceechamberlain said:

I know this is a different slant on the topic but I am always alarmed at the way some pet shops just seem to buy off anyone to fill their sale pens. They do not appear to make any checks on the breeders. I currently have Cuthbert and Dibble on RR, Cuthbert has no tear ducts as a result of inter breeding. They are really difficult to home as Cuthbert needs to have his eyes bathed every day and it is quite a commitment to take on. We have also had buns in previously bought from PAH who have had spinal problems or needed to have their front teeth removed - all from bad breeding. I once had 3 guinea pigs come in who were blind from inter breeding! They found a lovely home, thank goodness, and have been taken under the wing of an older piggie who they all follow!

Alice

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I have heard some rather horrid stories about pet shop breeders... I'm sure the rescues out there are hearing these things all the time (not to be confused with reputable pedigree breeders, eg where I got Sylvia - lovely lovely lady in Worcs, I'm sure some of you know her). b-m

I think alot of it is down to money and how much a breeder can make or in the other case are the rabbits worth keeping to sell, belive me I have heard some things that go on.

If you do get a good breeder they usually reall care

elaine

I bought my male mini lop Dillon from a breeder a couple of years ago. She was a lovely, knowledgable lady who clearly loved her animals. She was successful at shows and a well known judge. I went to see him at 4 weeks old and was not allowed to pick him up until 13 weeks. He had a lovely temparament, was well kept and healthy. She certainly quizzed me on my first visit and said she has turned people away before because she felt they weren't suitable. I had to call her after a week and take him back in the first year for a free bunny M.O.T.

Overall, mine was a good experience.

The only down side was she advised I keep him alone and not bond him, in her experience, she didn't recommend pairing any rabbits due to fighting. Since then, after a lot of research, I decided to get him a girlfriend from the Bunny Camp Sanctury in Bradford. He is totally in love with his new wife!

The only experience I've had with a breeder is Rexy Bexy who I of course had Kovu off.

I hope Bex doesn't mind me posting about her.

I first contacted Rexy Bexy back in February, where I put Kovu on reserve (I wanted an older bunny), I didn't have him until the April. In that time Rexy Bexy advised me about Rex's tried him with other bunnies to see what he was like with them for me (tested bonding), as he was coming to mine to be part of a group. She also waited until I was ready to have him, as I had to wait until my one bunny group was bonded, before I could take in anymore.

Rexy Bexy offered a couple services when I collected him, I met her Mom and other bunnies she had (her own pets) which were all in lovely condition.

I paid a mere £10 for him, I got with him a bag of Alan and Page, all his ex show certificates and his favourite teddy bear. Since having him, Rexy Bexy has offered me nothing but help and support. I know if anything happened and I couldn't care for him any longer, Rexy Bexy would have him back in a flash.

I don't know much about breeders, but I think there are good ones and Rexy Bexy being one. As I got a fantastic bunny (he has been handled a lot), second to none advice and support, his little starter kit all for £10, one thing is for sure she doesn't do it for the money.

awwwwwww thans tree,
well as far as im concerned if a breeder can make profit then they r cutting corners somewhere, all the breeders i know dont make any money from it, it goes straight bk into the buying things for the rabbits, i have made no money on this in fact most the time people loose out on money. I cant comment on bad breeders is i never been to one all mine rabbits that have come from rabbit breeders have come from good homes where they have been recomended by others andcome from good clean environments.
becky

aliceechamberlain said:

I know this is a different slant on the topic but I am always alarmed at the way some pet shops just seem to buy off anyone to fill their sale pens. They do not appear to make any checks on the breeders. I currently have Cuthbert and Dibble on RR, Cuthbert has no tear ducts as a result of inter breeding. Alice

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Totally agree with your point Alice but just wanted to clear something up. I think you are talking about close inbreeding, which can be harmful if not properly applied. However, all of what I would call 'show' breeders ('good' breeders) use a form of inbreeding to produce high quality stock ie mating related offspring to one another.

It is when a blatant genetic problems such as eye or teeth problems are ignored by breeders and the genetic trait allowed to continue down the line that this is not good breeding. But this could occur from either inbreeding, where a deformity appears somewhere down the line, or breeding from random, outside animals. In fact, you're more likely to produce deformed offspring by introducing outside stock to a closed programme where you do not know the full history of the rabbit you are introducing - and I think this is the problem with 'bad' breeders, they do not know the history of the stock they are using to breed, and they don't seem to care about the outcome.

If you inbreed correctly, the idea is that you eliminate as many of the 'bad' traits as possible and encourage the 'good' ones. Here is a quote from my book:

'A common fear is that inbreeding will produce anomalies. This is something which can be easily laid to rest. Inbreeding itself will not produce abnormal offspring. However, should the stock harbour an unsuspected genetic anomaly, inbreeding will reveal its presence. The more intense the inbreeding, the greater the likelihood that inbreeding will bring it to light. Random mating and avoidance of inbreeding tend to 'drive anomalies underground', with the result that the anomaly appears only rarely.'

IMO a 'good' breeder using a (weak) inbreeding programme to produce high quality stock correctly should not be producing deformed animals. An unscrupulous breeder who does not know where his stock has come from or its history is more likely to produce deformed offspring because of genetic defaults which are passed directly down the line and have been 'hidden' by random mating. It is not the inbreeding, but the breeder who is at fault in this case.

Breeders pls add to this or correct me if I have completely misunderstood the whole thing! b-m

Is she a dodgy breeder?

Hello,

I'm new! I just wanted to know if this experience was a dodgy breeder or totally normally.

I currently have a 1yr old (ish) rescue lop. I have had him spayed and he happily lives in a big double hutch with big run. I am looking to get him a lady friend and wanted to get a baby doe. I have verbally reserved one and once they are old enough to sex properly I will visit and check on her, then I will be able to buy her once shes old enough.

The lady mentioned the rabbits have access to a big run they are put in for a time each day.

I asked if it might be acceptable to bring my lop along (he's spayed/healthy/etc and she is aware of this) to 'meet' the doe and check he doesn't want to rip her head off.... I thought this might be a sensible thing to do as otherwise I've bought a rabbit that I may not be able to keep if they don't bond.

The lady said this was completely out of the question but I can still buy one once sexed.

I am now confused - is this a bit dodgy, or do you think she's just worried her rabbits might get ill off Dillon? I thought it was a sensible thing to do....

Any ideas?!

lucyloo8 said:

Hello,

I'm new! I just wanted to know if this experience was a dodgy breeder or totally normally.

I currently have a 1yr old (ish) rescue lop. I have had him spayed and he happily lives in a big double hutch with big run. I am looking to get him a lady friend and wanted to get a baby doe. I have verbally reserved one and once they are old enough to sex properly I will visit and check on her, then I will be able to buy her once shes old enough.

The lady mentioned the rabbits have access to a big run they are put in for a time each day.

I asked if it might be acceptable to bring my lop along (he's spayed/healthy/etc and she is aware of this) to 'meet' the doe and check he doesn't want to rip her head off.... I thought this might be a sensible thing to do as otherwise I've bought a rabbit that I may not be able to keep if they don't bond.

The lady said this was completely out of the question but I can still buy one once sexed.

I am now confused - is this a bit dodgy, or do you think she's just worried her rabbits might get ill off Dillon? I thought it was a sensible thing to do....

Any ideas?!

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This is a very old thread, you may get more help posting a new one You might not be able to tell if she's a dodgy breeder at all, I personally wouldn't take Dillon along with you anyway incase he catches something off the rabbits she has, unless they are all vaccinated and fully healthy which you won't know for sure unless she has shown you proof of vaccs/health checks or something. Have you thought about adopted a wifebun from a rescue for your Dillon? This way the female will already be sexed, spayed (saving you the money, time/space needed for her recovery etc), and already up to date with vaccs, and some rescues also do a 'dating' thing, where you will be allowed to take Dillon along and be introduced to a female with people who have plenty of experience. If you want a baby rabbit some rescues do have babies in, if there's any RSPCA's or rescue's near you you could have a look in? Or there's a 'Rabbits in Need' section in here you could browse, quite a few rescues rehome nationally so if there not close to you something could be arranged. Or you could start a thread asking about avaible babies in your area? If you do want to go to this breeder then could you could always check the rabbits acommadation, see if she's aware of proper rabbit care etc to see if she's a 'good' breeder. :wave:

lucyloo8 said:

Hello,

I'm new! I just wanted to know if this experience was a dodgy breeder or totally normally.

I currently have a 1yr old (ish) rescue lop. I have had him spayed and he happily lives in a big double hutch with big run. I am looking to get him a lady friend and wanted to get a baby doe. I have verbally reserved one and once they are old enough to sex properly I will visit and check on her, then I will be able to buy her once shes old enough.

The lady mentioned the rabbits have access to a big run they are put in for a time each day.

I asked if it might be acceptable to bring my lop along (he's spayed/healthy/etc and she is aware of this) to 'meet' the doe and check he doesn't want to rip her head off.... I thought this might be a sensible thing to do as otherwise I've bought a rabbit that I may not be able to keep if they don't bond.

The lady said this was completely out of the question but I can still buy one once sexed.

I am now confused - is this a bit dodgy, or do you think she's just worried her rabbits might get ill off Dillon? I thought it was a sensible thing to do....

Any ideas?!

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Go to a rescue, pregnant bunnies are not uncommon in rescues, so you can get baby rabbits from rescue, and they will happily help with bonding.