Do Rabbits Go into Heat (7 Key Signs to Look Out For)

“Going on heat” refers to the period when animals are most fertile and receptive to mating – the animal’s heat cycle. But, do rabbits go into heat?

Do both male and female rabbits go into heat? How many times a year do they go into heat? At what age do they start going on heat? What are the key signs of a rabbit on heat?

These are some of the crucial queries that we’ll be looking to answer in this article and hope by the end of the day we’ll have provided you with the right answers to them.

Let’s get into it.

Do Rabbits go into Heat?

Only female rabbits (doe) go into heat. They’ll go on heat at the age of around four months, they’ll then stay on heat throughout their lives. They will be times that they’ll be more sexually active than others, allowing them to breed at any time throughout the year. Their male counterparts (buck) on the other hand never go on heat but are driven by the need to constantly mate.

Although female rabbits stay on heat throughout the year, breeding mostly happens from around February or March and would go all the way to September of the same year.

Gestation would last around 30 days allowing them to reproduce around four to five litters a season. The litter size would range from around three to eight baby rabbits (Kits), with most averaging four or five kits per litter.

Rabbits generally reach sexual maturity at a much fast rate. How quickly they get to this will vary based on breed and size, with larger breeds being noted to develop at a slower rate compared to smaller rabbit breeds.

Since female rabbits’ heat cycle is throughout the year, spaying is highly recommended to help keep them healthy and for comfort, unless you are a breeder. This will prevent her from enduring constant heat cycles. The same applies to their male counterpart.

With all that said, what are some of the key signs that indicate a female rabbit is on heat?

Signs of a Female Rabbit on Heat?

When a rabbit is on the heat they undergo both physical and personality changes. Some may be obvious changes but others may require you to pay closer attention to them to be able to notice them.

Signs of a rabbit on heat will include:

• Gnawing: You may notice your female rabbit gnawing in distress. They may end up chewing everything and anything that comes their way. This is a clear case of frustration from your rabbit when they are on heat.
• Restlessness: Rabbits on heat may start running around their hutch or around your garden instead of being the calm, docile creatures they are when not on heat. They may also get super agitated with little to no “downtime”.
• Aggressiveness & Territoriality: Your bunny may start being aggressive and protective of its territory. You might endure a few scratches or nasty nips when you stick your hands into their cage.
• Mounting and Humping: Your bun will start mounting anything and everything with the aim of releasing its sexual frustrations.
• Marking with urine: Once your bunny is on heat, they’ll start marking their territory and their ‘possessions’ (objects, toys, e.t.c). They’ll do this through urination and defecation releasing a very strong odor around their hutch. You may also notice them rubbing their chins on different surfaces. They have scent glands in these areas and this helps with the marking of territories.
• Swollen Vulva: This is by far, the most obvious sign of your bun being on heat. Your bunny’s vulva will swell and become much more prominent.
• Showing Increased Affection: You may also notice your pet rabbit wanting to be close to you than usual. They’ll show affection by circling your legs or by rubbing themselves on you.

These are some of the most common signs to help you know your bun friend is currently on heat. A spayed rabbit will not show these signs.

Do Male Rabbits Have a Heat Cycle?

Male rabbits don’t have a heat cycle like their female counterpart, they do not enter on heat and don’t experience ovulation. Once they are sexually matured, they’ll constantly have the need to mate 24/7. This is why neutering a male rabbit is so important, as this will help in keeping them healthy and prevent any sexual frustrations.

Male rabbits tend to show almost similar heat signs to female rabbits. They’ll hump and mount on objects as well as gnaw and mark their territories using their urine and feces.

If you are not a breeder and don’t plan to raise a litter of kits, you should neuter your pet rabbit. Your bun friend will be much more grateful for this as this will prevent any sexual frustrations keeping him docile and calm every single day.

How Long Do Rabbits Stay on Heat?

Rabbits will stay on heat for about sixteen days. Out of this entire heat sequence, your female rabbit will be more fertile on fourteen of these days. This means that she’ll be more open to mating and would actively be looking for a partner to mate with if they share a hutch.

Bunnies’ reproduction cycle is quite different from other mammals. When it comes to ovulation, they don’t ovulate then seek a mating partner; theirs is the other way round. Meaning, once they are on heat, they’ll start ovulating when mating starts. When a male rabbit mounts on the female, she’ll start to ovulate, releasing an egg that would later be fertilized.

The heat cycles of rabbits never end. Once they are sexually mature and enters heat for the first time, this becomes a never-ending loop.

Rabbits do not experience menopause either, they’ll actively reproduce throughout their entire life cycle unless they are spayed.

Spaying and Neutering Rabbits

Will spaying a rabbit stop her from going into heat? Spaying will significantly reduce hormones from your rabbit’s body. This will help in keeping her calm and making it easier to manage her, as she will not enter heat. So, yes, spaying your rabbit will definitely stop her from going into heat.

It’s actually recommended to spay your rabbit if you are not planning on breeding them. otherwise, you’ll end up a very frustrated bunny friend that will be super hard to manage.

What about neutering their male counterpart? Is this recommended? Neutering will significantly reduce the changes in behavior associated with sexual maturity. When you neuter your male rabbit you’ll have a much easier time petting them as they’ll be much calmer and without any sexual frustrations whatsoever.

Spaying and neutering have also been proven to improve your rabbit’s health. Allowing them to live longer, cancer-free, and urinary tract infection-free among other benefits.

You should spay and neuter your rabbits as soon as you can.

Final Thoughts

Only female rabbits can get into heat. They’ll get into heat once they are around four months old and would never go out of it. If they don’t get a mating partner to breed with, they may end up being super aggressive from sexual frustations.

If you are not planning to breed your rabbits, it’s important to get them spayed to help keep them healthy and calm.

Male rabbits, on the other hand, don’t get into heat. However, once they are sexually matured, they’ll constantly have the need to mate 24/7. Its recommended to neuter your male rabbit.