Well hasn't it been a hot minute since I've made an update! Life has been so crazy, but I've still managed to post on YouTube a little bit and update you guys there. I know there are some of you that love my blogs though, so I want to continue making these when I can. 
Let's start with updates. I have lots of them. We're going to talk about my dry summer, juniors, cute prejuniors that are 7 weeks old now (some are being sold, some are staying here to be watched), upcoming litters, my recent show and upcoming shows, and my NEW ADDITION! I'm sure there's more too. I'm also changing feed, which I talk about in a post below. I've had some crazy things going on my rabbits too - a doe developed malocclusion, a buck has a tooth issue caused from injury, and another baby buck somehow injured himself and bled a lot (it was scary), around his mouth, and on his paws from wiping his face. I'll delve into those problems in another post. Let's keep this one lighthearted shall we. 

To start off, I had a very dry summer. My last update explains all the litters planned and does that were pregnant. For one reason or another, all 7 does did not have babies. They either had all DOA, or didn't take. I had no kits all summer. I'm attributing it to my water, but it could've been numerous things. There were first timers, older does, and does that hadn't been bred in a while so it was really random. Since then, I've had 2 successful litters and 3 more on the way, due on the 21st. All 3 of the pregnant does definitely ARE expecting, and they have big bellies are nesting like crazy. But I'll talk more about them in a little bit. 

We have 8 babies total, all 7 weeks old now. Rory x Otis had 3, and Buttercup x Otis had 5, and neither of them had dead babies!! One of the other does I bred, Pickle, didn't take, and has now been sold. She's going to live in Colorado! Anyway, these babies all have long ears but they're looking nice otherwise. I have 4 listed for sale, and 4 have been added to my Juniors page - I'll be watching them for the next several weeks. I'm watching one doe and 3 bucks, and I definitely don't need that many bucks, so I'll make a decision to sell one or two of them in a couple weeks, and the doe is promising but not amazing, so I'll honestly most likely sell her in a couple weeks too, but right now I have the space to take a chance on her. Hopefully she surprises me! 
The buck below, Jay, is my favorite of the prejuniors. He surprised me, and I'm glad he did. Hopefully he continues in this direction. 

The does that are due on the 21st are Mimi, Butterfly, and Cleo. Cleo has been pulling fur and nesting for days, which is a good sign. She missed last time, and didn't do anything. This is most likely Butterfly's last litter, and she's such a pro! She's been nesting here and there, but as soon as I gave her the box, she leapt right in, nested and pulled a little fur! Mimi also nested as soon as I gave her the box. She's HUGE and I'm hoping for a larger litter from her, like usual! Cleo is bred to Otis, Mimi is bred to Tucker (SO EXCITED for these babies!!), and Butterfly is bred to Howie. If Butterfly does great this time around and seems to have little issues, I'll most likely breed her again. Some does can have babies until their over 4 years old. But if this litter is born dead, it'll be her last. 

My last show was in September. It was my first one all year, and I had a great time. I'm officially an open exhibitor now, but my rabbits still did great even though this was my first official open show! They actually did better than I expected! I showed quite a few, and I filmed a vlog while I was there as well. I haven't edited it or posted yet, but hopefully before the end of the month it'll be live. Here's the details:

Holland Lop Specialty: 
Judge: 
Holly's Howie SSB 5/6
Holly's Shiloh SSB 4/6
Holly's Cinderella SSD DQed for pulled nail
Holly's Kylie SJD 5/9
Lucky Lops' Otis BSB 2/3
Holly's Maya BJD 2/9

Show A:
Judge: Kendall Bledsoe
Holly's Howie SSB 3/7
Holly's Shiloh SSB 4/7
Holly's Cinderella SSD 5/7
Holly's Kylie SJD 4/8
Lucky Lops' Otis BSB 3/5
Holly's Maya BJD 6/7

Show B:
Judge: Cindy Wickizer
Holly's Howie SSB 4/7
Holly's Shiloh SSB 3/7
Holly's Cinderella SSD 7/8
Holly's Kylie SJD 4/8
Lucky Lops' Otis BSB 1/3 and BOSV! LEG!
Holly's Maya BJD 6/8

The results are all over the place, but the comments were very helpful. I am happy to say that Otis got his 3rd leg! All of his legs are in open. Pretty exciting! My next show is December 1st. Not sure what I have planned for next year yet, but I'm looking forward to that one! Hopefully BlueJay above will be one of the nicest I bring!

My last and possibly most exciting update is the newest addition! I'm picking her up at the December show from my friend Liz from Clear Sky Rabbitry. One of the comments I got a lot at the show was that my rabbits lack chest depth. This doe has that!! Hopefully she'll bring it into my herd! I'm excited to see what she produces for us! She's also shown pretty well too. 

I want my next post to be about faults I've been working on in my herd and faults I have managed to breed out for the most part. 

Thank you so much for reading! 

I've been sticking to Purina Show rabbit feed for years. I've been using it for over 5 years and it has never disappointed me too much...but I've known for a while that I should switch. Purina is often dusty and gives almost all of my rabbits runny poop that sticks to the wire...creating lots of mess. However I've stuck with it because my does breed pretty easily, I don't lose babies often (especially to faders or enteritis), which can all be caused by feed. However, I'm ready to try something new. 

I'm currently switching to Manna PRO. I have a slightly longer commute to get it, but it's several dollars cheaper and I like the ingredients more than Purina. 

Manna PRO is alfalfa based, has 16% protein, which I always use, and 16% - 21% fiber. This is less fiber than Purina so I'll be feeding more hay than usual to make up for that. It is also corn free, like Purina, which is super important to me because corn can cause digestive issues in rabbits. 

I chose Manna PRO over Manna SHO or GRO because I love the ingredients of the PRO formula best. SHO has dairy (dried whey), and that is also bad for their digestion, so that's why it's a no-go for me. GRO has 18% protein which can work for babies, however, for a feed that I use for my whole herd, it's a bit too high. 

I'm excited for this change. All the breeders I know that used it, or that switched to it from Purina, LOVE it. Their rabbits are healthy and happy! I'll be filming a video soon about it as well, so if you like to hear me talk about this change and not just read about, to see differences in the feed, etc., stay tuned! 

I'll keep you guys updated as I switch! I've been mixing the 2 feeds for over a month now, and the rabbits LOVE it so far! I've already noticed a change in their fur and poop (Purina gave some of them softer poops), and they aren't even eating Manna Pro 100% yet! Make SURE that whenever you switch feeds, you mix the two for at least a week! That way the rabbits can wean slowly from the previous feed to the new one, and they won't have any digestive issues due to the change! I'm taking such a long time to change mine because I have babies, pregnant and nursing does, and all that, so I want to make sure the change is slow enough for all those stages so no one is shocked by the change. I'll keep you guys updated as a switch 100%. Probably by the end of the month, I'll be feeding Manna PRO only!