BARBI BROWN'S BUNNIES - 3B'S RABBITRY

IS MY BUNNY A GIRL OR A BOY?

All too often baby bunnies are mistakenly identified as females only to find out later that the "two girls" you bought are having babies! Experienced breeders can usually tell the difference but it is possible for them to be wrong as well. Always recheck!

I am always amused at pet stores who pick up a rabbit and look under it in mid air and proclaim the bunny to be a girl! It's not that easy as this picture shows.

                                       Boy parts

You must gently push back the vent opening to expose the genitalia.

A slit close to the anal opening indicates a girl and a circle that pops up is a boy.

                             Girl parts

But you must push back on the appendage far enough or they all look like girls!

After the males reach sexual maturity it is much easier to tell. The testicles descend at 4 to 6 months.

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They are two separate sacks rather than one sack as we are accustomed to seeing on dogs or cats.

Of course if the male is neutered, you're back to the baby method of checking!

I hope this is of some help but when in doubt, bring the bunny by and I'll be happy to check for you.

Bucks with a condition known as a split penis (an abnormality caused by the incomplete closure of the penile shaft) are often sexed as does early in life which explains the common mistakes in sexing correctly.  This condition is considered a disqualification from show competition.

Recent discussions regarding this condition resulted in requests to post these photos. 

The following photos are not real clear but will illustrate the difference in appearance.  The split penis tends to curl downward when exposed rather than being erect. This shows the curled effect of the split.

Note the dark line on the underside is where the skin doe not close. Bucks with a split penis are typically more flacid in appearance than a normal closure.

  The normal shaft will show no line or separation on the underside.

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