178 CARE AND MANAGEMENT OF RABBITS 
I had one doe that always brought forth nine 
little fellows at a breeding. 
Of course the size of the litter may be some- 
what due to the strength and age-of the buck, 
but at one time I tested a buck by breeding 
him to two does one right after the: other. 
When the litters. arrived there were nine im 
each litter. The two does were sisters: and’ 
came from the doe which habitually: brought 
nine to a litter. I do not know whether the: 
trait descended from mother to daughter. 
That is something for the experts to decide: 
But the point is this: While litters are gen- 
erally large; it should not be taken for granted: 
that Nature intends the mother doe to raise: 
all that come. Many will die in the natural’ 
state and old plainsmen tell me that the jack: 
rabbit seldom raises more than a pair to the’ 
litter. This also seems to be true of the cot- 
ton tail and the brown hare of the Northern’ 
woods. 
If you want to lose them just as Nature cal- 
culated, why try and experiment: and ‘see how 
