The brown hyena does not have a mating season. Female brown hyenas are polyestrous and typically produce their first litter when they are two years old. They mate primarily from May to August. Males and females in the same clan usually do not mate with each other, rather females will mate with nomadic males. Clan males display no resistance to this behavior, and will assist the females in raising their cubs. Females give birth in dens, which are hidden in remote sand dunes far from the territories of spotted hyenas and lions. The gestation period is around 3 months. Mothers generally produce one litter every 20 months. Usually, only the dominant female breeds, but if two litters are born in the same clan, the mothers will nurse each other's cubs, though favoring their own. Litters usually consist of 1–5 cubs, which weigh at birth. Unlike spotted hyenas, brown hyenas are born with their eyes closed, and open them after eight days. Cubs are weaned at 12 months and leave their dens after 18 months. Also unlike spotted hyenas, all adult members of the clan will carry food back to the cubs. They are not fully weaned and do not leave the vicinity of their den until they reach 14 months of age. Brown hyenas reach full size at an age of around 30 months and have a life span of about 12 to 15 years.
