there are pros to "colony style" rabbit raising but heres some CONS (i o raise colony style so well get into that in minute)
you mention letting a bun into the chicken runand giving them rottion time...
im assuming the chicken run is a dirt floor...if so, say goodbye to your bunny, theyll dig out and be gone in no time, i saw bun dig out out a gravel floord dirt bottom pen in 30 mins...took 3 days to catch her lol.
bunnies are also increidbly territorial, especially the girls! (the boys are with each other but not like does can be) does will kill eachother if not given enough space, theyll also castrat enthuastic bucks who dont get the "im not in the mood" or "im already pregnant" message.
bunnies can and do live quite happily in cages, singly infact many buns are most happy this way (ive never tried to raise meat specific breds in a colony, i raise stadard rex and the breeds well known for being particularly docile, i do have 1 small meat mix in the colony and she does fine but i cant say much about other breeds...lol)
get o build the biggest cges you can for ech bunny, many people keep bucks in 24x24 and does in 24x30 (or 36) personally to me thats too small for large MEA breed rabbits...
when i had my rex in hutches the hutches were 24x48 and seemed quite comfortable.
if your adding flemmish blood (whichhonestly i wouldnt, slows rothe rate and adds bone, 2 thingsyou dont wat in meat rabbits) youll need even bigger. by 24x48 seemed perect for my 10lb rex buns.
make sure the cages are in an area WELVENTELATED and VERY well shaded, and neer power, buns seem to ahve no issue taking the cold as long as theyve got somewhere draft free to snuggle up...but heat, an 82 degree day with high humidity can kill a bun.
now heres eom slternative options for you...
tractors...just like chicken tractors, idbuild seperate ones for each bun, mabe 1 1 unit frame with 3 compartments) with a wire floor (1/2" x 1") you can move it to a new pathc o grass each day and eveer have to mow your law again, because theyll have grass under foot and moved frequently you could get away with the smaller end for cages,
tractor also make for realy tastey meaty babies, gras fed is always best!
but youll not be able to use any herbicides or pesticide on the lawn anymore lol.
Colony pen...this is what i do with my rex, this isnt an option for my angoras due to fur issues or lops due to the irty ear issue, but for the rex...my binds love it.
to build the colony youl have to choose a shaded spot you dot mind the bunnies pretty much eating down to dirt... for 2 does and a buck a 10x10 would be fine, but plan to add space if adding more bus, especially does (my max is 4 does per 10x20 pen) (then remove babies at weaning to a tractor untill butcher time)
thecolony pen will need a dig prrof floor, (I laid welded wire flat n the ground and "tied" it to the walls) the walls will have to be "baby proof (i found this out the hard way, 3 week old baby bunnies can climb 4 ft striahgt up in about 30 seconds!!!) so 1x1" wire woudl be best.
youll need cover form above for air predators (a chainlink og run with harware cloth over it and a shde cloth roof would wrk great)
you could build graing boxes (my summer project) wchihc are raised beds with welded wire stapled tightly over the top, then clover ad grass seed planted under it. the buns can grave it to where the hardware cloth is but cant damage the roots)
youll also need "houses" (ive persoally got plastic totes with a hole cut in the side, these work for protection from the weather and as birthing boxes for the does.
1 box per bunny, again buns are territorial and while you may find them sharing, they will occaisonally prefer their own space.
the down side to keeping the buck in with the girls (not so much of a problem if you goal is simplyrpoduction) is he can and will breed the does Immediatly after giving birth...
a way around this would be to build him a cage insde the colony, put him in with the girls, make sure you watch for breeding and once hes bredthem mark the ate. then in about 26 day put him in his cage, let the does have their babies and dont put him bac in with them untill you plan to letthem breed again.
or of course you could put him in the tractor or cage full timeand just have the oes in the colony (youll still ened a 10x10 ideally) at minimum 8x8 fr 2 does)
youll get alot of funny looks when it coes to colony raising, its still in its early days here in the us and may never catch on...butmy buns love it
its NOT easier, infact its harder, harder to keep the rabbits handleab, harder to ctch them if there not tame, harder to make sure everyones getting enough food and stays in good condition and if illness breaks out harder to contain and quarentein (because by the time 1 hs something everyone in the colony has it...)
General maintence for me is a little less, i just toss straw down when it starts getting muddy and everything compost. the nest boxes get dumped out and hosed off once every couple weeks (this is why i like the plastic totes, you can hose and bleach and sun dry for sterlization
) but i do take alot loger every day just sitting with the buns, handling them, ect because i like being able to walk into my colony and call a rabbit over pick her up and do what i need to rather than playing chase the bunny...they are faster and more agile than you ever will be! lol ive seen rabits change direction in mid air lol
heres my colony pens
since those pics were taken ive reinforced the bottom 24" with 1" hardware cloth and then found out how fast baby buns could climb so now i remove momma and babies to a seperate cage at about 3 weeks untill weaning untill i can think up some creative way of preventing climbing baby buny esccapages lol. im thinking of rgoing "zoo fence" style an dputting an angled apron inside at the top fo the hardware cloth so if they climb up they hit a "roof" but thats gotta wait utill my bank account gives me the go ahead.
