not sure where to put this... rabbits for food???

[ashylove]

i saw someone raises rabits for food... how do you do this? what type of rabbits are they? and where do you get them???? where i live i would love to have chickens, but the more reasearch i do, the less likely it seems that i will be able to...(we are military on base and cant technically have them! ) so i was wondering about this... i have never actually heard of this in the us... please explain it to me!!!!!

 

[Patch of Heaven Farm]

Hi Ashley! I raise New Zeland White rabbits and they are great for meat. :bun I have 36 at the present and will be selling/eating a dz of them soon. We actually got into rabbits from my sister buying my 2 boys a rabbit for Easter. Then a neighbor had a couple her kids got for Easter and she was tired of cleaning the cages so she asked if I wanted them. They were all NZW's.

So I ended up with a male and 3 females. We use an all wire hutch with a top on it and tarps we can pull down in extremely cold/windy weather which isn't often here in Mississippi.
IF you are starting with young rabbits it takes about 7 months to mature for breeding. You will need to house the male in his own house and the females may do ok for awhile together but when you start breeding everyone will need thier own cage.

I would reccomend getting a good book on rabbits. I think a trio(1 male and 2 females) would be a good start to see if you want to raise them or not. They multiply fast!!! And it doesn't take to long for them to be ready for eating.

We also raise chickens and I love the fresh eggs and meat! Maybe you could sneak a few in the backyard.....shhhh..........


Jessica

 

[ashylove]

thanks!!! i actually am thinking of getting a few chicks anyway... even if it is just for eggs!!! i had a rabbit when i was younger, and my bff's dad raised rabbits(he owned a petstore) so i know the basics of having them! yay... so what kind of pen do you have them in? would a standard large hutch be good?(for the girls and babies) or would that be too small? do the girls need to be separated when they have litters?

 

[miss_thenorth]

I breed rabbits for meat. i have three does, and one buck. I have a Californian buck and doe, and two does wo are 3/4 new Zealand, 1/4 flemish giant.

Californians and new Zealands are recommended for meat. I know alot of people recommend getting a book to start out with, but I found out all my info online.

My three does live in an 9 ft long cage, each having their own separate compartment, and the buck lives in his own larger cage. I have a drop tray under neath to catch the pellets, and use a hose to flush them out -which drains into a bucket for quick disposal of the scat. Any question youmight have, please feel free to ask.

her are some good links.
http://www.mybunnyfarm.com/breeding/
http://www.debmark.com/rabbits/basics.htm
http://www.rudolphsrabbitranch.com/rrrpt1.htm#STARTNUM
http://cru.cahe.wsu.edu/CEPublications/eb0975/eb0975.pdf
http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/beef/docs/raising_mrabbits.pdf
http://www.i4at.org/lib2/rabbits.htm

 

[dddct]

We raise flemish giants. If you are looking for meat rabbits, then new zealands are what you want. Although the flemsih are bigger, they are longer too and tend to be bonier than the new zealands. Breeding meat rabbits I think is a bit easier than show rabbits because there really isn't anything except illness that will disqualify a new zealand from being eaten and they really do all the work themselves as far as breeding. They have a 31 day gestaion period and they can be rebred after about 8 weeks which is when the kits can be remove from momma. We don't breed ours that quickly, we try to give the does a little break in between but with 3 does and 1 buck, you'll have a great start.

 

[dddct]

Patch where are you located? We have been thinking of starting a NZ line for meat and would love to get a breeding trio (unrelated buck).

 

[Patch of Heaven Farm]

Patch where are you located? We have been thinking of starting a NZ line for meat and would love to get a breeding trio (unrelated buck).

I am in southern Mississippi. I have 2 trios that i will be selling this month. They are about 4 months old. Decided against keeping them because I am running out of room and I have to get things ready for my colored range broilers. So new hutches will have to wait till after I am through with the garden this summer and have a lil extra time.

 

[hoosier]

When we lived in Indianapolis, we raised rabbits for meat. They were New ZealandWhite/Black English Spot/Californian mixes.

We found the book "Raising Rabbits" by Ann Kanable to be very helpful, but I don't know if it is still in print. That was a long time ago.

 

[Beekissed]

We raised New Zealands for a while also. I will tell you that rabbits are the only animal that I find myself unable to kill easily. I can't begin to tell you why,as they are not a particularly affectionate animal, nor do they have extreme personalities......

....they are just too clean and beautiful, somehow, and its almost like killing a stuffed animal! What's weird is that I could kill the NZ reds easier than I could the whites..... strange and very unlike me. I'm usually very practical about killing for food purposes. :/

 

[nanrpudn]

Hi Jessica!
I sent you an email earlier. I am in south Mississippi too and have been looking to buy some New Zealand Whites. You are the first person I've found anywhere near here that has them. Please let me know if you still have any to sell.
Nancy