Rabbits

Anyone here breed rabbits? I have been giving some thought about getting into them... but would like some first hand information.

Yes. Want some? They are coming out my ...


Californians, New Zealands, and a whole bunch of Rex crosses that I use for feeders.

Originally Posted by Dennis Hultman

Yes. Want some? They are coming out my ...


Californians, New Zealands, and a whole bunch of Rex crosses that I use for feeders.

I wont be using them as feeders... unless they are feeding me. My main thoughts are about a supplemental meat source and also the pellets are supposed to be far better than any other form of fertilizer for the garden.

How many do you care for? What does it cost you in a months time? What kind of time are you putting in for care and maintenance?

I really know nothing about raising rabbits... so any help would be appreciated.

Californians and New Zealands are individually housed and take very minimal time. Still, I haven't set them up with a automatic waterer so it is a daily chore. I have garbage cans underneath to catch the waste but thought about doing worms underneath. Read a interesting article on it sometime back.

Anyway, the mini rex's are in a fifty by thirty outside fenced pen. Automatic waterer for them but time consuming to clean up. All is reused on my property.

My costs are minimal for the rabbits.
Feed is supplemented every week from vegetable waste from the house, my own garden waste most of the year here, yard waste from my property, waste from two nearby organic farms, and a agreement I have with a couple of people that vend at two nearby farmers markets. I get all the corn husks, cut waste, visibly distressed fruits and veggies, etc.

The outside area is in between where I keep my turkeys and my chickens. One side borders a alley that the kids and adults like to walk and see the rabbits and chickens. One day a lady who owns a local restaurant came knocking asking if I would like to have all the vegetable trimmings and what they discard from the salad bar. That she enjoys looking at the animals. I said, sure. Now I get several large cans from her rotated every week. When corn is in abundance I get as much of the husks I can from the local grocery stores. Garbage bags full almost daily.
The rabbits really enjoy the husks.

At of all of the above what isn't consumed will go into compost. Still, I buy at least 100 pounds of feed a week between the chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese and rabbits. Only $20.00. My goal was self-sufficiency with those animals and I'm pretty much there. They will eat everything from my avocado peelings to all my other fruit rinds and fruit tree waste (prunings, etc).

If the feed stores closed tomorrow, I wouldn't worry.

Right now, I have around 35 adult rabbits.

Oh, and I'm overrun with passion fruit vines and only one of my daughters really likes passion fruit, so the rabbits and chickens both get a lot of the fruit and vines.

Also, I want to point out that keeping them pinned in a area has its own set of problems. Keeping predators out and rabbits in. Digging, etc.. I finally had it licked until one of my rabbits learned to scale a eight foot high fence to eat some of my tomatoes. All in all, I prefer the outside area to individual cages.

Im not sure outside area is available to me. It would have to be pens. The coyotes would have a field day on the rabbit population as would the hawks.

Dennis.... what if you set up something like what Cheryl did here

http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...d.php?t=120291

Could you adapt that for a suitable rabbit pen. Maybe make houses on the ground for them to go into ... but wrap the thing in wire and put a solid side on the north side of the structure? How would you deal with the water? or with it freezing in the winter?

Looks like this author is happy with keeping the bunnies in a building type structure.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Susta...e-Rabbits.aspx

The second link is more like how I keep the majority of my rabbits. I have multiple hutches for them in the outside enclosure. Given the chance they will burrow instead of using the hutches. Have to be real careful on rabbit proofing along the fence line and diligent at filling holes as they get started close to the fence. I didn't enclose the bottom. Just about four feet around the edges on the inside.

As far as freezing there are many methods people use. Many use water heaters. They make them for chickens. Being where I am it never freezes and I can grow all the way to December. Had squash and tomatoes still in December last year and waited just a couple of weeks and started planting winter vegetables in January.

Dennis do you have a picture of your individual housing system for the New Zealands?