Pdf backyard rabbit farming can be a great idea for having healthy meat and an additional source of income for the family without much involvement. Whether you live on a full blown many acre homestead, or on a town lot in the burbs, rabbits are a viable option in your selfsufficiency and survival planning. Rabbits are extremely hot natured so it is important to place their shelter in a shaded area. Animal welfare unit, nsw agriculture, locked bag 21, orange nsw 2800. Rabbits have excellent feed conversion rates, low startup costs, healthy meat and dont require much space. The book was written specifically for anyone involved with or looking to get started raising rabbits for show, meat and or pets. It provides concise information on raising rabbits as a source of meat. Listen to the living on the land podcast series on itunesu. Download pdf how to raise rabbits for food and fur free. Continuation of the practices of backyard meat rabbit raising of rudolphs rabbits. Two does and one buck should produce 180 pounds of meat per year. How we feed our meat rabbits for free on the homestead.
Jul 30, 2015 rabbits are not compatible with all other animals. The perfect butchering age is around 8 weeks of age. These would be breeds you could say are fairly large, maybe 7 10 pounds, or so. Some minifarmers and homesteaders ive found also choose to raise meat rabbits using this method. Grassfed meat is generally considered healthier than grainfed meat and provides rabbits with exercise and a better quality of life. I also hope this helps answer the question what to feed meat rabbits for anyone who is new to raising meat rabbits.
We live in central florida so this assures that the rabbit will always have water in the heat of the summer. Labeled as being the ultimate guide to raising and showing rabbits, raising rabbits 101 is an essential how to guide that every modern rabbit raiser should have on their shelf. Providing basic care feed commercially produced rabbit feed is formulated to meet rabbits dietary requirements. For young people, raising rabbits, ideally as a 4h or ffa club project, offers a wonderful learning experience in the life sciences. Their bodies are described as being commercial in type, that is, muscular or wellmuscled full of meat. It will help you recognize symptoms of rabbit disease and then show you how to cure or treat the problem cause. Meat rabbits what you need to know about raising rabbits. If youre a committed vegetarian averse even to ethically raised meat, theres no reason to keep rabbits other than for companionship. The guide to raising and breeding rabbits for meat. If you are raising meat rabbits, learning about rabbits birthing habits is one of the most important aspects. You can still raise rabbits for meat without using a thirdparty processor to humanely kill and process them. How to raise rabbits for meat raise, feed, house, butcher. However, to build a successful, sustainable commercial rabbit farming business, you require sufficient knowledge of how to efficiently raise the rabbits, good management skills, and a good rabbit farming business plan. Loin and hindleg meat, liver and hair of control rabbits contained 93, 98, 521 and 267.
Many producers are selling breeding stock as well as rabbits for slaughter. This is a pdf file, so youll need adobe purchase system and procedure pdf reader to read it. When raising rabbits for meat there are many options for food. Restaurants, wholesalers, custom meat stores, and individual buyers are the main purchasers of rabbit meat. Meat rabbits raising rabbits raising goats rabbit farm sheep farm keeping goats goat pen show goats nubian goat. These are the methods used at aurora rex rabbit ranch.
Survivalblog contributor july 30, 2015 march 26, 2018. Meat rabbits are an excellent animal to teach you about a life of animal husbandry. In nsw it is estimated that annual sales of meat rabbits is about 108 000 to 120 000 which would account for 4000 to 5000 breeding does. The second year we had meat rabbits, we got a dog, a beautiful black lab. Raising rabbits for meat requires just a few basic supplies and routine care. I finally called a friend who also raised rabbits and he told me it was our dog.
Raising rabbits download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. In the summer, it is wise to place frozen water bottles in the hutches with the rabbits to help keep them cool. After raising, showing and breeding meat rabbits for 38 years, i still like mary, find i learn something new all the time. Mixing your own feed is not recommended because it is difficult to get the right balance of essential nutrients. Raising rabbits for meat is the howto guide to help y by eric rapp and callene rapp rabbits are one of the most sustainable, nutritious, and economic meat sources available. Youll just need help from an urban farm or community garden. You have most likely a basic understanding of rabbits so this article focuses on how we manage our rabbit husbandry. Diy livestock rabbit housing provides ideas, plans and extensively illustrated directions for housing methods wellsuited to livestock rabbits. For years, some physicians have recommended rabbit meat to patients with coronary conditions.
Two does and a buck is known as a trio, and is a good starting point. The nsw rabbit industry is still in the development stage, with an increasing number of smallscale producers. Most sources on raising rabbits for meat say that 6 feet of space is adequate for a doe and her litter. Raising rabbits 101 4th edition download ebook pdf, epub.
A simple cage like this works well to start out with. Use the button below to download this publication as a pdf. Cost of raising meat rabbits full price breakdown youtube. I learned, the hard way, that breeders dont generally sell a doe that is producing well. Keep your rabbits healthy ebook pdf raising rabbits. The essentials of raising rabbits for profit step by. So finding a protein source that is easy to house, is inexpensive, has a fairly good turnover rate, and doesnt require a lot of land, was hard at first. Meat rabbits have been bred over years with meat production in mind. I personally raise rabbits for a couple of reasons.
Conceptions will be highest during the cool months of the year and lowest during the hot and humid months. I was unable to find any size guidelines for colony raising rabbits when i first started researching, so i started with all three rabbits in it. There are still a few breeds not listed here that you might legitimately consider for raising rabbits for meat. The breed or breeds you choose may determine the success of your enterprise. When raising rabbits for meat, you must consider the availability of slaughtering facilities, type of packaging required, transportation cost, and potential buyers. Raising rabbits is a great hobby or even a good small business. Our children had rabbits growing up, again only as pets. While raising meat rabbits, they should have fresh water always. Whether youre interested in raising rabbits for show, meat, fur, or as pets, this comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know to keep your animals healthy and productive.
A primer on backyard meat rabbit raising practices rudolphs. Well walk you through rabbit hutches, watering and feeding, best meat rabbit breeds, and basic care. A backyard meat rabbit operation can be a great idea for someone interested in producing their own healthful, drugfree meat. Finally help for deciphering your rabbit s symptoms. This publication is part of the living on the land series. Ten commandments for raising healthy rabbits mother earth news. May 05, 2018 raising rabbits for meat requires just a few basic supplies and routine care. Feeding rates depend on rabbit weight and maturity. Fully onefourth of our storeypublished book, rabbit raising problem solver, is dedicated to rabbit health and identifying and eliminating rabbit disease. Raising rabbits for profit backwoods home magazine. From breeding, feeding, weaning, nutrition, pasturing, rabbit tractors, and much more. There are more than 40 different breeds recognized by the american rabbit breeders association, and your reason for raising rabbits will help determine what breed or breeds you choose. Take our rabbit hutch building plans and build them exactly, or tweak them to suit your needs.
Dec 16, 2016 i first got into raising rabbits as a meat source. The rabbits usually dont have any room to hop and they never touch the earth. Methods for raising meat rabbits the green acre homestead. Mar 11, 2020 raising meat rabbits is one of the most space efficient means of growing livestock for meat. A complete handbook on backyard and commercial rabbit production 11 overview whether you raise rabbits for meat and fur, wool, or laboratory uses, select the breeds best adapted to the purpose. Does can be bred for 4 to 5 litters per year, once they are kept in good condition. If your hometown doesnt allow you to complete the rabbitrearing lifecycle on your homestead, dont despair. It will help you decide if raising meat rabbits is right for you, and how to manage every aspect of husbandry involved, including feeding, breeding, health, processing, and selling. Guidelines for the housing of rabbits in scientific.
This means you can have a new litter of baby bunnies in a months time. This means you will need a larger breed so it will be a decent size by the 8week mark. This article will outline how to start a commercial rabbit farming business, and the rabbit farming business plan pdf, word and excel. Raising meat rabbits is one of the most space efficient means of growing livestock for meat. Guidelines for the housing of rabbits in scientific institutions. Basic rabbit care is pretty much the same regardless of how they are housed. It will usually take a rabbit 12 pregnancies to figure out how to keep her babies alive. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read raising rabbits for meat. That summer we couldnt get our does to take care of their babies. A beginners guide to raising rabbits, including a rabbit barn, pens, feeders and waterers, breeding stock, care and feeding, breeding, butchering, and meat sales. You can obtain names of buyers from a rabbit magazine.
Offering expert advice on breed selection, housing, feeding, humane handling, routine medical care, and dealing with diseases, bob bennett also provides tips on. The standard way for a rabbitry to be set up is to have row after row of 36. The initial costs in settingup is small, rabbits breed quickly and frequently, they have large litters and grow to a good marketable size in a very short time. The benefits of raising meat rabbits raising meat rabbits is one of the most space efficient means of growing livestock for meat. They take up little space, are easy to care for, and are relatively inexpensive to house and feed. A complete handbook on backy ard and commercial rabbit. According to rabbit production cheeke, patton, lukefahr and mcnitt, 1987, pg 190, a weanling rabbit gains a.
We are currently building off grid on our new 20 acre homestead in north idaho. The new zealand is 8 to 12 pounds and usually has large litters of around. It is important to know that when raising rabbits for meat that the older the rabbit gets, the tougher the meat becomes. Wellorganized and detailed, raising rabbits for meat is an excellent resource for anyone considering meat rabbits as a family food source or farm enterprise. Raising rabbits can potentially bring in extra income if you sell the offspring or the meat you have left over. Commercial rabbit food can be much more expensive than making your own. Raising rabbits for meat and fur is a good way to make money but only if you do it on a large scale, and it should be done as supplementary income only.
My family loves rabbit meat, and i raise a few meat rabbits for extended family members, too. Discarding meat from rabbits raised for fur is wasteful. All of our rabbits have two water bottles with fresh water. Raising rabbits for profit all you need to know about. Our dualpurpose rex rabbits fall into this category. You can house them individually in hutches, or you can raise them in a group. You can even sell the manure for fertilizer to other gardeners. If you do love rabbit, then there are many good reasons to raise meat rabbits on pasture. Download free ebook how to raise rabbits the complete. In comparison to red meat, rabbits do not take a long time to reach slaughter weight, you dont need acreage to raise them on, and you get a higher amount of meat from the carcass. Homesteading animals includes rabbit, duck and game recipes for the slow cooker norman j stone. Whether or not you are fond of rabbit stew, raising rabbits for meat can be a great experience and can even help swell your pocketbook a little.
Rabbit farming business is a very profitable business, and many people are making money all over the world by raising rabbits for meat. Jun 22, 2017 kevin and sarah will walk you though the entire process of raising this sustainable meat source. Table 11 lists common rabbit breeds and their predominant color, weight, and uses. Rabbits are also nonviolent animals, which makes working with them much easier.
The guide to raising and breeding rabbits for meat mother. Rabbit is a lowfat meat, making it a healthy source of protein, and rabbit manure is a great fertilizer. Our breeding trio supplies a good portion of the meat our family eats each year. You may have been considering raising chickens, geese, ducks, goats, sheep or other small livestock for meat, but once you learn how easy it is to raise rabbits, youll never consider another animal for a primary meat source. On average, rabbits reach slaughter weights of about 3 kg liveweight or 1.
We garden, seed save, raise meat rabbits, raise chickens, process our own meat. It also describes the living conditions that best ensure rabbit health. A primer on backyard meat rabbit raising practices. This 92page ebook covers the gamut of keeping your rabbits healthy. Breeding meat rabbits 101 the imperfectly happy home. Sarah kicks off this series with an in depth look at how we breed our new zealand and californian cross meat rabbits. Your rabbits should have some form of chewing option to file their teeth. Before we can even think about breeding our rabbits we must have a good foundation stock. View animal photos of rabbit carcasses to see the importance of meat rabbit breeds, hybrid vigor, and growth ratios on rabbit meat quality. Nov, 2018 raising rabbits for meat ebook written by eric rapp, callene rapp. How regulatory reform will pull the meat rabbit out from welfare neglect by taylor budnick rabbits are most commonly perceived as soft, fuzzy, tender, loving, active household pets. The large demand for animal wool seems to be assured. The most popular breeds include the new zealand and the californian. They can easily be raised in a variety of locations and climates, and require less space and infrastructure than many other species of livestock.
Rabbits are kept in abysmal conditions, with anywhere from 10% to 30% dying before they can be killed for their fur. It is very easy to start breeding rabbits for meat. If you want to raise your own meat, consider rabbits. Raising rabbits for meat is a lucrative business, providing income for millions of people, but there are some essential things you need to do before you venture into the rabbit farming business. If youre just starting out, id recommend starting with a trio 2 does and 1 buck. Rabbits are among the most productive of domestic livestock, making them efficient sources of food for an ever increasing population with diminishing resources. New zealand rabbits are a quintessential meat type rabbit. However, rabbit meat is growing in popularity among urban farmers, foodies, and chefs alike. Unlike most other animals, rabbits do not have a regular heat cycle oestrus. Raising rabbits for meat by eric rapp, callene rapp books. In ordinary times many of the small rabbit raisers dont bother to save the skins, but they do have some value. Topics include choosing which breed to raise and selecting your initial breeding stock.