Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[hellbender]

I've got a lot of permanent scars on my arms from rabbits that didn't seem to think my feeding and watering them was much of a cause to act tame when they were handled!

For some reason, rabbits leave scarring more than any animal I've tangled with. Probably why I didn't cuddle with bunnies much.

That's funny!!

I always bred my does by hand. I have a little 'stanchion' where I put their heads and wrapped a large rubber band around her tail and the other end over the front of the device...this keeps her tail out of the way. This is on the same table used to kill them, by the way...

Anyhow, I then bring the buck to the doe, hold the does with one hand while the bucks mount. Almost every time, the bucks would grab the skin of my hand with their teeth, hold tight enough to leave pretty good marks and then do their thing, squeal and fall over on their sides. Really funny to watch the crazy things.

Everyone has different husbandry techniques. I learned how to deal with rabbits when I worked my way through college...sort of. My tuition was paid but if I wanted extra cash I had to work and I did...For Johns Hopkins Hospital research dept. I cared for the rabbit colony, over-saw the breeding and, unfortunately had to deal with some aspects that I didn't like and won't discuss here but suffice to say...I know rabbits...

 

[Triple Willow]

If my roosters dance at me, I leave them alone, I try to only deal with them when they come straight at me, hackles raised and head lowered.

Kicking him across the pen will hurt your knees pretty bad if you miss.

Maybe toss some goodies past him so he goes away?

Yeah he's not being agressive (yet), just flirting. I've been ignoring. Him and he goes away. I guess I had better deal with him.

 

[Triple Willow]

Maybe they are sloe berries.  Try one and see how they taste!  See if the chooks will eat a couple.  Let us know if they are poisonous..... 

Okay, trying to kill me is one thing but my chickens?!?!?! LOL I started to eat one but I didn't have time to keel over today. LOL

 

[zinia8]

Here are some better pics. I didn't have anything out there to compare the size to so I layed the large egg beside it. lol

Myrtle?

 

[Triple Willow]

  For now.... 

I'd advance toward him when he does it, make him leave the space by walking towards him.  If he continues to dance at you, a little training is in order...just some touching with a light wt. stick or switch on the head, bottom or back until he runs away.  Or you can even smack the coop floor next to him to make him jump and run...that's always fun!   I'm proactive on the "dancing" when it occurs so they don't get any ideas of taking it to the next step.  A quick response that makes them move away or run away is what I use. 

Yeah, if he grabs me by the hair of the head and jumps on my back it won't be too cute huh? The look he gives me cracks me up. He turns that head and looks me in the eye to see if I was impressed with his smooth dance moves. lol I'm going to have to cut me one of those BUD sticks... a lighter weight one. lol

 

[Triple Willow]

Jason wanted Rabbits for 4-H and he and his mom decided upon Florida Whites and I bought him a really well bred trio.  After the project was over, WE decided to keep rabbits for meat and bought two nice N Z whites, crossed them and  those were our meat rabbits.  Worked out great 'til Jason went off to college and on with his life.  We just didn't need that much meat so we sold the rabbits.  I do regret not keeping a few going because the FW's are expensive to replace if we ever wanted to get started back into them when he gets home.

I keep saying I'm going to get some rabbits. I plan on it anyhow. I've had pet rabbits but none for meat. Do you think there would be any problem sitting their coop/cage in the chicken run? An Amish neighbor told me that they eat more rabbit than they do chicken. I don't know what kind of rabbits they have. I'll have to check on that. I agree with Bee, killing them wouldn't be easy. I would probably shoot them in the head.

 

[Triple Willow]

Myrtle?

Thanks for the suggestion. I still don't know what this mystery bush is but I shall go check out myrtles now. I hope it is something useful. I have noticed several that have come up around the house. They are just loaded with those little berries. Thanks again. Wish it was an elderberry bush!

 

[Beekissed]

I keep saying I'm going to get some rabbits. I plan on it anyhow. I've had pet rabbits but none for meat. Do you think there would be any problem sitting their coop/cage in the chicken run? An Amish neighbor told me that they eat more rabbit than they do chicken. I don't know what kind of rabbits they have. I'll have to check on that. I agree with Bee, killing them wouldn't be easy. I would probably shoot them in the head.

I've kept rabbits over chickens and it works out great. I suspended my cages from the ceiling so there would be no wood structures under them to block the floor or to gather pee residue. That's the one thing about rabbits that makes the most mess..they squirt pee and it's pretty strong. Deep litter will help with that some but it's rather more ammonia than one encounters in simple chicken poop. Some folks arrange plastic sheeting or trash bags that funnels the pee into buckets under the cages instead of letting it all just go into the bedding willy nilly.

If I'm still here in the spring I'm thinking about building a rabbit tractor/hutch combo that would put all that poop and pee where it would do the most good while also giving the rabbits access to fresh graze and soils a couple three times a day. Folks get bunnies for Easter and soon tire of them and give them away, cages and all...thinking I might capitalize on that and pick up some cheap meats in that way, as well as cages to incorporate into my tractor.

 

[Triple Willow]

I've kept rabbits over chickens and it works out great.  I suspended my cages from the ceiling so there would be no wood structures under them to block the floor or to gather pee residue.  That's the one thing about rabbits that makes the most mess..they squirt pee and it's pretty strong.  Deep litter will help with that some but it's rather more ammonia than one encounters in simple chicken poop.  Some folks arrange plastic sheeting or trash bags that funnels the pee into buckets under the cages instead of letting it all just go into the bedding willy nilly. 

If I'm still here in the spring I'm thinking about building a rabbit tractor/hutch combo that would put all that poop and pee where it would do the most good while also giving the rabbits access to fresh graze and soils a couple three times a day.  Folks get bunnies for Easter and soon tire of them and give them away, cages and all...thinking I might capitalize on that and pick up some cheap meats in that way, as well as cages to incorporate into my tractor. 

That's another good idea. Yeah I remember that pee, it stanks! The Amish guy I was talking about had a neat rabbit hutch. It was about 8 or 10 feet long and 2 or 3 feet wide and stood on legs about 6 feet tall. It had a 2X4 frame with a tin roof and I think tin across the back. It was divided up into 3-4 sections. It seems like it didn't have anything underneath it but we had talked about a piece of tin under it to funnel the pee to a bucket at one end and it would collect the droppings to use where ever you wanted to. I bet it would be pretty easy to suspend cages in a hoop coop too...hmmm. Sure would hate for them to pee on the chickens though. Yuck! lol

 

[Beekissed]

That's what I was worried about too but it never seemed to happen..guess chickens are quick.

I was thinking of a lightweight tractor built of 2x2s with a wire floor, divided into compartments that could be accessed individually from the top, with the total build being 4x8. I'd like two does and one buck with a grow out pen for youngsters. I was thinking three sections in an "L" shape of 2x3(doe), 2x3(buck) and 2x4(doe) with the remaining 2x6 section being a grow out pen. I'd like to design some partitions to halve the grow out pen at times and open up the two doe pens into the two halves so the does can have more room when the kits are still small enough to be with mama but too small to move to the grow out.