DO IT!
We have been raising meat rabbits for a short while and love it compared to raising meat chickens which we have done in the past. We have a breeding trio of two NZ does and a Cali buck. They are easy keepers, which is a plus. They are easy to grow, process and cook. The meat is great- we cook it as we would chicken- bake it, grill, crockpot, roast it, etc.. haven't had a bad meal on it, always very tender and juicy. My three year old daughter even prefers it over most other meats.
We don't have trouble with them smelling... the only time you can smell any type odor from ours is if it has recently rained and we are raking under the hutch, but it's nothing repulsive or lingering. We rake under them once a week and it goes into the compost. The buck will mark things in his space, maybe that is where people are saying the smell is coming from? But if you minimize their exposure to a wooden frame/hutch, I wouldn't see how you'd smell much more than we do...!
If you have raised meat chickens, you will be thrilled over the amount of food rabbits consume, I know we were/are! The only time they go through food like maniacs is when you have babies... but that is expected... more mouths, more food
And I agree with
NorthFLChick, you will be surprised on the people that show an interest in purchasing your rabbits! We didn't expect to sell any when we started, and weren't really heartbroken over the idea since they were just going in the freezer anyways, and now we have people that keep up with when they are bred so they can purchase kits when they become available!
