JTS' Meat Rabbit Adventures

[Tre3hugger]

@VeryHappyHens Litter box is totally unnecessary for meat rabbits.

@JoyThatSticks Sorry about your dad. I just had my first litter of meat rabbits a little under two weeks ago. It is really fun! Rexes would be cool. I am doing mutts for meat ( Amchin x NZ) and Pure American Chinchillas to sell as pets. They are easy keeping and a joy to be around. Here is a thread of my meat rabbit experiences thus far. Good luck and have fun!

Tre3hugger's Rabbit Thread

 

[NatJ]

I didn't think I could do chickens at first. Honestly rabbits look easier on that side of things.

I find rabbits easier & faster to butcher than chickens. Most of the difference is in skin vs. feathers, although the gutting is a little easier for me also with rabbits.

Will be going to TSC tomorrow for:
Rabbit food
Rabbit waterers
Hay

I used to raise rabbits in Alaska.
I can tell you: the water bottles with little spouts are a problem in cold weather, because the end freezes up and then the rabbit cannot get a drink.

And in summer, when I wanted to dump out the warm water and put in fresh cold water, it seemed to take forever to get all the water through the tiny neck of the water bottle.

And some water bottles drip, so they empty themself and then the rabbit goes thirsty.

So I eventually switched to large water dishes. Rabbits dump little dishes, and they sometimes sit in them too. But I got some that held more than a quart (or liter) of water each, and those were heavy enough that rabbits did not dump them. The water stayed pretty clean too, so the rabbits must not have been sitting in them.

It was very easy to dump the old water from the dish into a bucket, and refill the dish from a jug, twice a day. (Then dump the bucket on the lawn or garden, to avoid having puddles near the cages.)

For cold weather, it worked best to have two dishes per rabbit. That way one was thawing indoors while the other was freezing in the cage.

I have seen some automatic watering systems with a tube carrying water to a valve in each cage, and they look like a good idea, but I never got around to setting one up. I still would have worried about it freezing, and about the water getting too warm in summer.

 

[Namentuppen]

I find rabbits easier & faster to butcher than chickens. Most of the difference is in skin vs. feathers, although the gutting is a little easier for me also with rabbits.



I used to raise rabbits in Alaska.
I can tell you: the water bottles with little spouts are a problem in cold weather, because the end freezes up and then the rabbit cannot get a drink.

And in summer, when I wanted to dump out the warm water and put in fresh cold water, it seemed to take forever to get all the water through the tiny neck of the water bottle.

And some water bottles drip, so they empty themself and then the rabbit goes thirsty.

So I eventually switched to large water dishes. Rabbits dump little dishes, and they sometimes sit in them too. But I got some that held more than a quart (or liter) of water each, and those were heavy enough that rabbits did not dump them. The water stayed pretty clean too, so the rabbits must not have been sitting in them.

It was very easy to dump the old water from the dish into a bucket, and refill the dish from a jug, twice a day. (Then dump the bucket on the lawn or garden, to avoid having puddles near the cages.)

For cold weather, it worked best to have two dishes per rabbit. That way one was thawing indoors while the other was freezing in the cage.

I have seen some automatic watering systems with a tube carrying water to a valve in each cage, and they look like a good idea, but I never got around to setting one up. I still would have worried about it freezing, and about the water getting too warm in summer.

Ooh, thank you for that information! We don’t deal with much cold over here, but I have had issues with those water bottles malfunctioning with my small pets. Good to know there is another option!

@VeryHappyHens Litter box is totally unnecessary for meat rabbits.

@JoyThatSticks Sorry about your dad. I just had my first litter of meat rabbits a little under two weeks ago. It is really fun! Rexes would be cool. I am doing mutts for meat ( Amchin x NZ) and Pure American Chinchillas to sell as pets. They are easy keeping and a joy to be around. Here is a thread of my meat rabbit experiences thus far. Good luck and have fun!

Tre3hugger's Rabbit Thread

Thank you! I’m going to check that out when I get home!

 

[MissE]

Make sure your rabbit has letter box to poop and pea in.

Generally, meat rabbits are in wire cages with poop trays. While you can add a litter box, it isn't needed.

 

[MissE]

I find rabbits easier & faster to butcher than chickens. Most of the difference is in skin vs. feathers, although the gutting is a little easier for me also with rabbits.



I used to raise rabbits in Alaska.
I can tell you: the water bottles with little spouts are a problem in cold weather, because the end freezes up and then the rabbit cannot get a drink.

And in summer, when I wanted to dump out the warm water and put in fresh cold water, it seemed to take forever to get all the water through the tiny neck of the water bottle.

And some water bottles drip, so they empty themself and then the rabbit goes thirsty.

So I eventually switched to large water dishes. Rabbits dump little dishes, and they sometimes sit in them too. But I got some that held more than a quart (or liter) of water each, and those were heavy enough that rabbits did not dump them. The water stayed pretty clean too, so the rabbits must not have been sitting in them.

It was very easy to dump the old water from the dish into a bucket, and refill the dish from a jug, twice a day. (Then dump the bucket on the lawn or garden, to avoid having puddles near the cages.)

For cold weather, it worked best to have two dishes per rabbit. That way one was thawing indoors while the other was freezing in the cage.

I have seen some automatic watering systems with a tube carrying water to a valve in each cage, and they look like a good idea, but I never got around to setting one up. I still would have worried about it freezing, and about the water getting too warm in summer.

I used coop cups. They clamp to the side of the cage. Rabbits are horrible about dumping their water.

I totally agree with rabbits being easier to butcher. Cage to ice water in 8 minutes.

 

[Namentuppen]

TSC today after my final (A&P lab final, not going to be fun). And my painter's tape is coming in so I can paint my office! I think the bottom portion of my cages is coming in today so I can assemble that. Hopefully the walls come in early; I think they're expected Saturday.
Only three semesters to go before I graduate college. Woohoo!

 

[Namentuppen]

Got the hay and food! Unfortunately the cage bottoms got rescheduled to tomorrow. Business supplies came in a day early though.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Got the hay and food! Unfortunately the cage bottoms got rescheduled to tomorrow. Business supplies came in a day early though.

What size are you planning to have the cages? What breeds too? Our NZs were in 3x3s

 

[Namentuppen]

What size are you planning to have the cages? What breeds too? Our NZs were in 3x3s

Rex is the hope, or a medium sized mutt. Wouldn't mind a Californian. I'll let you know the exact dimensions of the cage when I get the parts in, I'm aiming for around 30 inches by 48 inches.

 

[NatJ]

Rex is the hope, or a medium sized mutt. Wouldn't mind a Californian. I'll let you know the exact dimensions of the cage when I get the parts in, I'm aiming for around 30 inches by 48 inches.

It's good for the rabbits to have as much space as possible.

It is also good for the person to be able to reach all parts of the cage, for when they need to catch rabbits or clean something.

It's hard to manage both of those, but it helps if you make the door big enough that you can get your head and shoulders inside. Of course you don't want to do that regularly, but it's nice to have the option if you need it.