Meat rabbits

[dntd]

With this whole chicken thing I decided to start to breed meat rabbits, I have breed pet rabbits and have had rabbits for over 10 years and still have my 6 year old lop and her 4 year old baby so I know how to care for them. I'm hopping to get one on hold from a breeder advertising on line, it'll be a flemish giant female hopefully I can find a smaller meat rabbit male, going to start with two and see if it's enough meat for our family. Building a outdoor cage seperated by a fence in the spring this will allow the male and female to have plenty of room going to built a third run for my two girls Does any one else breed meat rabbits

 

[Teach97]

yup...well...kinda...I eat a few...sell a few as pets...feed a few to other pets

 

[tonini3059]

I have raised them in the past, giant chins and cals. I have been wanting to get back into it but I don't have the time.

 

[dntd]

The people selling the giants are ofering a male from another doe so I`m going to pick him up

 

[NewHopePoultry]

I do

Flemish giants dont make very good meat rabbits though.
Since they have bigger bones,they actually have less meat then what you would think.
A Californian or New Zealand White crossed with a Flemish will usually give a decent amount of meat.

 

[AK-Bird-brain]

I cross a Flemish buck with new Zealand, and California does. At 8 weeks old my rabbits are the size of normal 12 week old meat rabbits with the same amount of meat.

 

[dntd]

Well I have located some one who breeds the newzealand rabbits, might go with 2 female new z, the flemish male and a newzealand male athough I don't know if I want two males or just the one, I think 2 female should be enough for my family though so I don't think I'm getting the gaint female.

 

[Becky89*]

Quote:
Yep I do!!! I breed mini rex and rex bunny rabbits, I want to get a flemish giant but my husband says "no way". We have four bunnies total right now and the price of feed just keeps climbing.

 

[millebantam]

If you want the absolute best, most efficient, meat producing rabbits, you have to go with a pure New Zealand or Californian. Both breeds have been bred and developed over many decades to produce meat the most efficiently, with the best feed conversion and best dress out percentage. A Flemish giant is a slow growing, heavy boned, rabbit with a very thick and heavy hide. Breeding a FG to a NZ is a step backward. The only gains in a FG/NZ cross over a pure meat breed is a bigger feed bill and a bigger gut pile.

 

[josh]

I heard if you bred a Cali to a NZW you get hybrid vigor and they get bigger faster.