Nice neighbor and the miserable bunnies

[rodriguezpoultry]

There's one more thing. If you are this concerned with the rabbits welfare and feel it needs to be changed sooner rather than waiting on your neighbor to take your advice, why not contact the local authorities for animal welfare? Include photos in an email or take the photos to the station yourself and make a report.

 

[1stepcloser]

RP, because I wanted to try all of the great advice I was given earlier. He is not a mean man and we genuinely like him. Also, I am not the type of person who runs to the authorities if there is ANY other way to handle it. Yes, they have food, shelter, and water...but they are also freezing to death en mass. (Something that seems to keep getting glossed over in between snide comments about one of us needing to build a privacy fence.)

Luckily, I am a fairly direct individual. I have tried tact, now I just will be honest with him with my opinion.

Thank you everyone.

 

[Boyd]

1step.... one more thing..... most first time moms (bunnywise i mean) loose their first one or two litters on the wire due to exposure. They usually have to kill a liter to learn to pull more fur. Unless you can see into most of the cage I'd be hard pressed to make a judgement. Bunnies pick a box or secluded area in their hutch, pull fur off themselves to line it, and have babies in the middle of the fluff.

If bunnies loose their first liter or two, I give them one more chance. They loose more than 2 they are culled and replaced. PS, there is a reason meat rabbits are confined, and part of it is so they don't injure themselves or their kits by getting all ramped up. Social animals... maybe, but the larger breeds can be buttheads. Wait till you get both back paws scratching you and they lock their jaws on the webbing between your pointer and thumb. You will have no problem taking them from their huge pen to a time out cage... I did!!!!

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

I had assumed you had meant only the babies were dying from the cold. Am I wrong in assuming it was only the babies? Are the adults dying from exposure as well? The babies can die from MANY things. Perhaps he is thinking it is more along the lines of the genetics and poor mothers instead of his housing.

I have also not read your previous posts on this issue so I was and still am unaware of any other advice that has been given other than on this specific thread. Sorry for not reading background information from earlier.

They are rabbits that he is wishing to use for meat. You are wishing for your son to see the process in action however do not wish to see the housing in which they are raised? I cannot comprehend that. Is it not similar to poultry housing? Some believe they are doing the best they can with what they have, while others reprimand their every move as cruel.

I did not mean for my comments to be snide, but it is apparent that he is not going to change his ways unless told directly. If it bothers you that much, the only thing you can do is put it out of your mind or contact someone who will rectify the situation. "Out of sight, out of mind" hence the privacy fence comment.

 

[1stepcloser]

Thanks Boyd. I can see into most of the cages but not all. There was just not way for them to keep them warm with only one wall (back part of cage). Some just boxes and have almost no ventilation so I can't speak as to the fur pulling of those. I appreciate the insight about mothers sometimes losing their first litters. I didn't know that was common problem.

 

[Boyd]

ps, member of MMRA and former ARBA member. So take what I say with a grain of salt. I love my pets, I eat my livestock. I don't know where that line is with you, so don't be offended if my lines are more blurred than yours.

 

[Boyd]

Quote:
yeah, they are buttheads, but they can have as many as 6-7 liters a year safely, although most breeders do 5 liters a year unless a false pregnancy happens. PS, my hutch for rabbits has 3 solid walls out of 6

thats because good ventilation is important. Their urine has a high ammonia content and can damage their own lungs. The droppings are black gold though!!! The droppings plus a bed full of european crawlers = TONS of fishing worms and the best vermicompost on the earth.

I know your heart is in the right place, but if he is raising these guys for meat and not pets, he's for the most part sounding like he's starting out with young does, maybe a little cramped, but definately in line with what other folks do size wise. Personally I use much larger areas when I am doing it tho. That's why I am setting up a colony system soon Big enough for me to sit in a chair in the middle of my bunny domain. 6 sided cage, man made burrows.... and the babies are named all the same thing...... food1 food2 food3 food4

My dad is doing a caged setup in his garage, but thats because he wants to collect the droppings to go directly into his garden and worm bins (lives on the lake) so he has plenty of worms for fish food

 

[Sunny the Hippie Chick]

I once had a Netherland Dwarf as a pet.. She was in the right size of cage for her size.. She could stretch out full length with room to spare. She was the sweetest bunny ever.. She won first and best of breed 2 years in a row.. Next year she won the same thing along with best in show.. I thought my bunny desearved a bigger cage. I spent $80 dollars on a nice huge cage for her.. After I moved her to the larger cage. She became vicious.. Bitting scratching every thing. But once I got her out she returned sweet.. So I after she became mean in her large cage.. I returned her to her smaller cage.. She returned friendly and had supervised time outside of the cage.. Maybe some breeders keep them in the smaller cage to make them more docile.. Mine was way more nice when in a smaller cage.. The larger one made her almost wild.. When my bunny was tame.. When I mean tame, she was even litter box trained.. Just an idea.. Maybe you should post a pic of their living condition so maybe some breeders of meat rabbits can see if they are properly housed or not. You can only do so much for some one elses animals..

 

[Bettacreek]

IMO, I can only think of two things. Either buy/salvage/trade for/whatever the materials and build them yourself, then allow him to "borrow" them until you get your meat rabbits (ie, give them to him, without intent to reclaim). Or, call animal control. Either they'll tell him that he needs to build larger cages, or, they'll tell you that the cages are just fine, and that'll be the end of it.

 

[Boyd]

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/filez/Rabbit_info.pdf