Rabbit Breeding Questions?

[NCBantam22]

What breed or hybrid is my buck rabbit?
Is 6 years old too old to breed?
I'm planning on mating him to a florida white doe or two, would they be good meat rabbits?

 

[Bunnylady]

A rabbit with a face that short and round is probably a Netherland Dwarf cross.

6 years is pretty "iffy" for breeding. Some bucks are still fertile at that age, but a lot are "shooting blanks.' A Dwarf isn't usually used in a meat breeding program, but Dwarfs do have compact type, so there would be a fair amount of muscle on the frame. Any rabbit is edible, of course, though how long it would take to get a FW/ND cross fryer big enough to make slaughter worthwhile is a bit hard to say.

 

[NCBantam22]

A rabbit with a face that short and round is probably a Netherland Dwarf cross.

6 years is pretty "iffy" for breeding. Some bucks are still fertile at that age, but a lot are "shooting blanks.' A Dwarf isn't usually used in a meat breeding program, but Dwarfs do have compact type, so there would be a fair amount of muscle on the frame. Any rabbit is edible, of course, though how long it would take to get a FW/ND cross fryer big enough to make slaughter worthwhile is a bit hard to say.

I guess I'll just get a florida white buck for breeding

 

[SternRose]

The babies don't have to be pure bred. U can find a cheap young buck of any median sized breed.

 

[Bunnylady]

The babies don't have to be pure bred. U can find a cheap young buck of any large sized breed.

Well, the Florida White isn't all that big (4 to 6 pounds), and most advise against using a buck that are significantly larger than the doe, so it might be better that the buck be no more than medium sized.

 

[SternRose]

Yea. I didn't know that they were that tiny. Lol. I thought they were giants. Lol. Learns something just now. Lol

 

[NCBantam22]

Yea. I didn't know that they were that tiny. Lol. I thought they were giants. Lol. Learns something just now. Lol

The "giants" are the new Zealand's they get bout 9-11 pounds

 

[SternRose]

Yea I know. Just got a little confused. I got it now. Lol. I own 2 giants. 18 lbs each... Correction I know own one. One died 3 months ago. They r Flemish/new zeleand crosses.

 

[nayeli]

I wouldn't use him for breeding. If your doing meat rabbits than californian, florida whites, or NZ are the best choices... I personally have a NZ black buck and mixes does cause I don't like all white rabbits and you can eat any =)

Eventually I will change out for one of those three does though.

 

[SA Farm]

The "giants" are the new Zealand's they get bout 9-11 pounds

Just to clarify, New Zealand rabbits are considered large breed rabbits, not giants.
Rabbit weight classification:
Small - under 6lbs
Medium - 6-9lbs
Large - 9-11lbs
Giant - over 11lbs.