rabbit purposes other than meat or fibre?

[AAcres]

Hey all!
I’m interested in hearing what other purposes there are for rabbits on your farm/in your backyard? I currently have ducks but would like to expand my small “hobby farm” to include another animal. However, I do like my animals to serve a purpose, if that makes sense!

I’m not one for wanting to eat my animals (personal preference!) and I’m not interested in collecting fibre, so just curious if anyone does anything else with their buns.

Will they eat grass clippings? is that safe?
I know their droppings can be used in the garden, I have heard that before.
Will they “clean up” areas of the lawn with lots of weeds or small pine cones? again, is this safe for them?

Or if not for meat or fibre are they just pets and fun to have?

thanks!!
(side note: I do not currently own rabbits nor have I in the past, I appreciate any input from you experienced folk!)

 

[Northwest_Wannabe]

Their poop is GREAT for gardens, and unlike that of chickens which really needs composted first, you can just put rabbit poop I think just right on your gardens if I remember correctly : D They make lovely little pets, even if you don't eat them you could potentially breed and sell them (Check your area, see if 'home grown' meat rabbits might sell for something nice! you don't have to cull them either, just sell the young rabbits to someone for them to do that or to use as breeders!) People also show rabbits, at fancy rabbit shows and at smaller shows like state and county fairs!

I don't know about grass clippings, hopefully someone else knows! We never had 'free range' rabbits cause maybe it was a coincidence but all rabbits I've had were kinda jerks, and also major escape artists xD But they loved eating dandelions and other weeds so that was a purpose they served us : D My rabbits didn't really often eat dinner scraps (of things like leftover greenery, carrots, etc) my most recent rabbit didn't actually eat carrots at all xD Good luck! You should get one or a few just for the experience, they're pretty cool creatures

 

[KingD]

Hey all!
I’m interested in hearing what other purposes there are for rabbits on your farm/in your backyard? I currently have ducks but would like to expand my small “hobby farm” to include another animal. However, I do like my animals to serve a purpose, if that makes sense!

I’m not one for wanting to eat my animals (personal preference!) and I’m not interested in collecting fibre, so just curious if anyone does anything else with their buns.

Will they eat grass clippings? is that safe?
I know their droppings can be used in the garden, I have heard that before.
Will they “clean up” areas of the lawn with lots of weeds or small pine cones? again, is this safe for them?

Or if not for meat or fibre are they just pets and fun to have?

thanks!!
(side note: I do not currently own rabbits nor have I in the past, I appreciate any input from you experienced folk!)

Rabbits are great pets!

It's not a good idea to feed them grass clippings in excessive quantities. Just a pinch is fine.

Meat rabbits are particular breeds bred for meat which means they are quick growing and have a high meat/bone ratio.

If you bought a movable run for them then they would certainly do a good job of cleaning up weeded areas. They certainly wouldn't be as quick as chickens but they would thoroughly enjoy themselves. Just make sure there are no harmful flowers or plants that could poison then or cause digestive issues.

How many rabbits were you wanting?

As you probably know from the saying 'breeding like rabbits' , they certainly reproduce quickly so males and females should be housed seperatly.

Rabbit manure is considered a “cold” manure. So you can spread it directly on top of your garden. You can utilize rabbit manure as a top dressing for your trees, garden beds or houseplants. Alternatively, you can work it into soil as a soil treatment.

If you choose valuable breeds, they can be sold for a reasonable amount but I guess that's not what you're wanting from them. Rabbits are great to just have as pets!

If you have any more questions them ask and someone will be able to help you.

 

[AAcres]

Their poop is GREAT for gardens, and unlike that of chickens which really needs composted first, you can just put rabbit poop I think just right on your gardens if I remember correctly : D They make lovely little pets, even if you don't eat them you could potentially breed and sell them (Check your area, see if 'home grown' meat rabbits might sell for something nice! you don't have to cull them either, just sell the young rabbits to someone for them to do that or to use as breeders!) People also show rabbits, at fancy rabbit shows and at smaller shows like state and county fairs!

I don't know about grass clippings, hopefully someone else knows! We never had 'free range' rabbits cause maybe it was a coincidence but all rabbits I've had were kinda jerks, and also major escape artists xD But they loved eating dandelions and other weeds so that was a purpose they served us : D My rabbits didn't really often eat dinner scraps (of things like leftover greenery, carrots, etc) my most recent rabbit didn't actually eat carrots at all xD Good luck! You should get one or a few just for the experience, they're pretty cool creatures

That’s an interesting idea I didn’t think of, to raise and sell meat rabbits for other people!

 

[AAcres]

Rabbits are great pets!

It's not a good idea to feed them grass clippings in excessive quantities. Just a pinch is fine.

Meat rabbits are particular breeds bred for meat which means they are quick growing and have a high meat/bone ratio.

If you bought a movable run for them then they would certainly do a good job of cleaning up weeded areas. They certainly wouldn't be as quick as chickens but they would thoroughly enjoy themselves. Just make sure there are no harmful flowers or plants that could poison then or cause digestive issues.

How many rabbits were you wanting?

As you probably know from the saying 'breeding like rabbits' , they certainly reproduce quickly so males and females should be housed seperatly.

Rabbit manure is considered a “cold” manure. So you can spread it directly on top of your garden. You can utilize rabbit manure as a top dressing for your trees, garden beds or houseplants. Alternatively, you can work it into soil as a soil treatment.

If you choose valuable breeds, they can be sold for a reasonable amount but I guess that's not what you're wanting from them. Rabbits are great to just have as pets!

If you have any more questions them ask and someone will be able to help you.

I haven’t really thought about how many I get. I like to thoroughly research before I dive in.

do they have really sensitive stomachs? I read somewhere that rabbits can become very sick very easily.

 

[KingD]

I haven’t really thought about how many I get. I like to thoroughly research before I dive in.

do they have really sensitive stomachs? I read somewhere that rabbits can become very sick very easily.

Yep. You do need to be really careful what you feed them.
All of mine have always been fed on quality hay and pellets.
Fresh vegetables as well. Carrots, lettuce ect.
I just like to be safe but others may have different opinions.

I've had rabbits which looked absolutely fine but died within 1 day. You just have to be careful really

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

I've had rabbits which looked absolutely fine but died within 1 day. You just have to be careful really

Yeah me to, since then I check my buns every week for signs of illness.

It's not a good idea to feed them grass clippings in excessive quantities. Just a pinch is fine.

Not true, I pasture my rabbits and they do just fine.

 

[KingD]

Not true, I pasture my rabbits and they do just fine.

Ah ok. Yep as I said, people may have different opinions.
I just choose not to as I have heard of instances where they can have stomach issues ect.
Maybe I should give it a go.
I'm still learning

 

[Cinnamon Roll]

I have a bunch of mixed breed meat rabbits in a colony. I use them for food, manure for the garden, and for weed control. We have invasive dandelion toadflax here and they have completely controlled it in the colony area. Last summer I had some in a tractor that I moved around to the patches outside of the colony.

I haven’t decided for-sure yet but since we are reducing our rabbit numbers I may take one of the rabbit areas and change it to a garden. They have killed most of the grass and fertilized the area already so it will be easy to do. They have also dug a lot of burrows so the ground is pre-tilled for me

 

[AAcres]

do you all regularly vet check your rabbits? for vaccinations/deworming? or if something is wrong with one?
I know with our ducks we don’t take them to the vet (there’s no avian vet around where I am) and we treat any injuries or sicknesses ourselves