Raising Meat Rabbits

[misbhaven]

we have been using the 1/2 inch hole x 2 foot wide 19 gauge hardware cloth and it seems to hold their weight just fine. if it starts to sag just add another 2x3 in the middle of the cloth. as for litter if you build a tray under where the poop then that will catch it. in our box area on the back where they sleep we use the horse bedding on the bottom then put straw over the top of that to give them something to burrow into. we don't use a pan to catch the poop under the cloth because our rabbits are outside so we just rack up the poop and put in a compost area or throw it in the garden to be tilled in when before we get ready to plant.

 

[nayeli]

Awesome thank you! Building a hutch might be the way to go then!

 

[misbhaven]

you can get some sweet PDZ at the farm store to help with the smell it is sold in the horse section...if you google PDZ and use with rabbits it will explain basically it netralizes the ammonia smell.. even for your trays if you go that route..I would watch getting cage wire/hardware cloth from lowe's etc it tend to be lighter weight wire the bigger the number the lighter the weight. i got another roll today that was 16 gauge 25 ft long for $19 farm and fleet has a 13%off sale today. we plan our hutches and coops based on the size wire we can get..why have a 40 inch wide cage when wire comes in 24,30,36,48 inch width's we use 24 because it is the most economical and so the height ofthe cage inside is more like 22 inches so there is wire to attach to the wood..and the bottom we make sure ther is 2 inches around evevy side and attach it really well.. 2ft x 3 ft is pretty big for run area and we build a wood box at the back for nesting. and shelter from elements
Good luck with your move!!

 

[GD91]

I will sound horrible for asking this but litter method? I have just been giving mine hay, pellets, water, cardboard, and pine needles? I cleaned out some hay that they peed on but I have a tray below their cage. Do I need litter, won't it fall through the bottom anyway?

I meant the deep litter method, sorry, I use it with all of my animals.
I tested the cages & my rabbits seemed really unhappy, so they are back to mixing on the shed floor & lounging in hutches.
The deep litter method helps keep smells down. Its where you lay down a deep amount of compostable bedding material & then you just take out the really bad, dirty bits & add another layer. Once every now & again (about every 3 months here) You pull the whole lot out & put it on the compost heap or wherever you want it & mix it all in to make nice compost.

So, who prefers cages & who prefers hutches?


I, personally, prefer the hutches, pens & shed I use. They look nicer & I can pile lots of litter in them & on the shed floor, the rabbits love it because it gives more space to move & have tunnels & toys also., but from a management point of view, the cages work a little better & probably give less hassle & worry.

But if anyone knows of a better way, I'm all ears...

 

[nayeli]

Great news, it seems from http://www.rabbitgeek.com/chinamerican.html, her fur coloring and the ring when I blow on her fur that she is an american chinchilla... which is what I wanted but couldn't find! I'm thrilled. I'm pretty sure the ring is unique to the chinchillas right?

 

[Amy Foster]

I need info!!! i have made a critical sexing error and now have a three month old female medium breed possibly pregnant! the worst part is it was her brother! has anyone had experience with this or what to expect? i feel terrible i am sooo careful but sexing at young age can be very difficult! anyone been through this?

 

[SA Farm]

A friend of mine had that problem and the young momma was fine. I've heard some horror stories of young does getting pregnant, though. I would just make sure she is completely free fed and watered and hope for the best.

 

[Amy Foster]

Thanks hope she will be ok there was another young doe my keeper in there too but after examining genetalia again i believe shes ok the other was definitely penetrated and swollen and wet down there so i am pretty sure she will be a young momma! i sexed the bunnies every week and have never had any problems but i guess eventually we are all bound to make mistakes!

 

[Bunnylady]

Whoops!es happen to the best of us. Bucks usually take a little longer than does to mature, so maybe with a little luck he was still shooting blanks. I'd mark my calender and keep an eye on them both. Chances are that the does will be fine. Any first-time mother can make a mess of kindling, but this is particularly true of the doe bred too young. If the mother doesn't lose the kits due to accident or neglect, the babies of full-sibling crosses will most likely be fine, too. A lot of people try to avoid it, but breeding related rabbits is a great way to "fix" certain traits in a herd.

And sexing errors are so common, rabbit people have a joke about being visited by the "sex change fairy."

 

[nayeli]

When do I have too seperate my male and female? They get a long great and enjoy each others company so I'd rather wait until its needed.