The Old Folks Home

[Bunnylady]

You're right, Felix; 10 - 12 pounds isn't all that big, as rabbits go. That's leaning toward the larger size for meat-type rabbits, but the giant breeds get a lot bigger.

I haven't been to a rabbit show in a while, but when I was going to them regularly, there were a couple of folks that I often saw showing Flemish Giants. They definitely qualified for the Home here, and were on short side. I could really appreciate the docile nature of the big beasts when I saw them muscling those huge rabbits onto the show table.

And you are right; straight lines are contrary to the Rabbit Code. A rabbit doesn't want to be too predictable, because it never knows who might be making their own predictions about its future . . . .

 

[chickadoodles]

V I agree with the others your sweater is very nice. And I love your bunny so cute!

I was thinking of getting some goats here but they do not like to stay in the fence. But when we went to a livestock auction they had hair sheep that were worth a whole lot more and very little care was necessary.

Good luck Latestarter I hope you find the perfect property for your ideas.

 

[ronott1]

So cool! All of those grocery store eggs!!!!

What a super economical way to replenish an egg laying flock!

Yes!

The eggs were $2.99 per dozen or about the shipping cost of a dozen hatching eggs.

My plan this year is to hatch the store eggs for layers--I need them in the winter for my customers. I have 5 hens from last year that are still laying.

Then I want to hatch some Black Penedesenca from Jason(@Hangtown Farms ). I would get them from Guy but I can drive to Jason's house. I have been there before and I want to see his improvements and his rare Catalina Island Goats.

Finally I want to hatch some Super Blue Egg Layers from dmrimpy.

I have to do this since the Chicken Cops busted me--now more Roosers at my place

 

[chickadoodles]

Ron great hatch on your TJ eggs! Congrats!

 

[chickadoodles]

Wisher your chicks are very cute!

 

[ronott1]

Here are the results of my first test hatch. Out of six eggs, two showgirls and two Campines.
[

Very nice!

Ron great hatch on your TJ eggs! Congrats!

Thanks!

 

[Wisher1000]

Thanks, Ron. I only did a test hatch because I brought home some eggs from the Knoxville show. None of them were fertile, and I didn't include those in my count. I actually had 4 showgirl eggs from a showgirl hen that I bought there and two of them were the ones that hatched. I have no idea what she was in with before the show, so we'll see. The two that didn't hatch are still in the incubator, but look like they lost too much moisture as the air cells (or clear areas) take more than two thirds the space. I will open them this afternoon to see what happened. The other two were just two free range eggs that I put in as a control. They always hatch!

I will be making final selections for the spring breeders this afternoon, and will start lights at the same time. I will start hatching when I am getting two dozen eggs a week from about 10 hens. Those will be from an "a" team and a "b" team. I'm planning to try doing it a little different this season. I will put the top five hens in one pen with the best cockerel and the next best five in the other. The rest of the hens will join the RIR pair so that cock doesn't wear out his one hen and I will just eat the white eggs from that pen. That will be all the breeding pens I will have this season. My free range egg flock will be all the Ameraucana hens, the really bad Campine hens, and the Ameraucana rooster. I also have a pet Campine rooster with a bad foot, his name is Hershel, (from TWD, CC, I'm a fan, too) and if he is tolerated by that Am. cock, he will free range with them. The rest will all learn to speak Spanish.

 

[vehve]

@Bunnylady

Actually, they are pretty predictable. I read a book called Freakanomics ages ago, and the author noted that his pet bunny seemed to always take the same routes when running free in his apartment, so he started timing him, and the times kept improving. He drew the conclusion that bunnies practice their escape routes, and what I've seen of ours, it sort of seems to hold true. They do often take the same route, but like said earlier, definitely not in a straight line. And they do allow for some variation depending on which way they detect you coming from. I'd say that our bunnies find the herding to be more of some sort of playing than a hunt though, because if you stop for a while they will come right up to you. And I tend to approach them pretty calmly, so they just hop a few steps forward every time when I'm trying to get them back into their cage. But they do like exploring the rest of the yard too, it's fun to watch them do it.

I've been to a handful of bunny shows too, and our's are definitely not as big as some of the beasts out there. And like you said, they're at the bigger end of the meat bunny spectrum, that's why we're going to see what kind of meat we get with the newest addition. She's a pure American sable, and definitely a lot smaller than our homebred mongrels.

 

[ronott1]

Thanks, Ron. I only did a test hatch because I brought home some eggs from the Knoxville show. None of them were fertile, and I didn't include those in my count. I actually had 4 showgirl eggs from a showgirl hen that I bought there and two of them were the ones that hatched. I have no idea what she was in with before the show, so we'll see. The two that didn't hatch are still in the incubator, but look like they lost too much moisture as the air cells (or clear areas) take more than two thirds the space. I will open them this afternoon to see what happened. The other two were just two free range eggs that I put in as a control. They always hatch!

I will be making final selections for the spring breeders this afternoon, and will start lights at the same time. I will start hatching when I am getting two dozen eggs a week from about 10 hens. Those will be from an "a" team and a "b" team. I'm planning to try doing it a little different this season. I will put the top five hens in one pen with the best cockerel and the next best five in the other. The rest of the hens will join the RIR pair so that cock doesn't wear out his one hen and I will just eat the white eggs from that pen. That will be all the breeding pens I will have this season. My free range egg flock will be all the Ameraucana hens, the really bad Campine hens, and the Ameraucana rooster. I also have a pet Campine rooster with a bad foot, his name is Hershel, (from TWD, CC, I'm a fan, too) and if he is tolerated by that Am. cock, he will free range with them. The rest will all learn to speak Spanish.

That is great!

Are you going to do the box line?

Bob used to go sit in a chair and let his eyes be drawn to the ones he wanted to use.

Of course that was Bob! I would have to that the SOP out and a tape measure....

 

[Bunnylady]

@vehve - The American Sable's breed standard has the ideal weight around 8 - 9 pounds, so I imagine she looks a lot smaller. That's about the size of the Harlequins that have always been my largest breed. I'd have people come into my rabbitry, see a Harlie, and say, "that's a big rabbit." Since all of the other breeds I have worked are dwarf breeds (5 pounds or less), I can see why they'd think that, but I've often joked about getting a Flemish just so I could say, "no, that's a big rabbit - these guys are just medium sized."

We humans do so much verbal communication, we tend to forget about "body language," but animals are fluent in it, and read it on us even when we don't realize we are "speaking." Working with horses has taught me to be mindful of what I am "saying;" mine read me so well, they can seem to be reading my mind sometimes. Trust me, an animal knows when you are pursuing it, even when you think you are being subtle. Break off the pursuit, and you remove the "threat," so they behave differently.