What Rabbits Do You Have? Show Off Your Rabbits Here!

[ChocolateMouse]

Kelly, as much as us ladies get a bad rap for screaming at mice and demanding our men squash bugs, I often think girls are less squeamish than men when push comes to shove. I used to work at a pet store and I am an avid fan of all types of pets. The big burly stock men would scream like little girls and run if I presented them with something like a tarantula. (Tarantulas are quite sweet by the way, very soft and docile critters, not scary at all once you have held one a few times.) I would also clean the pirhanna tanks with my bare hands and tame mostly wild juvenile snakes and iguanas, the really mean ones, and some really bitey birds too. The guys would take one look at the snake striking or the bird biting and be scared of it forever.

When I got around to processing bunnies I had a sort of party. The girls there were VERY enthusiastic to learn about it all! The men could barely stand to watch it.

When I butchered a small pig over the summer it was me, my fashionista sister and my BFF who is a 100 lb slip of a girl holding down a baby pig and sticking it with a knife. The boys were inside hiding and would only check on the water for us.

It just seems to be pretty common in men these days! Especially for us city folk!

 

[ChocolateMouse]

And now for the downside of raising bunnies... One of my new, beautiful does just had her first litter. Ya'll may have heard that bunnies have trouble on their first litters; it's true. Most of the trouble I've had have been moms birthing without nesting at all and scattering the kits and then never feeding them. Happens to about 1 in every three rabbits that way.

Diamond had seven kits in her nest. The nest was not well built (almost no hay or fur, very bare) and they were all chilled. Mom had over cleaned two of them. One was half-gone and another is missing it's ears almost entirely. A few more have tiny little bruises or nicks on them that shouldn't matter but are artifacts from the over-vigorous cleaning from a confused mom.

I brought the kits in and have them under a heat lamp in a bed of fur and hay to warm up a little. If the litter makes it, the one will never have ears. :| I cleaned them all off (they were a mess, I think from the one that was only half a one) and put iodine and petroleum jelly on the one's ears. We'll just have to see if I can re-build the nest and get mom to take care of them. I'll be doing this in about 20 minutes to try to get them a meal.

Rabbit breeding brings both good litters and bad. Just first time moms tend to have more bads than other rabbits! This is why we have a three strike rule!

 

[Bunnylady]

Poor guys, they just can't get a break, can they? We bash them for being insensitive brutes; from the time they are small, aggressiveness and displays of strength are discouraged. We turn them into wimps, then we bash them for that, too, and wonder where the real men are.

Killing should never be easy, nor treated in an off-hand manner. We do what we must, no more. If something must die around here, my husband will "man up" and deal with it, though if he's not available, I can cope with it as well. It's my nature to nurture, but I will do what has to be done - and I will probably apologize to the animal before I do it.

It's funny. When my daughter's favorite chicken was killed by a raccoon, she was clamoring for the blood of the beast that ended the life of her darling. But when she looked into the eyes of the terrified, desperate creature once it was trapped, her heart melted, and she pleaded for its life instead. It's nice to have the luxury of being tenderhearted.

Kelly, I back your husband. If you want to kill and eat rabbits, that's fine, but it isn't fair to expect him to kill them, if it wasn't his idea in the first place. To me, it would be akin to expecting my son to clean up after my horses - which he is afraid of! Killing brutalizes us, you can't get around that part, and I cannot despise those who are unwilling to go there.

CM, that's tough about the chewed-up kit. I'm always torn when it comes to the ones that get damaged like that. They can get along without a tail, or even ears, but what if it's a foot that the mother chewed off? Do I try to save it, or is it better to just kill it then? There have been some that got mangled that I kept alive to help warm their siblings, that I then had to kill later - some folks aren't very understanding about 3-legged animals, however they got that way.

Here's hoping your doe gets her act together, and does the rest of her job well.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I don't think killing is brutal if you do it right... I think it's an essential part of the food chain. Someone can be respectful, loving, tender hearted and kind and still kill their own livestock for food.

If some people are too "tender hearted" to kill their own animals, I suppose that makes those of us who work hard to produce and consume meat with as much respect and love as we can instead of factory farmed critters evil and brutish? I will be evil and brutish then. I will feel sad and sick when I process my animals from what I am doing, every time I thank each and every one of them. And I will keep on doing it with pride.

I expect men, and people, to be strong and brave. Strong and brave is doing what you have to do when you have to do it even if something stands in your way because it is the right thing to do. It's not being callous or not caring or not being afraid... And it certainly isn't backing down because you're too "tender hearted". That's not being tender hearted, that's being

. I sure hope that if someone isn't ready to try to get involved with their own food that they're ready to go become a vegetarian! Otherwise they're just sticking his head in the sand and certainly aren't taking responsibility for his place in the food chain. After all, isn't that why we all do things like raising chickens and rabbits in the FIRST place? Rabbits just happen to not be a common food here in the US but are fairly common in other areas in the world. That doesn't make them any less livestock or any more loving than the cow that goes into a hamburger that I bet the same person has no problem eating. And rabbits are more sustainable, especially for a small or urban location.
Even my beau, raised on plastic food in NYC for 18 years and who thought mulberries were poisonous because they were wild berries (he knows better now), steps up and helps. He won't kill or process the rabbits but he brings the carcass in to wash it and bag it and will rinse and bag hides. Sometimes he'll come outside while I'm processing and talk with me. He will bring me the live bunnies over to the processing station and snuggle them and thanks them when he does. He knows we can't raise cows or sheep or more conventional livestock, so this is how we get our food. He's no less sad about the animals turning into food, but he helps anyhow. That's being brave and strong.

/end soapbox rant;

Since my rabbits are meat rabbits I would keep a 3 legged rabbit around and simply not sell it as a breeder. It would grow with the others and then go in my freezer. That is what will probably happen to little Earless here. If it was much worse than "just" ears, or one foot, not sure I'd keep it. This bunny will do fine with no ears for my purposes.

The kits are warm and back out with mom now... Only time will tell more!

 

[SA Farm]

I don't think killing is brutal if you do it right... I think it's an essential part of the food chain. Someone can be respectful, loving, tender hearted and kind and still kill their own livestock for food.
Agreed

If some people are too "tender hearted" to kill their own animals, I suppose that makes those of us who work hard to produce and consume meat with as much respect and love as we can instead of factory farmed critters evil and brutish? I will be evil and brutish then. I will feel sad and sick when I process my animals from what I am doing, every time I thank each and every one of them. And I will keep on doing it with pride.
I don't think that just because some people can't or won't kill their animals makes those of us who do - with respect and care - evil and brutish. To me, everyone plays a part. Maybe those 'tender hearted' types are fantastic gardeners, or house-keepers, or whatever their strength is, rather than the killing aspect of farming. Not everyone is cut out for it.

I expect men, and people, to be strong and brave. Strong and brave is doing what you have to do when you have to do it even if something stands in your way because it is the right thing to do. It's not being callous or not caring or not being afraid... And it certainly isn't backing down because you're too "tender hearted". That's not being tender hearted, that's being

. I sure hope that if someone isn't ready to try to get involved with their own food that they're ready to go become a vegetarian! Otherwise they're just sticking his head in the sand and certainly aren't taking responsibility for his place in the food chain. After all, isn't that why we all do things like raising chickens and rabbits in the FIRST place? Rabbits just happen to not be a common food here in the US but are fairly common in other areas in the world. That doesn't make them any less livestock or any more loving than the cow that goes into a hamburger that I bet the same person has no problem eating. And rabbits are more sustainable, especially for a small or urban location.
Even my beau, raised on plastic food in NYC for 18 years and who thought mulberries were poisonous because they were wild berries (he knows better now), steps up and helps. He won't kill or process the rabbits but he brings the carcass in to wash it and bag it and will rinse and bag hides. Sometimes he'll come outside while I'm processing and talk with me. He will bring me the live bunnies over to the processing station and snuggle them and thanks them when he does. He knows we can't raise cows or sheep or more conventional livestock, so this is how we get our food. He's no less sad about the animals turning into food, but he helps anyhow. That's being brave and strong.

/end soapbox rant;
I agree with most of your rant, but I don't think that being unable to do something makes you a chicken... I guess I'm just too tender-hearted to call people chicken!

Since my rabbits are meat rabbits I would keep a 3 legged rabbit around and simply not sell it as a breeder. It would grow with the others and then go in my freezer. That is what will probably happen to little Earless here. If it was much worse than "just" ears, or one foot, not sure I'd keep it. This bunny will do fine with no ears for my purposes.

The kits are warm and back out with mom now... Only time will tell more!

Glad to hear the babies are warmed up, hope their mama calms down a bit!
I had a doe who scattered her babies, made a crappy nest, and they all died. That was her second litter too. Did great with her first one. She's just been bred with her third, so we'll see how she does this time. Technically only on one strike, but we'll see.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Well, it's more like if making meat happen offends you, why are you eating meat? Most people who are all like "Oh I could NEVER do THAT" are also all like "Omnomnom, bacon, chicken hamburgers for lunch! Omnomnom! Factory farmed animals in squishy pink packages from the grocery! Omnomnom, I will eat animals if I never have to acknowledge that they were animals once!".

I mean I know some people who have an aversion to doing something like that but when push comes to shove they WILL. Like my sister who helped me with the pig won't come over to process rabbits or anything but when I said "You know, we could do a pig roast if you helped me acquire and butcher a local pig" she was all like "YEEES, BACON!". She knows what it is to sit there and help kill an animal so she can eat it and when push came to shove she helped out. She didn't stick it with the knife (I did that), but she was willing to help make her bacon happen because it meant a lot to her to have this locally, farm-raised pig for our roast instead of some factory farmed ham. Her husband, not so much. He was like "I will just go buy a ham and some bacon from the grocery instead if I have to even be in the same room". To me that's not really being tender hearted, kind or strong at all. That's just being callous and not having respect for the animal that becomes your food because that grocery ham came from somewhere awful instead of somewhere beautiful.

Sometimes I also think it feels like the tale of the little red hen. "Who will help me make this thing happen, even just a little? Oh, nobody will because you don't want to. Then why would you all get to eat it? If you won't help make your meat happen even a little, why do you deserve to eat the animals that gave their lives for you?"
When I started raising rabbits, I asked people if they would come over to help me butcher. My only rule was they had to stand with me and help me get through the first 1-2 rabbits and then they could eat tasty bunny meat after. I would butcher, clean and cook. They did not have to kill, gut, skin, wash or bag anything. Just BE there and watch, talk with me, hand me a bottle of cold water if I needed it, and celebrate my job well done afterwards. The majority of people said they would come over and eat dinner, but would not be present for the processing at all not even if they didn't have to do anything but BE there. It reached the point that every single one had invited themselves over for dinner post-butchering while refusing to be there for the first part and I had to step up and be like "No. That's kind of the OPPOSITE of the point of raising rabbits. I am trying to bring people CLOSER to their food. If you want to show up at all, you show up for all of it." Only a few people ended up showing up that day. And true to form, they all stood with me (one of them even brought champagne) while I did the first few rabbits, some of them even helped out, and then I cooked them an awesome rabbit dinner.

It just seems to be a mentality these days that you can have your cake without baking it first. And I really disagree with that. I think we should all do what we can to make our food get to our plates, especially when that food was once a living, breathing animal that has to give up it's life future and potential joy so that you can eat it. And if that means raising rabbit because you can't raise cows... That means raising rabbits.

 

[SA Farm]

Yeah, there is a lot of blind eye turning when it comes to meat. I've seen what happens in commercial meat production places. It's not pretty.

Anyway, what I would like to know is, why is it so much easier to ...er...cull a REW than it is a colourful bunny?

 

[PrimroseMom1]

Well, it's more like if making meat happen offends you, why are you eating meat? Most people who are all like "Oh I could NEVER do THAT" are also all like "Omnomnom, bacon, chicken hamburgers for lunch! Omnomnom! Factory farmed animals in squishy pink packages from the grocery! Omnomnom, I will eat animals if I never have to acknowledge that they were animals once!".

I mean I know some people who have an aversion to doing something like that but when push comes to shove they WILL. Like my sister who helped me with the pig won't come over to process rabbits or anything but when I said "You know, we could do a pig roast if you helped me acquire and butcher a local pig" she was all like "YEEES, BACON!". She knows what it is to sit there and help kill an animal so she can eat it and when push came to shove she helped out. She didn't stick it with the knife (I did that), but she was willing to help make her bacon happen because it meant a lot to her to have this locally, farm-raised pig for our roast instead of some factory farmed ham. Her husband, not so much. He was like "I will just go buy a ham and some bacon from the grocery instead if I have to even be in the same room". To me that's not really being tender hearted, kind or strong at all. That's just being callous and not having respect for the animal that becomes your food because that grocery ham came from somewhere awful instead of somewhere beautiful.

Sometimes I also think it feels like the tale of the little red hen. "Who will help me make this thing happen, even just a little? Oh, nobody will because you don't want to. Then why would you all get to eat it? If you won't help make your meat happen even a little, why do you deserve to eat the animals that gave their lives for you?"
When I started raising rabbits, I asked people if they would come over to help me butcher. My only rule was they had to stand with me and help me get through the first 1-2 rabbits and then they could eat tasty bunny meat after. I would butcher, clean and cook. They did not have to kill, gut, skin, wash or bag anything. Just BE there and watch, talk with me, hand me a bottle of cold water if I needed it, and celebrate my job well done afterwards. The majority of people said they would come over and eat dinner, but would not be present for the processing at all not even if they didn't have to do anything but BE there. It reached the point that every single one had invited themselves over for dinner post-butchering while refusing to be there for the first part and I had to step up and be like "No. That's kind of the OPPOSITE of the point of raising rabbits. I am trying to bring people CLOSER to their food. If you want to show up at all, you show up for all of it." Only a few people ended up showing up that day. And true to form, they all stood with me (one of them even brought champagne) while I did the first few rabbits, some of them even helped out, and then I cooked them an awesome rabbit dinner.

It just seems to be a mentality these days that you can have your cake without baking it first. And I really disagree with that. I think we should all do what we can to make our food get to our plates, especially when that food was once a living, breathing animal that has to give up it's life future and potential joy so that you can eat it. And if that means raising rabbit because you can't raise cows... That means raising rabbits.

I had not thought that much about it until I started raising chickens. My chickens are for eggs only, but through having rabbits and chickens, I have studied all aspects, including processing. I saw that the conditions rabbits and chickens live in that are sold in the grocery stores is appalling. If I buy in a grocery store, I only buy organic free range no matter the cost. I have also seen the kind of processing you are talking about: treated with love during it's life and with love and gratitude at its death. You do it the right way.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Kathryn, some of us just don't like that REW look. Blood red demon pupils in the middle of clear, viscous flesh blobs for eyes staring at you is kinda creepy as opposed to big, brown cow eyes. It doesn't help that many REW rabbits like NZW/Calis etc can be very temperamental seeing as they're rarely bred for being nice or for pets.

Plus the white is a blank slate. I have 10 breeder NZWs. If I hadn't ha them all for so long I would NEVER be able to tell them apart. My beau has no idea who is who sometimes. I might not notice if someone switched some of the cages up on me, especially the ones that are closely related like my two sisters. They are all just kind of the "same". Whereas spots, well one kit may have a spot on it's head shaped like a heart where another one doesn't even within the same litter. They are all more "individuals" to us and that makes things more valuable in our little human minds. Like we don't go bawling every day over the 7 million dogs or cats killed every year. They're just "a bunch of dogs and cats" that have died. But we'd cry our eyes out if our special pet dog or cat that's part of the family died because they were unique to us.

Not that REW's don't have redeeming qualities or can't be unique or friendly. It's just easier I think when you're more distant from them, can't even tell them apart, etc. That's why people don't often name their food animals, too. It's just "that one".
Mine all get colors and/or numbers for names. If you pointed at a rabbit in my grow out cage I could tell you all about it in relation to the other rabbits around it at a glance because of that, even though they all look the same. I make an effort to get to know my food, even if I don't name them.

 

[SA Farm]

Good point, CM. I've had rabbits for years and I raise the REW for meat and keep some smaller coloured rabbits to breed for pets. Still have to cull the occasional pet one and it's always more difficult. I think part of it is the mindset. If I have a coloured NZ, it's easier than one I've designated for a pet in my mind. Mind over matter, I suppose