Rabbits for food?

[jamesanddee]

Sorry if this is not the right topic section to post this in. . . but, I think it's the closest.

I am thinking of keeping rabbits for food and their pelts in the bottom end of our allotment - once we get down there and clear all the debris away. From what I have read on line, it does seem pretty simple to provide a good regular source of food from rabbits.

We have permission from the allotment committee,have ideas about how to go about it. . . .but we are wondering if there is any practical advise, hints and tips to rearing rabbits for meat?? Has anyone here kept them? Are they as easy as chooks? Many thanks for your input.

J+D

[Bren In Pots]

My Dad did this when I was a kid but I don't remember too much about apart from having a rabbits foot on my pencil case and the new teacher saying it was gross.

Anyway I've had a look on-line and found this article :-

Downsizer: for a sustainable & ethical future - Keeping Rabbits for Meat

[jamesanddee]

Many thanks for the link. . . about to read through it now Rabbits feet could be a side line as well

[mothhawk]

Choose your breed well. Some rabbits are meat rabbits, some are "fancy" rabbits - are you going to sell pelts or cure and use them yourself? Make sure you have a market for the pelts before you choose a breed - if there is no market for the skin, no point buying a breed just for a beautiful quality pelt.

I would say don't get too big a breed. Gestation is 31 days, and the young are ready for eating at 60 days, and of course your does will already be pregnant again. So say each doe raises a litter every 2 months - that's a lot of rabbits at an average of 6 or 7 per litter. A lot of meat. Also a lot of rabbits to kill

Get some padlocks - you don't want kids letting them out "to play with".

Remember rabbits dig, so if you keep them in a run it needs to be wire mesh floored.

Some practical advice here
and have a read of rabbit keeping forums.

[marchogaeth]

Read up and go on a course or find a local rabbit farmer if you can. I kept them as small business when I was a teenager. I would say there is quite a lot of management involved, as with any livestock. You might need to think about bio security more than you think - keeping rats out but also cats and dogs; the doe will eat her litter if she feels threatened or gets stressed (and sometimes just because it's Monday).
The killing is the worst bit. I'm not soft but it was the thing that really made it not worth while for me.

[dim]

my dad used to breed rabbits for eating .... lovely meat when cooked proper ....

however, since moving to the UK, I have not eaten rabbits .... too many wild rabbits in my area are hopping around with Myxomatosis ....

our local butcher seems to sell plenty though

[petal]

New Zealand or Californian I believe make good meat breeds. Low fat and easy to rear. Good idea, if they were not so cute and cuddly I would do it.

[roitelet]

I do keep rabbits for meat, one buck and two does. They are not difficult and the meat is really good. I feed them granules and lots of veg and dry hard bread which is good for their teeth as well as hay. They do use a lot of hay and straw so you need to think about storage for it. As for housing wood does not last all that long as apart form digging they will gnaw anything. I have concrete hutches but I don't know if they are available in the UK. They are expensive and you could well need more that you think. If you have a population explosion as I had last year even with 14 hutches we were a bit over crowded.

Then comes the quesion of dispatching them. How will you do it? Not a nice job and you must NOT get attached to them, they are very sweet and each one has it's own caracter.

If you have any specific questions please PM me and I will try to answer them

[dim]

I'm looking for a rabbit breeder in Cambridge .... would love to buy some rabbit poo for my compost bins

[Two_Sheds]

I'm looking for a rabbit breeder in Cambridge .... would love to buy some rabbit poo for my compost bins

You don't need a breeder, just someone with a pet rabbit. There must be loads near you: put an ad on Freegle

[Two_Sheds]

I am thinking of keeping rabbits for food

Mr TS says you should try guinea pig: it tastes like hamster



High in protein, low in fat - it's chargrilled super guinea pig - Telegraph

[PyreneesPlot]

I have concrete hutches

Do you have a run for them as well, or just the concrete hutches? Hutches are often being given away around here as most houses have them but they are rarely used.

[roitelet]

I do have a run for the pets but those intended for the pot stay in the hutches. They seem quite happy and the concrete hutches have a removable panel in them so you can double the size. My male lopeared spend most of his time in the chicken run!

If they are being given away grab them but they weigh a ton and really need to be on a concrete base or they will sink into the ground and start to break up.