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Rex is my favorite. Nice meat conformation, sweet dispositions, usually healthy and reliable breeders. Their fur is a bonus. It has no guard hairs so it doesn't shed after tanning and has a chinchilla look and feel.

If you have a small family large rabbits are a waste of feed. I like standard Rex, which are a midsize rabit. Floridas are also a good choice if you can find them. They are essentially a mid sized version of NZ whites.

I watched my grandfather as a kid and learned to skin fryers as he did. Cut a slit crossways in the middle of the back, just enough to get a couple of fingers under the hide. Pull in opposite directions. The skin will tear and pull off in two pieces. It ruins the hides but it's a waste of time...

Don't bother trying to tan hides of rabbits less than 6 months old.The older the better for hides. Hides from fryer rabbits are paper thin and too fragile for most any use. Rolling the hides with the fur on the inside and enclosing in a baggie then putting them in the frrezer will preserve them...

Good list except for one thing. Never EVER feed dry beans. They are impossible for rabbits to digest and contain strong toxins. The only reason humans can eat them is that the toxins are destryed by the heat of cooking them. In re the apple slices, only as treats and in small amounts. They...

I always have hay available for fiber and to keep teeth worn down but almost all of my rabbits diet is greens with some grains and BOSS in cold weather. I try to avoid pellets since mills will often change formulas without notice depending on what are the cheapest ingredients for them. I grow...

They'll be on their way to an organic co op tomorrow. It's a relief to know they'll be well cared for. I can start over when I get out of the hospital and rehab in a month or so.

I just found out I will need bypass surgery as soon as possible. I have a full meat setup, rabbits, cages and miscelaneous equipment that I have to get rid of fast. I have been producing around twenty fryers per month with it and it could produce more if you push the does a bit or grow out a few...

I start with a handfull of coarse salt like kosher or sea salt and rub down the carcass with it; follow that with a hose down with cold water and you should have a reasonably clean carcass. A few stray hairs will not be noticeable after cooking.

Rabbits don't have claws per se. They are more like toenails. They rake instead of clawing so it doesn't take much protection. They don't penetrate deeply like cats claws do. A sweatshirt is the best thing to wear when handling them. It's thick enough to stop the raking. If you are having...

When I have enough available I pile it between my plants so thick it acts as a mulch to smother weeds between my veggies. I have yet to have any burning from it. A bonus is that you will see more worms under it than you ever saw before.

Be aware that the so called "animal rights" people have a lot of nutcases among their members. A sign like that can subject your vehicle to vandalism or, worse yet, tip them off so they can call in the humane society whether justified or not. Sad to say all rabbit raisers have to be on our guard...

For some reason my rabbits are very reluctant to eat any Purina feed. I have no idea why but I trust their good judgement. They will only eat it when nothing else is available. I think one of the problems is Purina feeds are often stale when you get them.

Anything in the cabbage family should be fed cautiously. Give only small amounts till they develop the proper intestinal bateria to handle it. The problem is gas. A rabbit cannot pass gas at either end so the pressure could cause them pain.

What size is the floor wire? I find that 1/2X1 takes a lot less cleaning than 1/2X1/2. When I frist started using it I was worried about kits legs going through and getting injured but it doesn't seem to happen.

My rabbits all love ACV in their water. First be sure it is actual ACV and not just apple flavored. I buy the organic to be sure I get the real thing. It isn't all that expensive since it doesn't take much. There is nothing harmful in ACV and it acts as a good tonic as well as helping to avoid...

First check your pellets to see that they smell fresh. They often do that with stale feed that has lost its taste. They're looking for fresh feed. Sometimes they are just doing it out of boredom. Giving them a few toys such as blocks of white wood to play with may help. I find that if I let them...

Any hay will do but it is important not to have stiff stems, which can poke into the eyes of the kits, a common cause of nest box eye. I prefer orchard grass because it is almost all leaf with vey few stems and easy for the doe to shred if she is so inclined.

When it comes to breeding for meat I actually prefer meat mutts to pure breeds. I find they are hardier and less prone to disease. Those in the picture look as though they have a decent conformation for meat and your line can be improved by culling as you develop your herd.

Sometimes the hardest part of removing th gall bladder is finding the darn thing. It can be hidden between lobes of the liver. If you accidentally burst it, it isn't that big a problem. The gall bladder size compared to the liver size in a rabbit is pretty small and doesn't affect the taste that...