New Zealand Whites

ducks4you

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WOW! Never got to open a forum before! :ep

When I was a kid I had New Zealand Whites. Started with a pair (not on purpose) and had 2 litters, 2 successive years. Believe it or not, I sold them to the local Ben Franklin store, since they had a small pet department and the babies were weaned a few weeks before Easter. (1970's, small town at the time, now BIG suburb of Chicago--people did that sort of thing, then.)

Anybody else keep em? Write back and show some pics, please! :D
 

Nikki28

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I have a buck and two does. Just mated them so hopefully we will have babies soon!

For some reason photobucket wont show me any of my pictures so hopefully I can post some soon!
 

waynesgarden

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No photos of the NZW bunnies yet. Have to send the digital camera out for repairs since it lost the battle with gravity. (Yes, yes, I dropped it.)

I had NZ Whites many years back and had a small but thriving meat rabbit business. This time around, I looked more carefully and bought better breeding stock to start with. First litters should start popping a a few weeks.

I also got a few Californians. They offer a contrast to the snow-white color scheme of the NZs and from what I've read, a cross between the Cals and the NZs produce a splendid meat bunny. I tried one cross breeding last week. Time will tell.

Wayne
 

big brown horse

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waynesgarden said:
No photos of the NZW bunnies yet. Have to send the digital camera out for repairs since it lost the battle with gravity. (Yes, yes, I dropped it.)

I had NZ Whites many years back and had a small but thriving meat rabbit business. This time around, I looked more carefully and bought better breeding stock to start with. First litters should start popping a a few weeks.

I also got a few Californians. They offer a contrast to the snow-white color scheme of the NZs and from what I've read, a cross between the Cals and the NZs produce a splendid meat bunny. I tried one cross breeding last week. Time will tell.

Wayne
I love your chicken avatar Wayne!
 

currycomb

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have a nz buck, very happy with him. one of the does is a great mom, the other one better straighten up or else. she is due on the 1st. her last litter was on the wire instead of in the nest box, so hubby just bred her back, time will tell. the best mom we have had is a white and black spotted doe. same size as a new zeland, and when crossed on NZ buck, get spots, solid white and solid black, but all nice meat rabbits. have a large size dutch doe that crosses well on the NZ. could it be the NZ are just a good outcross rabbit? :D
 

ducks4you

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currycomb said:
... could it be the NZ are just a good outcross rabbit? :D
I'll bet they are. I'm not sure, but they might be the equivalent of a "Heritage Breed.", since they've been a standard breed.

I got my two from a rabbit farm across the street from my housing development (around 1969). They were selling the property (which ended up as a bunch of apartments) and moving to OK. They picked up one baby from one cage and another baby from another cage and I took them.
 

Beekissed

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Used to raise them for some years but no longer do so. I like the breed for meat production and good mothers.
 

jenlyn9483

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I raised NZ and Rex crosses several years back. I just got back into rabbits this past March. I have 2 Does that are NZ, 1 NZ buck and one Cali buck. So far I have had my first litter from my mature doe, babies are 9 weeks. They are from the NZ buck. She had 6 babies all healthy. I still have 2 does and a buck from them. I have handled them from birth so most of them are pretty sweet. I like the size of them, they are pretty meaty in my opinion. I have rebred her to the Cali buck this time so Im interested to see how that turns out..

If a doe has still born babies or has them on the wire and they die or she doesnt take care of them. If you are going to give her a second chance and rebreed her I would wait 3 weeks to rebreed so that her body has time to regenerate from the pregnancy. I also wait 3 weeks to rebreed after babies are weaned. I just feel like I have a better chance of a successful litter if my Doe has time to rest and regenerate
 

Goatzilla

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I love my NZW's. I keep and breed 6 does and a really nice Californian doe for a good meat outcross. Here's a pic of my herd buck. He produces outstanding offspring.
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