Tre3hugger's Rabbit Thread

Tre3hugger

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Got my pair Friday of American Chinchilla rabbits. They are really nice, full rabbits. Both are pedigreed and tattooed.
This is the buck. His parents weighed 9lb12oz and 9lb13oz. He was born 6/25/2020. He is in a 36"x30'x18' cage
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And here is the doe. Her parents weighed 10lb12oz and 9lb4oz. She was born 4/4/2020. She is in a 48'x30'x18' cage.
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They are eating and drinking well and I am thrilled to have them! I plan to pick up a 6 month old NZ doe next week to round out the trio. My plan for these rabbits is to breed both does 4 or 5 times a year at the same time. I will put all of the NZ/AmChin mixes in the freezer. As far as the pure AmChins go, I will try to sell pedigreed kits (no younger than 8 weeks) for pet and show. I think I will ask $40-50 a rabbit. The pair have quite a few legs on their pedigree and there seems to be just enough interest in my area but not too many people breeding them that I may just make some sales. The ones that don't sell, I will put in the freezer. Depending on how the pure bred litters look, sooner or later I will replace the current doe and buck selecting from their offspring for fast growth.

Overall goals for the trio would be about 75lbs or more of meat a year and sell enough rabbits to pay for feed (and maybe make a bit of money from my farm!?!?!?!? A boy can dream). Hopefully the NZ/AmChin hybrids will be highly productive meat litters, and the little money I may make from the AmChins will hopefully offset food for the extra couple weeks it may take them to reach market weight. It will be interesting and fun to try and make my line of AmChins more "meaty" while preserving and spreading this endangered heritage breed.

I just ordered a record log book that comes with pedigree sheets so I can provide that for anyone that buys a pet rabbit from me. Also ordered a hanging scale so I can weigh these guys and keep accurate weight records. I think I will also get a tattoo pen, just for the rabbits I may pedigree/sell. I am feeling very optimistic about this venture and have been spending time with the buns each day trying to get them used to me for easier handling. A little apple slice goes a long way!!

If you've read this far, thanks!! I have a couple questions.

I have been feeding Poulin 18% protein rabbit feed, about 4-6 oz a day. Supplementing with a little handful of timothy hay a day, and a piece of fruit here and there.. Is this an adequate feeding routine?

I plan to attempt to breed them on Tues or Wed. Is a few days long enough for them to have settled in and be "in the mood" or should I give it another week or two?

Lastly, what is the best way to hold and restrain an unfamiliar rabbit for a thorough looking over? I would like to get a good look at their feet and genitals and bodies in general. Ideally I would like to do this on a routine just to stay on top of their health? How do you guys accomplish this?

I appreciate everyone who assisted me in choosing my rabbits. I'm sure I will have lots more questions as time goes on. Glad to be part of this community.

Thanks for reading!
 

promiseacres

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For handling and a look over have a small carpet square on a table. When pickingup a bunny you can lightly scruff them behind the ears then use your other hand under their belly or scoping up their behind. Carry them close with their nose tucked in a elbow. On the carpet you can work on posing and flipping them over. To flip gently grab ears (or scruff) & flip. It takes practice but once you flip you can check nails and genitals. Did the breeder give you feed for transferring to your feed? Our NZ get 3/4-1 cup of feed plus grass hay. It's 16% so what you're feeding sounds fine, you might need to adjust. I woukd suggest looking for an arba video for handling. Pet or rescues have funny ideas that scuffing or flipping a rabbit is cruel. But when done in a gentle manner it's necessary for a breeder and not cruel. Good luck!
 

Tre3hugger

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For handling and a look over have a small carpet square on a table. When pickingup a bunny you can lightly scruff them behind the ears then use your other hand under their belly or scoping up their behind. Carry them close with their nose tucked in a elbow. On the carpet you can work on posing and flipping them over. To flip gently grab ears (or scruff) & flip. It takes practice but once you flip you can check nails and genitals. Did the breeder give you feed for transferring to your feed? Our NZ get 3/4-1 cup of feed plus grass hay. It's 16% so what you're feeding sounds fine, you might need to adjust. I woukd suggest looking for an arba video for handling. Pet or rescues have funny ideas that scuffing or flipping a rabbit is cruel. But when done in a gentle manner it's necessary for a breeder and not cruel. Good luck!
Thank you so much! Carpet square makes sense.
 

Grizzlyhackle

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The doe is so silly! She always does zoomies at feeding time and throws stuff around her cage. Buck is a lot more laid back.
I've got a pair of am chin does. The one is goofy , little flighty but clued into where you are in the yard. The other one is a sweetheart gets all excited like yours but touch her and she stretches out for head scratching. Good choice, I like mine. Looking at your pictures, are your cages made with 16 awg wire. I ask because it can be rough on their feet. If it's 14 awg you're ok. But you might want to add a board or something like that they can sit on. Good luck.
 

Tre3hugger

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I've got a pair of am chin does. The one is goofy , little flighty but clued into where you are in the yard. The other one is a sweetheart gets all excited like yours but touch her and she stretches out for head scratching. Good choice, I like mine. Looking at your pictures, are your cages made with 16 awg wire. I ask because it can be rough on their feet. If it's 14 awg you're ok. But you might want to add a board or something like that they can sit on. Good luck.
I was just spending some time with them and she did just as you described! All zoomie and excited, when I presented my hand and tried to pet her, she just relaxed and closed her eyes! Progress. :)
She is kind of a jerk though. I made cardboard hides for them. Cut them all nice and painstakingly placed them. She immediately tossed the entire thing around the cage, into the water bowl spilling all the water I had JUST FILLED. Lol her antics are fun. The buck just reasonably investigated and nibbled a corner. I removed her box for now, and will be working on something a bit sturdier for the both of them. Hopefully it warms up a bit soon so I can start using my flexi-tube water system!

RE: the wire and their feet. I am not sure what the guage is. They are the modular cages from KW, but I couldn't find that info on the website. Either way, I gave them some card board pads to rest on for now, and have the nice plastic rest pads on the way in the mail. They should have arrived today but, you guessed it, USPS is delayed!
 
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Tre3hugger

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Picked up my other doe today. A tort (I believe) NZ who was born 10/12/20 and already weighs nine pounds! She is gorgeous and currently settling into her new home. I took a quick peek at her bits and she looks WAY more receptive than my other doe who hasn't been lifting. Perhaps tomorrow will be the day I get to fill in some spaces in my breeder log! :fl Didn't want to bother her too much just yet. Pics to come!

Also, I got weights on my AmChins. The doe is just over 10lbs and the buck just over 9#. Right on target. :)
 
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