what breed to use

[nstilwater]

i am new to raising meat rabbits what breed would be best to use i live in pacific northwest so it is wet and windy alot

 

[AZ Rabbits]

I would recommend any of the standard meat rabbits:
- New Zealand
- Californian
- American Blue or White
- Palominos
- Satins
- Champagne d'Argent

My personal favorite is the American Blues and NZW's.

Good luck!

 

[Ms. Research]

My Rabbit Vet was very successful with New Zealands.

I on the other hand, want a smaller rabbit than New Zealands (need to stay small) so I'm looking at Florida Whites. They are really good smaller meat rabbits if you don't have the room for bigger.

Depends on what you want to do with your meat rabbits. Are they just for you, or do you plan to mass produce?


BTW, cute avatar AZ.

K

 

[DKRabbitry]

I recommend any rabbit breed, or mix thereof, that is large enough to suit you and your needs and is available to you at an affordable price. I, personally, like trying out different mixes. Have a litter of NZW/Mini Satin mixes due this week

If you want to sell to people, I recommend sticking with a more popular breed with a white coat (NZW or Cali). I have noticed folks around here get stuck on something and that is what they want to buy. I can sell 1 show quality giant chin for twice as much as a meat quality NZ, but I will sell 3 times as many meat quality NZs as giant chinchillas even at the same price! Figure that one out... I just don't think folks know how great Giant Chins are... speaking of which, I NEED to get to work on that breed page!!!

For my table, I don't care about color or breed, so I just raise what is nice and has a good temperament with a good full loin & hindquarter. My purebreds are Champagne D'Argent & Giant Chin, but also have some mutts, NZs and a Mini Satin for the kids to play with.

 

[nstilwater]

My Rabbit Vet was very successful with New Zealands.

I on the other hand, want a smaller rabbit than New Zealands (need to stay small) so I'm looking at Florida Whites. They are really good smaller meat rabbits if you don't have the room for bigger.

Depends on what you want to do with your meat rabbits. Are they just for you, or do you plan to mass produce?


BTW, cute avatar AZ.

K

jsut for my family of five all boys so they eat alot just want to have a couple litters a year

 

[DKRabbitry]

Have you started looking for rabbits in your area? When we got into rabbits, we just started with what we found in the classifieds. They worked out pretty well and we fumbled through figuring things out reading books and reading online, but I found that once we started getting them from breeders in our area, it was much better because you could talk to them and get tips from them. You can read all you want about "good hindquarters" but it really sinks in when someone pulls out two rabbits and says "Feel this, THIS is a good hindquarter. Now feel this one, it is not as good"

 

[Ms. Research]

Have you started looking for rabbits in your area? When we got into rabbits, we just started with what we found in the classifieds. They worked out pretty well and we fumbled through figuring things out reading books and reading online, but I found that once we started getting them from breeders in our area, it was much better because you could talk to them and get tips from them. You can read all you want about "good hindquarters" but it really sinks in when someone pulls out two rabbits and says "Feel this, THIS is a good hindquarter. Now feel this one, it is not as good"

Excellent Advise DKRabbitry.

K

 

[PinkFox]

my personal opinion is use a breed your enjoy, but not like so much you wont be able to process...
if there jsut going to be meat and theres kids involved sticking to a "simple" rabbit (plain white wiht pink eyes) seems to be the way to go lol...most people think they look "creepy" and have an easier time butchering them. in those cases Nz's, Calis and Florida whites tend to be the best way to go.
mabe you want to raise for fur too as a byproduct (bunny pelts off fryers tend to be thin, but are usable for craft projects if your carefull)
in which case you might want to look into something with a fanicer coat, colors or texture (chins, satins, rex's)

things to keep in mind are "how available are they" if your just looking for rabbits for your own table and NOT worried about reselling them you could do a mix, or go with whatevers easily acessable...generally in a flooded market of a certain breed youll either get good money or very little for any you try to sell off...
and if complelty new to rabbits its always good to go with something people locally "know" so they can help you out.
BUT you may also decide youd rather have smething a little more "special" that might market alive a bit better too, in which case something a little harder to find MIGHT fetch a nicer penny IF theres the market for it...

i think its a very personal choice.
since your going for table rabbits for your family id stick with one of the more commonly available breeds like the newzelands or calis...
avoid those selling flemish giants as meaties...while they can be nice to mix into a meat herd as breeders as table rabbits pure flemmish are too heavy on the one to get a good meaty.
from what ive been told, the newzealands tend to be "the choice" for comercial ops due to large litter size, survival rate and growth rate.


personally i want standard rex's as my meaties, not realy a "traditional" meaty breed, but they make good meaties, great mommas and have a lovely coat to boot

 

[oneacrefarm]

A couple litters a year won't feed your family. If your boys eat alot you will need two per meal. So two rabbits, twice a week, is 204 rabbits a year. The average litter size is about 8 for meat rabbits, so you need 25 litters per year. Depending on how often you want to breed them, you will need AT LEAST 4 breeding does, more like 5 and AT LEAST one buck, two would be better so that you will have a back up.

 

[Citylife]

A couple litters a year won't feed your family. If your boys eat alot you will need two per meal. So two rabbits, twice a week, is 204 rabbits a year. The average litter size is about 8 for meat rabbits, so you need 25 litters per year. Depending on how often you want to breed them, you will need AT LEAST 4 breeding does, more like 5 and AT LEAST one buck, two would be better so that you will have a back up.

I totally agree........... I have FW's and like them alot. Although......... they have 4-8 kits per litter. Where NZ's and CA's have 9-14 or so......... Now, of course they dont all, always live.......... but the survival rate may be better. ?
You can easily butcher them at 8 weeks old and they will be a very efficient animal for you. Stick with animals that are bland looking. Pink eyes are good, as stated earlier they look freaky to some. My FW's are only cute for about 4-6 days then they are eating machines looking to be my dinner later. And the sooner, the better. I love my rabbits.......... they supply me and others some wonderful meals. And we enjoy taking care of them.
Good luck to you. This is a great place for some help.