Linda over at Lindercroft wrote a post last week about the possibilities of raising Rabbits. They're quiet, easy to care for, prolific in raising young and....they're quiet! Did I say that already?
Rabbits might be something you would consider.....check out Linda's article and let me know what you think. Rabbits could put a lot of meat on your table.
The fur could make some nice liners for winter mitts!
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5 comments:
Thanks for posting that Annie... Rabbits are the ultimate backyard livestock!
I agree with the easy to care for and quiet... it takes an awful lot of time for them to reach a suitable weight for harvesting though... and if you live in a warm climate, you really need to take care of vaccinating the breeders with mixomatosis because it's an ugly site seeing your entire 'flock' die of it within days... And it takes a bit of management, keeping the pregnant females apart until the little bunnies are big enough to run away and hide from the rest of the gang.
But, on the positive side, rabbits are easy to harvest and to skin and if you have access to lots of greens, cheap to keep as well.
We raise meat rabbits, too. And I also have some angoras for wool productions. I raise a few chickens for roasters and the rest of our white meat is rabbit. Pretty tasty. I especially like to make Indian dishes with it.
@ Richelle
I let mine go for about 8 weeks and by that time they are about 4 pounds. Dressed they come out at around two pounds. That's plenty big enough for me and my family. It isn't terribly economical to let them go much beyond 8 weeks because the feed to meat conversion slows down.
Giving the rabbits a mixed mineral supplement would help cut down on diseases. I don't think I would ever vaccinate my rabbits.
I also keep my does and bucks in separate cages. There is no problem with pregnant females and the little bunnies. The does are re-bred at 8 weeks when the litter is being butchered for the freezer.
Thanks for giving us all some more information! I LOVE it when blog readers add more information!
Andrea, I have wondered about getting Angora rabbits just for their wool. I will have to look into that!
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