Did you know?Rabbit has the highest protein and lowest fat & cholesterol of all meats. It is also the most digestible. The US Department of Agriculture has stated that domestic rabbit meat is “the most nutritious meat known to man”. Look at the chart below for USDA meat comparisons: Meat Type % Protein % Fat Calories per lb. Rabbit 20.8 4.5 795 Chicken 20.0 17.9 810 Turkey 20.1 20.0 1,190 Lamb 15.7 27.7 1,420 Beef 16.3 28.0 1,440 Pork 11.9 45.0 2,050 Rabbits are all white meat and taste like a cross between chicken breast and tender white pork. Rabbit is high in protein, low in fat, with no trace of gaminess often associated with eating wild rabbit. Champagnes are rumored to be the Black Angus of rabbits.
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Some Friendly AdviceI see it quite often. New breeders get excited to be into the new fantastic world of showing and breeding rabbits, that they jump in too quickly. They buy a number of rabbits at one time, not really knowing the difference between quality and how to properly evaluate. I see it often, that the majority of time, said rabbits aren't actually very good quality. They may have nice points, but not overall a nicely typed rabbit, or at least not all of them are.
It is sad, that some breeders don't care about selling poor quality off to new breeders. Why care when it's money in your pocket right? Wrong. We as old time breeders should be helping those new breeders start off with QUALITY animals. We should take the time to go through each animal with the new breeder and talk with them and explain things. Help them learn how to properly evaluate and guide them in the right direction. Some breeders get so wrapped up in themselves and winning that they completely ignore the fact that they should be helping new breeders and not giving them a poor start. I don't care if you are a youth, 4H'er, an adult, new or old when it comes to showing; I will not sell anything that I would not use personally in my herd. Why would I sell something that I wouldn't want in my herd? I believe in helping everyone improve their herd, and not just selling off rabbits that should be culled just to make some money. I'm not in this for the money. It is a hobby, an expensive one at that and yet I still think everyone deserves quality animals. Back to my first two sentences. I see it very often. New breeders jump right into things without really stopping to think. They'll buy a good amount of rabbits, not always necessarily knowing the true quality of said animals. I find it is better to start off with a trio. Work with said trio a bit, get the doe's bred and see what they produce. Take them to shows and get opinions hands on from other breeders and judges about the quality. By getting a bunch all at once, the breeder can get stuck with some that aren't really of good quality. Then it becomes a matter of do you sell it for a pet at a discounted price than payed, or just say screw it and cull it. Either way, it most likely has become a waste and loss of money. By buying only a trio or smaller number of rabbits, it's not that big of a blow if they don't turn out to actually be too nice. I say it all the time, and I'm going to say it again. You've gotta know your lines! Buy rabbits that have the same lines in them, and work with those lines. Getting to know your lines is very important. Not all lines mix well together, so when you buy a number of rabbits and start breeding them, they may not all mix well together. They may end up producing poorer quality because those two rabbits just didn't mix well. Two amazing quality animals can produce crap, just like crappier rabbits do have the ability of producing good quality. Crap produces crap when bred together, but I've had a rabbit of poorer quality bred to one of decent/nice quality produce good quality. Just because two animals don't produce well together, does not necessarily mean that those two animals produce poor animals. It just means together they do. Test breeding them with different animals will help figure that out. By buying all at once, new breeders can set themselves up for heavy disappointment when said animals don't do well. They are excited about having rabbits, that hearing that the animals they just got aren't actually as nice as they thought they are. That really hurts. I know because it happened to me personally. I started out with a few animals, not many, and was told that they were really nice quality by the breeder. I start showing them only to find out they really aren't nice. It hurts. I kept them as pets, but had already bred them. I sold the offspring as pets and got some actual quality animals then. I just hate seeing new breeders jump in, just to crash and burn eventually. Another thing I notice, is new breeders getting a bunch of different colours all at once. Focus on a few colours and after you've got a herd established to a quality that you are proud of, then think about adding more colours, or even another breed. I really don't see how anything can be improved with smaller rabbitries when there are multiple breeds and/or multiple colours in each. There's no space to focus on improving said colour and/or breed. If you have a big barn that can hold a lot of animal, than that's great. I'm not saying there is something wrong with having a smaller rabbitry. I have a smaller herd and I have three breeds, but I cull. Culling helps a lot with keeping space down. This way I don't have to wait until that rabbit(s) that I am not using sells. I don't find it helpful to waste my cage space, limited money and time on an animal that I am not using. Another thing I'm going to note is price does not make the quality. You can pay a low amount for a really nice quality animal, and a high amount for a pet quality rabbit. Legs and wins on parents does not mean a thing either on offspring. Just because I may pay over a hundred dollars on the parents, does not automatically mean that every kit produced from those rabbits are worth that price as well. Just like I may pay fifty dollars for some rabbits, but sell their kits for a higher price. You have to price according to quality, not parents and ancestry. Trust me, you do not need to make up that money that was spent on the parents in one kit. If I spend say two hundred dollars on a pair of quality animals, and breed them and get a litter of six. Say I keep two and sell four all for fifty dollars, well there's my money back. Now anything after that litter is extra money because the parents have already paid off. Also, something I notice occasionally is new breeders, or even old breeders who price their rabbits high (despite quality and everything) just because they see another breeder who prices high. If someone, like myself, have put the time and money into getting those quality show animals, then the prices are most likely going to be higher than a breeder that doesn't like to pay more than forty or fifty dollars a rabbit. Price according to what you alone feel is the quality of your animals, not what others are pricing their rabbits. Take the time and research different breeders prior to buying. You don't need to jump at the first one you find, and don't need to get every rabbit that's for sale. Take your time. If the breeder isn't really willing to answer questions, than my suggestion if to find a different breeder. Always look them over in person prior to buying them and ask questions in person. Have the owner go over the rabbit, in proper pose with you. I wish all breeders were caring and responsible and actually took the time to help new breeders out, but sadly not all are. There are a lot more around now than when I started but still some that don't agree with this. All I can do is help guide these new breeders in the right direction of breeders that have quality animals and will help them as well. I know I for one am in this for better the breed's I raise, not just my own herd. I want to help improve the breed as a whole, and that includes helping others improve as well. These are all solely my opinion. You do not need to agree with any of it, but please do take the time to consider what was said. I have been through this personally and do not wish it on others. I started with a few animals that I was told were nice animals by the breeders, just to find out that they really weren't nice at all. Because of this, it has helped me very much to work hard at getting nice animals and help others to avoid it. I don't settle for anything. If I am looking at buying an animal, I will wait and continue to look until I find something that meets my requirements. "One of the things that gets me (okay, I admit the list is long) about the back and forth struggle over proper rabbit husbandry is that both parties – the house rabbit side and breeder side – feel pressured to be “perfect.” We feel pressured to paint a picture that both sides know is unrealistic and unattainable. And I admit, I’m not immune to that. In fact, I put unrealistic expectations on myself – I don’t need anyone else to do it for me. Ideally, my rabbitry would always be as spotless and eye-catching as in the photo above. Do you see the sparkle? This was taken after one of our deep cleans in 2013. I work HARD to keep as much of that condition as I can in between major cleanings, but I often feel maxed out and exhausted over the things I don’t have time for. The reality is that we’re working with animals. All of us are. We may like our floors spotless, our dishes clean, our laundry hung in the yard, and our beds freshly made. Animals have a different idea, and it takes a super-human to maintain an animal’s living conditions as if you might eat off the floor. Anyone who is a mom probably understands where I’m coming from. Some days, you really feel like you have it all together. Other days, there’s dirty laundry in the sink, food on the couch, and a naked baby under the kitchen table. That doesn’t make you less of a parent; it doesn’t make you less of an pet owner. It’s life, and it’s the same one we’re all living. So if you expect to come in my rabbitry, take off your shoes, and snack on some finger foods, let me warn you now. It might be best to leave your snacks in the car and pull your boots back on. Here’s 10 things you might find in a real rabbitry: 1. Poop. Lots of it. It might be in the drop trays of the cages, it might be in a food dish, it might be on the floor. It might be under your foot. If it’s not there yet, wait five minutes. If you’re going to raise “animal awareness,” it’s important to realize that poop is good and healthy. If the animal isn’t standing in it, there’s no concern. It’s best to accept it, scoop it up, and move on. 2. Healthy animals. Before you crucify the breeder for the poop that either already exists or will within minutes, take a glance at the animals in the barn. Do they appear healthy? Are their eyes bright and wide? Are they active? Is their fur shiny and soft? If the animals are healthy, there’s a good chance they’re well cared for and loved. Even if their bottles don’t feature Brita filters. 3. Sick animals. Before it becomes a headline, consider this: Animals get sick. Animals get old. Ask the breeder what steps they’re taking to correct the issue, but don’t expect any vet references. Rabbit savvy vets are far and few between, and breeders have spent decades honing their first aid skills. One or two downtrodden animals aren’t a reflection of the breeder’s husbandry. 4. Dead animals. Sometime last summer, I walked into a dairy barn and found a small calf laying in the middle aisle, covered in a blanket. Among further inspection, he was dead. An experience like that definitely pulls on your heartstrings and may appear sad or cruel, but there is a difference between dead animals and decaying animals. Just like animals get sick or get old, an animal occasionally dies. Sometimes it’s conveniently after the owner arrives home for the evening and can deal with the “arrangements.” Other times, it happens when the owner is running out the door, already late to work. We can’t time these things. We don’t want them to happen either. But sometimes there is a block of time between the death and when the owner can properly dispose of the body. If PETA breaks down the door before disposal happens…well, it looks worse than it is. 5. Fur. If you visit in the spring or fall, wear your hair-resistant body suit or you’re in for a real treat. Rabbits molt twice a year, meaning they let their ENTIRE COAT loose and then run around, shaking and kicking every fiber into unreachable places (at least, this is what I imagine happens as soon as I leave the house). If the fur is below eyeball level, my shop vac will suck it up as soon as I arrive home. If it’s over your head…well, that’s what we call “redneck insulation.” 6. Hay. In no place specific. Just everywhere. At least it’s clean. 7. Medicine, syringes, and needles. It doesn’t mean the rabbits are sick. This is how I keep them healthy; I stay prepared. There is a rabbit waiting until each bottle expires. If I’m a day late to restock, I’m a rabbit down. 8. Dust. I like to pass the “clean finger test” as much as the next person, but there are more important things in life. Like dealing with all that poop I mentioned. 9. None of these things. ”Whaaaat? But you just said…” I know, I know! The most important thing to remember is that these are all realities of raising rabbits (or any animal). At any given time, any one (or more) of the items on this list might be present. But they shouldn’t always be present. There will be poop – but that doesn’t mean we stop cleaning it. There may be healthy animals – that doesn’t mean we stop caring for them. There may be dead animals – that doesn’t mean it happens every day. There may be hay – I still sweep it. There’s probably dust – I still clean it. There is probably medicine, syringes, and needles…they’re the exception. They’re always present. My point is that the reality of raising animals is that it’s a constant circle of cleaning and care. There are days I look around and think, “What a mess!” But that’s why there are days I spend 14 hours on my knees scrubbing the crevices I had never noticed before. Farmers, ranchers, and breeders are just normal, everyday people. In this day and age, they’re not only maintaining animal projects but often keep one or more full- or part-time jobs outside the animals to make ends meet. We should absolutely strive to meet standards of cleanliness and “perfection.” But we’re humans and sometimes we fall short. That leads me to… 10. Passion. A good animal shepherd isn’t negligent or self-serving. He isn’t malicious or unaware. Somewhere along the way, he loved an animal and never looked back. Even if he can’t dust today, he will tomorrow. And it’s not because anyone else told him to." --Rabbit Ranching http://rabbitranching.wordpress.com/2014/02/25/through-the-window/ The above article was taken from http://rabbitranching.wordpress.com/2014/02/25/through-the-window/ It's a very good read, and quite funny at parts. Any rabbit breeder, or even pet owner should take a look. It's a very true and accurate article. I personally try to make sure my barn is clean when people are coming over to pick up rabbits, but sometimes it's just not. Life gets in the way, and everyone needs to be aware of that. I am a very clean person when it comes to my barn. I sweet every time I step inside, because I can't stand stepping on poop, hay or shavings. That's just me. That's how I am. However, that being said sometimes the hay is accumulating on the floor because I just get too busy to sweep it up. That's life. The faster everyone excepts that, the easier it is.
My cages get cleaned out every 5-7 days, depending on weather, my schedule and the rabbit. Some can go a lot longer than others. Some rabbits I feel like I'm cleaning them out daily, others I have to remind myself to clean out. I like the rabbits that choose a corner, and only go in said corner. Makes my life a heck of a lot easier! I just have to clean out the part they use, like Wind. He only goes to the bathroom on one side of his cage. So I just scoop the side every few days and move on. Every few weeks I'll clean the entire cage, but he honestly gets angry with me when I clean the entire cage. Healthy animals are happy animals! Healthy and Happy animals make happy owners! I am allergic to hay and dust so I tend to be pretty picky when it comes to those two things, but even with being allergic, I do still get busy and unable to keep both things pretty clean. Rabbits poop. Plain and simple. Ya clean them out, and five seconds later there's poop in the tray/cage. Trust me, it's a pain in the butt. It's as if they are doing it just spite. It's like 'Oh you just cleaned the cage did you?! Well, here's some poop just because I can'. -_- I find it very funny what (s)he says about Fur (#5) and Hay (#6). It's very accurate about the fur. They do not even remotely sit still while molting. If anything, they move MORE, just to be a pain. Very true about hay. It's in no specific place, just everywhere. I like the poop (#1) and dust (#8) part too. Most importantly; Passion. Whether you are a breeder or pet owner, we all have passion and love for your animal(s). If you didn't, you probably wouldn't have the animal(s) then. So just because you notice some poop, hay, fur, dust or anything else around our barns, that does not mean we don't care about our animals. It also most certainly does not mean we don't keep a clean area. My favourite part of the article? Redneck Insulation. ;) ♥ Culling can vary on the breeder. However the term culling refers to 'removing unwanted animals from your herd'. Whether that be to kill or pet out, depends completely on the breeder. Even selling show/brood animals to other breeders is culling. I believe culling should be to kill them, so when I say culling, that is what I mean. There are enough animals that are in shelters and rescues (which I work with a few different dog rescues and SPCA's) that I don't want to be contributing to that. I also don't want to contribute to the over population of pet rabbits. There are enough backyard breeders out there to do that. I also don't want to sell PET rabbits to people because that's how you get the backyard breeders who then over populate the rabbit world and also take the sales of actual breeders. You also can't guarantee that the animals will be properly taken care of or anything. One way to know, is to ask a lot of questions. If they don't want to answer them all or seem fed up with the questions, I pass on them. By selling to pet homes, yes there are some that will take great care of them and that's great; however you risk selling to the ones who think 'hey I've got a male and female, let's breed some mix bunnies' and most of the time, they do it because they want the money, or they think 'hey they are cute and tiny as babies'. That is also how you get the ones who think they can sell them at three weeks old. It is NEVER OK to sell a rabbit at three weeks old. They are JUST starting to eat pellets at that age, but ARE still nursing! 6 weeks I think is still early and prefer 7, but 6-8 weeks you can wean them. I personally leave them in until about 10-12 weeks old.
Rabbits are not an animal you should buy as babies because they are 'cute and small' because news flash; they grow up. I do not sell for Easter, Valentines Day, Christmas or anything like that. I do have the occasional rabbit for sale to pet homes but depending on age, will only keep them for a certain amount of time before they 'leave'. Don't think that I always thought this. No, when I started out I sold pets because I didn't want to cull. I send mine to a butcher who buys them and then sells the meat, or I take them to the zoo where they are humanely put down and fed to the animals. I believe that if you cull, the animals should then be used, not just thrown away. If I have a rabbit for sale that says Show/Breeding, then that means it is a rabbit that I would use in my own breeding program and show herd. I try to label them correctly. Just because an animal is 'showable' (meaning no DQ's), does NOT mean it is SHOW QUALITY. This is one of my biggest pet peeves in this hobby. Just because it doesn't have anything to DQ it from show, doesn't mean you should show it, especially when it clearly will be faulted on a lot of things, i.e: long shoulders, peak soon, hollow, pinched, weak in depth, course fur, soft density, etc. I can go on for hours! These are all things you do NOT want and if shown, will be faulted and do poorly. I hate going on another breeders website and seeing all these animals they have listed as 'show quality' when clearly; they should NOT be shown. I am no way implying that I am perfect or know everything, however I know the standard and know what the animals are suppose to look like. I hate seeing this because then they are ripping some innocent person off who doesn't know better... Especially when they overprice their animals!!! Goodness, I can't stand it!! OK, rant over on that. Back to culling! I have no problem with people killing. It is more humane to the animal then selling them to someone who isn't going to take proper care for them just to end up in a shelter or going from home to home. I don't like selling to pet homes because 1. I've noticed a lot of people are crazy and won't really give me the light of day. They just want the rabbit and to be gone. 2. They don't want to pay my prices. Well then, you know what? Go to a pet store to get some unhealthy, no idea where it came from, mixed breed rabbit for double. (Do NOT get me started on pet stores!!!) 3. If I sell a rabbit to a pet home, it usually means it is not a good show rabbit or even brood animal. So I don't want the person to then later on sell it and it go to some 4H'er who doesn't know or realize it isn't going to do well. And 5. I don't like to see them a few weeks or months later posted for sale again, especially when they are then doubled in price or the price was higher than what they paid. I will be honest with people when selling a rabbit. I pose them correctly in photo's and will take multiple photo's from all sorts of angles. I am straight up with what is good and bad, what I like and what I don't or what I'd fault them on. I hate hate hate!!!! when someone isn't honest with another breeder, youth member or new breeder about things. It is just unnecessary and rude. ESPECIALLY when it is a youth breeder, new breeder or 4H'er! I also can't stand when someone posts a rabbit as '4H quality' what the heck does that mean?!?!?! Sorry, but it frustrates me since I am in 4H. If it isn't good enough to show with ARBA, then it shouldn't be good enough for 4H. We should be helping and promoting 4H, especially the rabbit project and should be helpful in making sure they get good quality show animals! They deserve to show quality just as much as ARBA show'ers do. I may put that it is 4H quality, but I also put show (as in ARBA show) quality as well.. When I say 4H 'quality', I mean that it is a friendly and easy to handle rabbit and should do well with people looking at it and showmanship. If I wouldn't show it myself, I won't sell it to be shown, especially not to some unknowing 4H'er. Rant over on that! ;) With culling, I think people need to be better educated on it.. It cost less to get rabbits to 'sale age' than a calf. You also get a better profit out of them too. You pay hundreds of dollars on a little calf just to then spend another hundred dollars on them just to get a low profit. PLUS! Rabbits can have 6+ (depending on breed and size) in a litter, unlike a cow who have one, maybe two (twins). Rabbits are pregnant shorter than cows, and you can sell them sooner than a calf. If they are raised humanely and properly, and then culled humanely; there is nothing wrong with it. They were created for this purpose, it is part of the food chain. It is life. Now, I won't go around talking with someone about it if they don't want to. I also don't push culling on anyone. It is up to you as the breeder, however, please do the research on it before you make up your mind. I do believe to be a successful breeder you need to cull. If you are a breeder who just sells everything off to pet homes, you will get so full that you will eventually have more pets that are for sale, than actually helpful to you, show/brood animals. You waste a lot of food and money waiting for someone to come around to buy your pet and waste a cage on them, that could have gone to another animal that would have been useful and helpful. I don't like selling them as live feeders as I do not think that is nice or humane for them. There are different ways of culling, some more gruesome than others. I do not like those ways, and probably will never be able to do those ways. I don't like blood! I could never process them myself either... Rabbits have a purpose, and their original purpose was meat. I don't like just culling and then throwing out.. I'd rather take them to the zoo (they are killed and then fed to the animals, not fed live) or send them to someone who will process and eat, or feed to animals, etc. It's a waste otherwise... If it can't help improve my herd than I cull it. I look at the whole package when culling. If the animal has a clear DQ or major fault it goes. Type and fur are super important. I will, however, occasionally substitute smaller things for the "greater good". I really look for everything when picking who stays and goes. If it doesn't have a balanced body, and has any poor traits - shoulder issues, bad sloping, very narrow loin, pinched hindquarters - then it goes. If it has fur that is of a lesser quality than I already have, then it goes; unless its type is stunning. I will keep some if they are exceptionally strong in one area - very tight shoulders, or a very wide loin/hindquarter, or very dense fur. I will also tolerate a very moderately hollow loin, and a slightly early peak on the topline. Absolutely no shoulder dips, ever! If the animal can't help take my herd forward than it leaves. However, it does depend on the breed a bit for me. If you do not agree with culling, that is fine; it is your choice. Please do feel free to contact me with your opinions and views on it, or if you'd like to find out more. I'd love to hear others opinions on it. Please, be respectful though and not rude. These are just my opinions and views on the subject. 10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD EAT RABBIT MEAT!
Back in the 1940s and 1950s rabbit meat was as common for dinner as chicken is today. It is the meat they got many people and their children through the lean times of the Depression. They lost their popularity after Big AGRA, who wanted to get maximum profits with the cheapest bottom line using the government endorse chemicals and handouts. Because of this rabbits didn’t make sense. So why even eat rabbit meat now? Below you will find a few reasons why you should consider adding rabbit meat to your diet. Raise some rabbits in your lots, yards, or pastures. Become closer to your food supply know what you eat! 1. It is one of the best white meats available on the market today. 2. The meat has a high percentage of easily digestible protein. 3. It contains the least amount of fat among all the other available meets. 4. Rabbit meat contains less calorie value than other meats. 5. Rabbit meat is almost cholesterol free and therefore heart patient friendly. 6. The sodium content of rabbit meat is comparatively less than other meats. 7. The calcium and phosphorus contents of this meat or more than any other meats. 8. The ratio of me to bone is high meaning there is more edible meat on the carcass than even a chicken. 9. Rabbit meat with the many health benefits does not have a strong flavor and is comparable to chicken but not identical. 10. Rabbits are one of the most productive domestic livestock animal there is. Rabbits can produce 6 pounds of meat on the same feed and water as the cow will produce 1 pound of meat on the same feed and water. So as you can see there are many health benefits to eating rabbit meat. It is healthy for you and cheap to produce. Why not try to incorporate some rabbit meat into your diet today! Try it you’ll like it! Use rabbit as a replacment for chicken in any chicken recipe. Check out our tested recipes on our Rabbit Recipe Page we add new ones all the time! Know what you eat screw the big AGRA and GROW YOUR OWN! http://riseandshinerabbitry.com/2012/04/06/10-reasons-why-you-should-eat-rabbit-meat/ *Taken from the link above* Though I do not eat rabbit meat personally, I see no problem with others doing so. They were originally created for said purpose. We have deviated from the real reasons why rabbits were raised many years ago. They were raised as a food source for humans. Humans are the ones that chose to make them pets, whether you agree or not or eat them or not is completely up to you. However, here is a good article on rabbit meat. http://thecityfarmer.org/livestock/rabbits/products/meat/ How to Get a Perfect TattooClamp Tattoo*Please keep in mind that this is completely my opinion and how I personally tattoo. Find a way that works for you and ask around for how other breeders tattoo* -Prepare yourself. Make sure you have the needles in the right way and not upside down. Make sure they are clean and in the right order. Have your ink ready, I leave the lid on but unscrewed just in case the rabbit jumps and hits it. -Put the tiles in the clamp. I then to make sure it is in the right order and going in the right direction do a practice tattoo on a piece of paper or cardboard. -Use slippery surface (so that the rabbit can run and move, but not injure themselves from grabbing onto a mat or anything like that; plus you then don't have to hold onto them which can be risky) -Check sizing and location -Apply ink (I use roll on) -Clamp the Tattoo (I hold closer to the bottom to get better squeezability *If that's a real word*. You can use more pressure down low) -Squeeze for about 10-20 seconds. Make sure you are right through the ear, but about 10-20 seconds is usually long enough -Check the ear to make sure you got the needles right through; that's the ideal thing you want -Apply more ink -I then check the back to see if I can see the ink go threw.. but usually if before that you can see threw, then you're good! I put ink on before and after. It is not necessary though. I get complimented a lot on how nice, clean and dark my tattoo's come out. Well, this is how I tattoo. I do have two videos available of me tattooing. If you are interested in seeing it for a visual aid then just send me an email. I do NOT clean the ear before hand with alcohol. I did this once and found my ink/tattoo did not last and faded. I also do not use any balms or anything afterwards to 'seal' the ink in. Always make sure to clean up afterwards. I use a tooth brush and rubbing alcohol to clean my needles. I place them in the alcohol and let sit for a minute or so and then hold them and scrub with an old toothbrush to get between the needles. Afterwards, I dry with a towel or paper towel/kleenex. Pen Tattoo*Please keep in mind that this is what I have learned from other breeders who use the pen. Find a way that works for you and ask around for how other breeders tattoo* -First and foremost, you need to get a feeling for the pen. Get a banana, yes a banana and practice, practice, practice on it! It is very similar to the rabbits ear. Get a feel for the writing and movement of the pen. -Prepare yourself. Make sure everything is within easy reach. Fill your ink wells with ink. -Secure the rabbit. Make sure the rabbit is securely held prior to starting. It is highly recommended that you have someone else hold the animal for you. A lot of breeders will wrap the rabbit in a towel as well. -Ink your pen. Once the rabbit is held securely, get your pen ready to go. (You don’t want to ink it too early or the ink will dry out.) Turn the pen on BEFORE dipping it in the ink well. This will get the ink all up in the needles evenly. Dip just the end of the needles into the well! The motion of the pen will draw the ink into the center of the needles, where it should be. Never dip it in so far that the ink gets on to the pen head. -Tattoo. Hold the rabbit’s left ear open and against something solid, like your finger. Hold the needle at a slight angle to the ear and tattoo with a gentle pressure. You do NOT want to push the needle all the way through the ear; you’re just trying to insert ink right below the surface of the skin. Re-ink your tattoo pen whenever it runs out until you've finished the tattoo. -Clean your needles. Never leave your needles without being cleaned, you do not want the ink drying. There are special brushes you can get for easier cleaning. Record the TattooAlways record your tattoo's. You need the tattoo for pedigrees, but I also find it helpful you keep a record of the tattoo and then colour, DOB, and parents as well separately in my binder of pedigrees, just to have them all together and in case I sold a rabbit. This way I can always go back and know if I've done a tattoo or not before, without having to dig through pedigrees.
Check out Parts 1 & 2 in Rabbit Tattooing Choosing a TattooHow To Choose A Tattoo For Your Rabbit.
Are you sitting there, scratching your head wondering what you put in your rabbits ear for a tattoo? Whether a new or old time rabbit breeder, we've all been there at some point, and may still occasionally wonder if we should change our ways. To show your rabbit under ARBA (American Rabbit Breeders Association), then they must have a tattoo in their left ear. It must be eligible though, or else the judge can disqualify it from competition. So always check your tattoo's prior to a show! Does ARBA Assign Tattoo's? No, ARBA does not assign tattoo's. They do not tell you what your rabbit's tattoo needs to be, nor how you have to do it. There is no list of previous tattoo's or anything like that. It is completely up to you what you do for tattoo's! Well, almost. There are a few things to follow. It use to be that you could do anything for a tattoo, whether it be a heart or a smiley face. However, the problem is that secretaries must put these tattoo's into the computer prior to the show, and can be hard if you did a drawing or something. So ARBA came out a few years ago that tattoo's must be alpha-numeric, meaning you can only use letters A-Z and numbers 0-9. Other than that you get to choose your rabbits tattoo and you get to choose the system you use. As long as it fits in the ear and the judge can read it, it can be anything from ABC, 123, H, 5, A98 or BUBBLES. You can use as many numbers or letters as you wish up to twenty characters including spaces, and you do not need both. *Another note, if using names remember that nothing vulgar, offensive or rude can be done. Keep it clean! How Do I Choose What To Tattoo? Well, that is completely up to you. Pick a system that another breeder uses, or come up with your own. There are a lot out there. Some a lot more confusing than others. Some breeders will just do the rabbits name or partial name. Their tattoos look like BUDDY, BUGS or BEN. Others like to use a fancy code system, usually mixing letters and numbers together. The most frequent, and one that I personally use, is the parents initials. So Bugs (sire) and Lily (dam) litter would be BL1, BL2, BL3, etc. What gets confusing is when you use a code that involves things like number for month, even for buck, uneven for doe and things like that. If you can find something that makes sense to you, that's what is important! I get really confused when someone talks about how they're using a system that's like.... number for month born, B or D for gender, number for year born, number in litter, maybe even parents initials in there or something. This confuses me, but it is what works for some and when explained properly can make a lot of sense and seems like a good way to remember without looking at pedigrees. Another system that works well is either using your rabbitry initials or breed initials plus numbers. So my rabbitry initials are MR. MR1 would be the first baby tattooed, where MR57 would be the 57th tattooed. Same with breed initials. So the Havana's would be HV, Mini Rex being MR. HV48 would be the 48th Havana born and MR31 would be the 31st Mini Rex born. It is completely up to you how and what you choose to tattoo your rabbits. If I only keep one or two from a litter then I may actually just use the rabbits name for the tattoo. Check out Part 1 & 2 in Rabbit Tattooing! Why & HowWhy Does My Rabbit Need A Tattoo?
The answer is quite simple. Identification. Rabbit tattoo's are an easy and simple way of keeping track of rabbits. To show an animal under ARBA, it must be tattooed in it's left ear. Tattoo's must be clean and eligible, or else the judge may disqualify it from competition should (s)he not be able to clearly read the tattoo. Ask yourself this. How am I going to know which rabbit is mine once I put it on the show table? If we didn't tattoo our rabbits, there really is no way of knowing. Yes, we could all stand in front of the coop in which we placed our rabbits, but what if you have multiple in the class? And then the judges move animals around as they look at them. By using tattoo's, we can know afterwards that we have indeed taken the right animal off the table. Just in case you are new and confused what a rabbit tattoo is, it is a permanent marking in the rabbits left ear. Why the left ear? The left ear is used because the left side/ear is most commonly tagged in livestock. Livestock that are branded, are branded on the left hip; that way when walking through the stock yard the brand is facing the announcer, also the brand inspector that is up by the announcer/auctioneer. The right ear is used for registration. When you register your animal under ARBA, they are given a registration number. Sometimes the registrar will put the full number in their ear, others will just do the registration symbol (®). Just like dog owners/breeders use microchips (and if a registered dog, then a tattoo as well in the dogs ear), or cattle ranchers put plastic tags in the cows ear or how race horses have a tattoo on their neck (registration number) and marking on their lip, we as rabbit breeders use tattoos in the ear to identify our animals. HOW Do You Tattoo? Well, again the answer is quite simple; you need the proper tattoo equipment. When rabbit tattoo's first started, the only available option was to use a pair of prongs called a clamp that you slide tiles into. The tiles have needles in them that make up the letter or number you want. You clamp the needles down into the ear and you have your tattoo. Of course, you needed ink as well! It creates a short term, sudden pain to the rabbits ear. Now a days, there are battery operated pen style tattooers as well. This pen has a cluster of needles at the end which– with a very similar motion to that of an electric toothbrush – inserts ink just below the surface of the skin. The needles do not go all the way through the ear, unlike with the clamp. Very similar to a human tattoo gun. I will give my personal opinion on both. I use the clamp. Why? Because I find the tattoos last longer and is a lot cleaner and eligible than the pen. It is quicker and to me, less pain and agony on the rabbit. I put the ink in the ear, line up the clamp, press and hold for a few seconds (about 10 seconds) and release. I then put more ink on top just to be sure. It is quick and easy, over in seconds. Whereas with the pen you do a letter, then you get more ink and do another and so on. It takes longer and forces the rabbit to endure the pain longer, unlike the clamp. There's also a buzzing that the pen makes because of the needles which I found/find the rabbits hate. You also have to think, if the rabbit moves that's it. The pen doesn't move with the rabbit, so you may now have a line down the ear. I also find that the pen tattoo's fade very quickly, because they only go right under the skin where the clamp goes right through. The pen can be handy if you need to touch up a tattoo though. With the pen, the needles are easy to break especially if you have a rabbit that does not wish to stay still. You also need someone to hold the animal for you, where I do my clamp tattoo's completely alone. I've also never needed to replace any of the letters or numbers for my *old* clamp. Clamps are more pricey, but I find a lot more worth it. When I bought my first tattoo kit, I bought the pen. I used it once and hated it. I immediately posted it for sale and was lucky to find a fellow breeder who had bought a clamp kit off another breeder and was wanting the pen so we ended up trading. My clamp is old, probably 20 some years old and still works perfectly! Some breeders really like the pen. It is completely a personal opinion. You can get all the feedback on each that you want, but the decision is ultimately yours, and only yours. Buy one, try it out and if you don't like it then sell it and buy the other. I will say though, if you go with the pen get the KB Tatts. It was designed by a professional *human* tattoo artist and rabbit breeder duo and brings in aspects from both sides. It is much quieter *with the buzzing* than other brands and I have heard a lot of very positive feedback from other breeders on it, as well as a lot of people switching from other brands to the KB Tatt. They also come in a wider selection of colours! My clamp is the Stone 5/16" with ear release. I love it. However, I do recommend the Grand champion II® Registrar Kit from Klubertanz.com. It includes 2 sets of digits 0-9, one complete set of letters A-Z, tongs, ink, brush, and plastic holding box with digit tray for a very reasonable price. It is the only kit that I have found online that includes letters. No other kit includes letters, they all have numbers but no letters. And trust me, it can be quite expensive to buy the letters or numbers. Some full set can be upwards to thirty dollars, and individually close to two fifty each. You also have to be careful because not all sizes fit in all clamps. The only reason I am looking at getting a new tattoo clamp is because mine is missing a couple letters and I can't find the right size for it. I personally do not agree that pen styles are neater than the clamp. Unless you have AMAZING hand writing and a passed out rabbit, I don't see how they are neater than the straight, pre-done tiles for the clamps. That being said, I have seen some pretty nice pen style tattoo's by breeders. It takes practice. The clamps have also been improved so that some can hold up to six tiles in them now. Yes, the pen is much more flexible to the length, but you need amazing hand writing for it, and a lot of PATIENCE, which I don't have! Either way, which ever you choose, whether it be the clamp or pen, both are humane and low stress to the rabbits. Check out Part 2 & 3 in Rabbit Tattooing First of all, the saying "Breeds Like Rabbits" is so false! It is a myth. Yes, once a rabbit breeds they can have a lot of babies and can be re-bred pretty quickly. However, it can be quite hard getting a doe to breed. It is true that the gestation period of a rabbit is a month and can, depending on the breed have anywhere from one or two kits up to fifteen or more. However, doe's can be hard to get bred. It can take a few tries before getting them to take.
I highly, strongly, sturdily, intensely, exceedingly, greatly (catch my drift??) recommend writing down the date you bred the doe! Do it as soon as you are done, don't wait and do it later! Write down exactly who you bred the doe to and I also personally right down how many times the buck 'got' her (fell off and grunted). There are many reasons for this, but most importantly because you do not want to forget that you bred a doe, or at least the date when you did and wait up to find babies born on the wire because you forgot the date to put a nest box in. Secondly, writing the sire down is important. I've seen a few times when someone was absolutely positive on who they bred together, to find that the colours in the litter were not genetically possible for said pairing. It either turns out that they didn't write the father down properly, or they thought the doe didn't take so tried a different buck or occasionally, it happens to be that the doe is housed nest to a different buck and got bred through the wire (and very rarely that someone else had come into the barn and bred the doe to a different buck). There is a lot of planning, preparation, and waiting in the world of breeding rabbits! It can definitely be frustrating at times, and can be challenging when your doe's do not have babies for months on end. However, do not give up! Keep on trying and eventually your endurance and patience will be paid off with cute little bundles of fur! And don't let other breeders get you down. There can be drama within breeding rabbits, but just ignore those people and keep your head up! Find some breeders that want to be friends and hang out with them at shows and talk to those breeders! :) Oh and remember, most Rabbit Software like Evans have a place to keep track of litters and when you breed a doe. Check out Parts 1 through 4 in Breeding Tips Part 3: PalpatingPalpating is a tricky thing to do. It is not easy and is something that I recommend seeing in person first. I find YouTube videos can help, but having someone there who can accurately palpate a doe is very helpful. I palpate on day twelve, thirteen and fourteen of the pregnancy. Some people have matured palpating and can do it earlier but I find this way good. The babies are about the size of grapes and feel like grapes. A way to practice and feel the difference between babies and the organs is getting the organs of a processed rabbit and put them in a zip lock baggy with some grapes and feel around as if you were palpating. If you palpate earlier than two weeks, the babies will be smaller, like pea's. The problem is they then feel like poop. So if the doe hasn't released herself before hand, you could be feeling balls of poop and not babies. By palpating on the three consecutive days, I go by what answer I get two of the three days. I will also try multiple times during the day. There are different factors that can affect a negative palpating. Make sure the doe isn't tense when trying. I take the doe out and let her sniff the table a bit and then will hold her and massage her head. She needs to be calm and relaxed to get an accurate feeling. Trying multiple times also helps with if what you are feeling is actually poop... I do it differently than I was taught. I was taught the 4-H way and find it was useless... I heard about another way and it works really well I find. So far I've been right the majority of the time *knock on wood*. Palpating is when you feel around the abdominal area of the doe for the babies. I hold the doe lightly on a table, holding her up a bit. I let the feet stay lightly on the ground. I go from head to toe, so the doe's head and body is resting on my arm. I use my forefinger and thumb and massage the abdominal area while going back and forth a bit while pinching my fingers. Not too hard, but you can touch your fingers together while doing this and not hurt the doe. Lightly massaging the doe, you should after a minute or so start to feel babies as you pull them down. I just go until I feel at least two or three babies. I have found that unless the doe isn't pregnant, that I've been able to feel the babies doing it this way. Some breeders may say that by trying to breed the doe again will show if she is pregnant or not. In my personally opinion, this is completely false. Since rabbits have two uterus horns, a doe can be pregnant with two litters meaning that she may be pregnant and end up get pregnant again by this second breeding. Some people say that if the doe truly is pregnant she won't let the buck mount her but I believe this is false and will never recommend doing this. Palpating is the only way of truly knowing a rabbit is pregnant (that I can think/know of anyway). If you personally can't palpate then try and find someone who can. Though, remember it is OK to wait to find out. I know I myself hate waiting. I palpate and will re-breed if the doe turns up negative, which is a lot of breeders reasoning for not waiting the full month. Part 4: Kindling & WeaningKindling! The fun part! :D
Make sure you have nest boxes available for each doe that is pregnant. I put the nest box in about four or five days prior to the due date. Most doe's will kindle (give birth) on day thirty two. Some will go over, and some will go under. If by day thirty four or thirty five of the pregnancy, and the doe palpated positive and if you can still feel babies in the doe, I would try inducing pregnancy. The kits may be stuck or breached. Most doe's will have a peaceful kindling time, but not always. Things happen. During the winter I recommend bringing the doe in for her to kindle. I use shavings at the bottom of the nest box and hay to build a nest with. Some breeders use straw (I don't like the hardness of straw) and some use newspaper. It's up to you. If you have a doe pull a lot of fur, try bagging some of it for those times when a doe doesn't pull enough. Another thing you can use is that fluff stuff for hamsters. Weaning is easy. The doe will automatically start weaning the kits between three and four weeks old. I don't recommend weaning younger than six weeks old, but some do. I personally wean between eight and ten weeks. I will at seven depending on the litter and if I have to. I prefer leaving them with their mother a while longer, usually until the dam will let me know know that she wants them gone, which is usually ten to twelve weeks. After I wean I go through and decide which to grow out and which to cull. The keepers go into cages and get left alone for a few months while they go through the uglies and mature. Usually by four or five months old they will be done this stage of there life. I personally do not look at them during that time because they don't look to good type wise. Different lines mature at different rates. My lines will start around eight to ten weeks old and finish around four or five months. Some lines start later and finish later. Another reason why it is important to know the lines you are working with. Once the now juniors have come out of the uglies I go through them again and pick the keepers and the culls. Not all kits come out of the uglies nicely. Check out Parts 1 & 2 of Breeding Tips, and the BONUS part |
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October 2017
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