In case you’re enthusiastic about elevating rabbits for meat, one choice to think about is making a sustainable “rabbit colony.” Colony raised rabbits are free to roam, dig, burrow, breed, and eat at will inside an outlined space, bounded by a fence that may maintain the rabbits in an predators out. It’s a considerably completely different expertise (for you, and the rabbits), from elevating rabbits in cages, stacked on prime of one another.
On this article, I’m going to share my experiences colony elevating rabbits — why I made a decision to do it, how I arrange my rabbit colony, and what my expertise has been up to now. First:
Why Colony Increase Rabbits?
When planning any homesteading mission, my aim is the pursuit of “permaculture,” outlined, by Wikipedia, as “an method to land administration and settlement design that adopts preparations noticed in flourishing pure ecosystems.” Mainly, if we’re going to develop crops and lift animals, why not do it as naturally as potential in order that the operation prospers organically and self-manages?
I’ve beforehand raised meat rabbits in cages, and it was not a nice expertise. The cages acquired filthy and stayed filthy regardless of arduous weekly cleanings. The rabbits didn’t look comfortable. I needed to regularly trim the rabbits claws, un-worn by common burrowing. This time round, I wished to attempt one thing completely different.
A rabbit colony supplied the next engaging benefits:
- Pure Atmosphere: A colony permits the rabbits to reside their finest pure life, burrowing, interacting with one another, expressing their very own social dynamics, and having the “actual life” rabbit expertise.
- Lowered Workload: I by no means wished to wash out rabbit cages once more. Rabbits are naturally tidy animals (not like chickens), and might be anticipated to “run an orderly operation” by themselves with out quite a lot of human upkeep.
- More healthy Rabbits: Theoretically, the lowered stress and elevated house in a colony surroundings contribute to more healthy rabbits. This, in flip, may lead to higher copy charges and better meat yields
After all, many individuals have reservations and cite potential drawbacks, summarized under:
- Uncontrolled Breeding: Opponents of rabbit colonies feared rabbits would over-breed, hurting females, and inflicting genetic issues if sibling rabbits had been free to breed collectively.
- Civil Struggle: Many individuals feared that rabbits would battle and damage one another if free to roam and work together at will.
- Lack of Protection In opposition to predators: Regardless of their drawbacks, cages are fairly good at preserving out most animals that need to damage a rabbit. Would the rabbits change into fast prey with out the security of cages?
I made a decision to construct a rabbit colony that realized the above advantages, with out attracting the potential downsides. Right here’s 6 steps I took to arrange my rabbit colony.
Step 1: Construct a Rabbit-Proof Fence.
I started my working by establishing a 50’X30′ pen with wooden posts and inventory fencing, originating round a 8’x4′ shed. Subsequent, I dug a trench alongside the inside perimeter and buried extra inventory fencing 18 inches under floor, filling within the trench with rock-heavy backfill. The buried fence overlapped the above-ground fence for a seamless barrier. Then I overlaid the inside fence with chickenwire to maintain the infants from squeezing out between the squares of the inventory fencing. It appears like one thing from the Maginot line:
As further predator deterrence, I ran an electrical fence wire alongside the highest, added a scarecrow, some blinking predator eyes, and a few 3D birds. I additionally use a photo voltaic mobile sport digicam to observe them once I’m out of city:
Step 2: Select the Proper Breed of Rabbit
I wished to get the kind of rabbit that’s finest suited to colony elevating — a rabbit that’s social and chill, to keep away from riots and civil disturbance in my colony. After quite a lot of analysis, I opted for the American Chinchilla. The American Chinchilla is taken into account an awesome meat rabbit, and so they are likely to get alongside nicely with one another, fostering a harmonious colony surroundings.
Step 3: Resolve on Colony Construction:
You want to decide whether or not you need to maintain does and bucks collectively or separate them. Protecting them collectively has the benefit of not requiring two separate colonies with their very own impartial infrastructure. Nonetheless, in case you maintain women and men collectively, you received’t be capable to management breeding.
I made a decision to danger preserving everyone collectively. To mitigate dangers, I began with a breeding trio of 1 buck and two does. This splits the eye of the buck and offers every doe a break whereas the buck pays consideration to the opposite. To stop inbreeding of offspring, I harvest my rabbits fairly early — round 10 weeks — earlier than they’re prone to having a genetically broken liter.
I intently monitored my colony initially to ensure this could work. Happily, I used to be fortunate sufficient that my buck is fairly chill and doesn’t harass the does 24/7. Neither does he go after the youthful rabbits. This is perhaps regular, or I might need simply gotten fortunate. If this modifications, I’m able to put him in his personal pen, however I haven’t wanted to take action but.
Step 4: Present a Excessive-Capability Water Supply
The entire level of permaculture is agriculture with out the fixed want for human intervention. I didn’t need to be bringing my rabbits water on daily basis — I wished them to have their very own renewable water provide. Since I don’t have a stream, I opted for a rain water assortment system. I arrange a 50 gallon rain barrel that collects water from the rabbit’s shed, and feeds a row of rabbit watering nipples.
This works nice late spring-early fall. As soon as it drops under freezing, I’ve to make use of 32 ounce heated water bottles from Tractor Provide:
These DO require filling on daily basis, however a minimum of it’s simply in the course of the coldest months.
Step 5: Provide a Lengthy-Time period Feeding Answer
Equally, my aim was to keep away from filling the rabbit feeder on daily basis. To perform this, I acquired a Moultrie 30-Gallon Tripod Deer feeder. Then, I modified it by eradicating the underside legs, and burying the highest legs till the three feeding ports are simply over the bottom. The three feeding ports are simply the proper measurement for the rabbits to get their heads in and assist themselves:
The 30 gallon drum can simply maintain a 50 lb bag of rabbit feed, and this could final the rabbits for weeks.
I used to be a bit nervous about them overeating or losing feed, however this hasn’t occurred — my rabbits appear to self regulate, and solely eat when wanted. They in all probability eat greater than rabbits with fastidiously rationed portioned — however I’ve to work much less, so I’ll name it a win.
Step 6: Have a Plan for Butchering/Meat Processing
Don’t be caught with no plan whenever you abruptly go from 3 rabbits to twenty rabbits. Except your colony is big, you received’t be capable to help that many grownup rabbits, and you should be able to course of them at about 10 weeks, or once they attain 3-5 kilos. It may be unhappy and onerous to kill a fluffy bunny, so familiarize your self with humane slaughtering strategies, and make certain you may have it in you earlier than you begin. In case you discover you’re unable to kill Peter Rabbit, you’ll be in a scenario the place you should offload rabbits quick earlier than they overrun issues, and whereas there’s a wholesome demand for rabbits, it ebbs and flows. Craigslist will not be there that will help you whenever you want it.
What to Count on/My Expertise
My rabbit colony is a few 12 months previous. After I first launched my breeding trio collectively, the does acquired pregnant immediately, and in a month, I had 16 bunnies. I misplaced one, bought one, and ended up harvesting 14. I acquired about 20 kilos of meat from that first litter, which is nearly as a lot as you will get from a goat or lamb that takes considerably longer to mature. It’s similar to the yield from meat chickens — however in my expertise — was considerably much less work. Chickens don’t have nice housekeeping habits, and rooster coups must be mucked out recurrently. My rabbits, then again, hardly ever poop of their shed, and are superb housekeepers. After a 12 months, I haven’t needed to clear something. To me, that makes them considerably extra worthwhile than chickens.
After the primary liter, the does acquired off observe, and now their liters come on alternating months, which provides me a bit respiration house so I’m not consistently butchering. Roughly each different month, it’s time to reap, and rabbits have been our predominant supply of chicken — we solely often eat rooster any extra.
My 50 gallon water supply and 30 gallon feeder have labored nice, giving me the pliability to depart the rabbit colony for days at a time — within the fall, we went on a household trip for 10 days (monitoring the rabbits with a distant digicam), and so they had been totally autonomous whereas we had been gone, feeding and watering themselves.
Once we’re round, the rabbits love to scale back the price of their feed by consuming kitchen scraps:
. . . and even cuttings from bushes, weeds, and backyard leftovers!
To this point, it’s been considered one of my most profitable agricultural operations. In case you’re searching for a homesteading win, take into account a rabbit colony!
