# rabbits for meat



## sharpstrain (May 24, 2008)

ducks

does anyone on here keep and breed rabbits for meat? It is something I am considering on a small scale and would really appreciate some advice and information.

I was thinking of getting 1 buck and two does, each in their own hutch and breeding rotating the breeding.

I have read a bit on the net but it is not the same as talking to someone who does it. would love to hear the does and donts


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

If the meats for eating personally i wouldnt bother. As famred/captive reared rabbit hasnt got as much flavour as wild rabbit. Wild rabbit is easy to come by and in my opioion most economical. Wild rabbit is cheap at butchers and game dealers. But you could catch your own with a varity of diffrent methods such as an air rifle or ferrets .

But if you still want to breed rabbits for meat you want to be looking at large breeds like new zeland whites, calforians/himilyans and the giant breeds such as flemish etc.


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## sharpstrain (May 24, 2008)

wild rabbits are not easily available locally - the stoney soil does not lend itself to large rabbit populations and permission is hard to come by.

My local butcher charges 5-7 quid for a wild rabbit dependant on size so not really a cheap option.#

I am sure you are right about the taste however - wild rabbit has a lovely tasty imo and I doubt homebred would taste as good.

anyone on here breed rabbits for meat - would love your views and opinions on taste as well:2thumb:


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## deerhound (Jul 19, 2009)

My father used to have a few new zealands which he used to breed for meat when i was a child and sold to a local shop but mostly for ourselves. He also used to go ferreting and lamping so we used to eat both wild and home grown. I would agree that wild caught is best. 

You got me fancying a rabbit stew now :bash:


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## sharpstrain (May 24, 2008)

deerhound said:


> My father used to have a few new zealands which he used to breed for meat when i was a child and sold to a local shop but mostly for ourselves. He also used to go ferreting and lamping so we used to eat both wild and home grown. I would agree that wild caught is best.
> 
> You got me fancying a rabbit stew now :bash:


got to love rabbit stew


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

sharpstrain said:


> wild rabbits are not easily available locally - the stoney soil does not lend itself to large rabbit populations and permission is hard to come by.
> 
> My local butcher charges 5-7 quid for a wild rabbit dependant on size so not really a cheap option.#
> 
> ...


Sorry i didnt really take that into acount. Should move up north were its cheaper hahaha.


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## Jazzy B Bunny (Jun 21, 2007)

I don't personaly think its right, I'm not a vegitarian or anything but I think its better if you went out and caught your own. But if you do decide to do it, make sure the rabbits have at minimum a 6ft hutch with attached run and don't breed the females constanty. 

I bet when you get them you won't want to eat them....


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## sharpstrain (May 24, 2008)

Jazzy B Bunny said:


> I don't personaly think its right, I'm not a vegitarian or anything but I think its better if you went out and caught your own. But if you do decide to do it, make sure the rabbits have at minimum a 6ft hutch with attached run and don't breed the females constanty.
> 
> I bet when you get them you won't want to eat them....


 
why isnt it right - if the animals are well kept and healthy it is more morally sound than buying meat which may not be so well looked after - have you ever seen a chicken farm or intensively reared pigs etc.

do you go out and catch your own lambs and cows or even fish?


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## deerhound (Jul 19, 2009)

Jazzy B Bunny said:


> I don't personaly think its right, I'm not a vegitarian or anything but I think its better if you went out and caught your own. But if you do decide to do it, make sure the rabbits have at minimum a 6ft hutch with attached run and don't breed the females constanty.
> 
> I bet when you get them you won't want to eat them....


Personally i would prefer to breed my own and at least then i know that its had a good life albeit short and fed the best of diets. I got nothing against catching my own either but i would have thought a nice home life and then killed very quickly is better than being chased or the chance of not shooting in the right place 1st shot. I was brought up with breeding our own food but did not see any issue in not wanting to kill them. I think you know from day one that they are not pets but food.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

Jazzy B Bunny said:


> I don't personaly think its right, I'm not a vegitarian or anything but I think its better if you went out and caught your own. But if you do decide to do it, make sure the rabbits have at minimum a 6ft hutch with attached run and don't breed the females constanty.
> 
> I bet when you get them you won't want to eat them....



Commercial breeders keep their rabbits totally differently to "pet" owners & different rules apply :2thumb:. The OP has said they will rotate the Buck between the Doe's so they won't be bred from constantly (a Doe can be bred from at 7-8 months old so the OP just needs to keep the next generation back to grow on for breeding & cull the adult Doe's once they've had a couple of litters). Sorry but too many pet owners try to apply pet qualities to different things & it just doesn't work. Rabbits first & foremost were bred for their fur & meat long before they became popular as a pet :Na_Na_Na_Na:. People have to learn that different animals kept for different things other than pets are often kept very differently to how they think they should be kept. It doesn't mean that they are mistreated or not kept well. A rabbit kept for meat needs to be fit or the meat will be tough & horrible :2thumb:.

Just remember a rabbit has many uses, being a pet is quite a new thing for them.


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## miss_ferret (Feb 4, 2010)

my grandad always kept rabbits for meat before age meant he couldnt be bothered with it anymore. he always kept the large to giant breeds as he said the amount of meat you got off anything smaller wasnt worth the cost of keping them. he used to go rabbiting aswell, he kept that up long after he gave up breeding his own, though whether it was due to taste or ease i dont know, il ask him tomorrow.

one thing he did always say though was dont breed more than 3-4 litters off a doe before you want to eat her, and always give them a good amount of time between litters otherwise you end up with tough meat. iv never liked the taste of rabbit so how true this is i dont know :lol2:


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

The old traditional meat breeds are the NZW & the Californian, these grow to a good size quickly. I know some breeders of Cali's should the OP want to go down that route (these are show breeders but will be ok with them going for meat rabbits) :2thumb:.


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## Hammyhogbun (May 19, 2011)

corny girl said:


> Commercial breeders keep their rabbits totally differently to "pet" owners & different rules apply :2thumb:. The OP has said they will rotate the Buck between the Doe's so they won't be bred from constantly (a Doe can be bred from at 7-8 months old so the OP just needs to keep the next generation back to grow on for breeding & cull the adult Doe's once they've had a couple of litters). Sorry but too many pet owners try to apply pet qualities to different things & it just doesn't work. Rabbits first & foremost were bred for their fur & meat long before they became popular as a pet :Na_Na_Na_Na:. People have to learn that different animals kept for different things other than pets are often kept very differently to how they think they should be kept. It doesn't mean that they are mistreated or not kept well. A rabbit kept for meat needs to be fit or the meat will be tough & horrible :2thumb:.
> 
> Just remember a rabbit has many uses, being a pet is quite a new thing for them.


Couldnt of said it better. I am so glad there are people who speak sence here : victory:


I think wanting to breed for own food is a fab idea at least you know what you are eating. I think there would be a sence of achivement with it. as long as your confident with the killing them part then why not.

californians and new zelands are the best for meat.


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

I consider myself quite lucky as ive always lived off mainly organic produce eggs, chicken, duck , games. Etc my grandads kept and bred animals for 'the pot' for years. Hes one of the old school animal people hes kept animals since his youth in the 40's hes still going strong now with his raceing pigions at 75 I part own the allotment now as he is getting on lol. He also used to to do alot of diveing so we got all sorts of shell fish to.

I think from the offset you have to look at your animal and remind yourself its food and not make to much of an attachment to it. You also control how the animal will taste etc much better way of rearing small scale


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

rabbit... lean meat... most meat you can get for what you use for feed... rabbits are very efficient!


rabbit is decent for your heart and waistline...


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

its low in cholesterol isnt it? i`ve grown some for tea in the past too.

agree with californians and new zealand whites being the best for meat.

and a cross between the two is fine too, cant knock a bit of hybrid vigour.

you can use any breed ( dutch and english are good too, nice and fast growing ) just dont pick a breed with thick heavly bones like lops, theres not much meat on them and they`re slow growing :gasp:


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

There are people who hunt rabbits here in the SW, you obviously know more about the ground around you, but I would imagine the cost of driving to the other side of Bristol to go hunt or find ferreters selling wild rabbits (for example maybe ask at bristol ferret club if they know ferreters close by you) would be cheaper than the cost of raising worse tasting rabbits yourself.


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

Kare said:


> There are people who hunt rabbits here in the SW, you obviously know more about the ground around you, but I would imagine the cost of driving to the other side of Bristol to go hunt or find ferreters selling wild rabbits (for example maybe ask at bristol ferret club if they know ferreters close by you) would be cheaper than the cost of raising worse tasting rabbits yourself.


 
Its not a bad taste farmed rabbit wild rabbit just has a stronger flavour.


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

maybe from the more varied diet?

maybe if you grew your own and fed them the old fashoined way with more variety of wild hedgerow greens they`d taste better?


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

Back in the day before compound food was availble my grandad used to feed greens and grain or what ever was availble.


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

where abouts are you based? i can usually get hold of new zealands pretty easy or the giant type rabbits. no one likes them round here and i end up sellnig them on for meat anyway.

out of interest, how do you kill a rabbit? i have done all sorts of poultry but never rabbits. only got shot ones.


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

whole oats, hay and greens gives a fit not fat rabbit and you dont get the digestive troubles that concentrate fed ones seem to suffer from.


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

I feed my rabbit pellets only once every 3 days on the whole, the rest they are on grass for a few hours and hay, and then a small amount of veg, yesterday and today the veg was blackberries, the warm snap have ripened a large number in my garden.


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## retic lover (Sep 23, 2008)

My uncle used to breed rabbits for the pot and he used to leave a large patch of the garden to grow wild and also plant wild grasses ect. Hes always tasted great:mf_dribble: 

Good luck and enjoy


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## marthaMoo (May 4, 2007)

This must be the only forum section about small animals where its actually ok to post about keeping them and killing them for food...

I dont know why its seen as acceptable. If I posted in reps about killing a snake because I wanted to eat it there would be hell fire.

I honestly dont think these posts should be posted in the pet section. There are plenty of other forums and websites out there about rearing and keeping animals for meat.


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

maybe because snakes arnt part of a uk diet, whereas rabbits, quail and chickens etc are?

i dont have a problem with rabbits being grown for meat, as long as they have a nice life before they go and are `offed` properly - quickly and cleanly and efficiently.

see your point that it should perhaps be in another section though....at least everyones playing nicely!


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)




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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

wow would never think of southern frying it, is it nice?

i have an excess of bunnies too..........:whistling2:


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

pigglywiggly said:


> wow would never think of southern frying it, is it nice?
> 
> i have an excess of bunnies too..........:whistling2:



Thats look rather nice :2thumb:, if you do try it hun send some down to me to try :whistling2:. If people have a problem with it then sorry but most animals were bred for their meat & fur or other by products long before people thought of them as pets so why should it not be discussed? 

Fluffy Bunny Brigade stikes again :devil:.


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

dont get me started, ha ha.

my spares are all babies so i`d have to grow them up a bit!

or could get bigbob a wife as he`s a cali.......i was going to boil them up for the dog tbh. shocking stuff eh?


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## ferretman (May 11, 2008)

People seem to lack common sense here the title is a give away rabbits for meat. If people dont like the idea of rabbits getting eaten for meat then why post. I have nothing wrong with someones opioion but I see that as an argument starter.


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

*Southern Fried Rabbit*

Directions: Southern Fried Rabbit Or Squirrel With Gravy 
1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper 
1 wild rabbit or 2 squirrels, cut up
vegetable oil
3 T. flour
1 1/2 c. milk or chicken broth
salt and pepper
brown bouquet sauce 
In a lg. plastic food-storage bag, combine 1/3 c. flour, the salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Shake to mix. Add rabbit/squirrel pieces and shake to coat. 
In a lg. skillet, heat 1/4" of oil for rabbit, or 1/8" of oil for squirrel, over med-high heat until hot. Add coated meat. Brown on all sides. Reduce heat and cover tightly. Cook over very low heat until tender, 20-25 mins. for rabbit, 35-45 mins. for squirrel, turning pieces once. Remove cover, and cook 5 mins. longer to crisp. 
Transfer meat to plate lined with paper towels. Set aside to keep warm.
Discard all but 3 T. oil. Over med. heat, stir flour into reserved oil. Blend in milk. Cook over med. heat, stirring constantly, until 
thicken and bubbly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add bouquet sauce if darker color is desired. Serve gravy with meat.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

pigglywiggly said:


> dont get me started, ha ha.
> 
> my spares are all babies so i`d have to grow them up a bit!
> 
> or could get bigbob a wife as he`s a cali.......i was going to boil them up for the dog tbh. shocking stuff eh?



Waste not, want not :whistling2:, yeah i bet the dogs will love them :2thumb:. Why boil them up though? Chuck them to them as they are, let them be dogs & rip at them like a wild dog/wolf would do :2thumb:.


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

It is true though, those posts about mice where people have discussed feeding them to their snakes have kicked off. Seems a little double standards, but then that was snake food, not human food not sure the standards for this are set.

My personal opinion is if you are not willing to kill it you should not get to eat it. I can kill a bird...so chicken is in my diet, I know I couldn't kill a lamb or pig...so lamb/kebab and pork/ham/bacon/sausage is not in my diet. Simplez!

I did earn my right whilst in Australia to eat Kangaroo, though I didn't make any direct death blow I aided in a cull.


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

my current dog has enough `problems` i dont think her associating the huches of live bunnies with mealtimes would be a great idea tbh.
brown labrador is amazingly strong and will jsut rip the hutches appart for a tasty snack.

emily the bulldog used to get her dwarf lops cooked and taken off the bone.:whistling2:

and i`ve already gone through the abusive emails from forum users because i grow my own mice!


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## Hammyhogbun (May 19, 2011)

what is wrong with being self sufficient???

It i had a reptile that ate mice i would "grow then myself" to feed them

Farmers breed cows/chicken/sheep for meat so just because they do it on a larger scale thats ok but you cant grow your own rabbits for yourself or food for other animals???

Bunch of fluffy hypocrites 

animals were owned and bred for meat/fur/hunting BEFORE they were pets.


how many of us could afford to have a heard of cows so we could kill it and make burgers


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## cloggers (Mar 13, 2010)

HABU said:


> *Southern Fried Rabbit*
> 
> Directions: Southern Fried Rabbit Or Squirrel With Gravy
> 1/3 c. flour
> ...


That actually sounds really good :hmm:

I've not got a problem with animals being raised for meat. There's a girl on my animal management course at college that is obsessed with pigs, quite frankly it's a little weird. She wants to be a pig farmer, raising them for meat, I asked the logic in that 'people are always gonna eat pork/bacon/sausages so they'll always need pigs. So why can't I give those pigs the best life before they get slaughtered?' was my answer. I personally belief that animal lovers are the best people to raise animals for meat/fur.


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## retic lover (Sep 23, 2008)

HABU said:


> *Southern Fried Rabbit*
> 
> Directions: Southern Fried Rabbit Or Squirrel With Gravy
> 1/3 c. flour
> ...


 
OOOh cant wait to try it:mf_dribble::mf_dribble:now where's my rifle...


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## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

wanna borrow mine? 

:lol2:


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## benh (Sep 12, 2011)

A friend of mine breeds for meat, for both himself and his ferrets (when hes not using them to get wilds, lol).
I would do it, but my wife wouldn't let me, she would be too attached to eat it, let alone see me kill them.

My friend has found he gets a large rabbit with plenty of meat, by using californian bucks and continental giant does. For what its worth, these would be a very unsuccesful rabbit as a pet, as they are far too large for their bone structure, and would develop serious health issues if grown on and kept as a pet, but that will never happen with his. 
He feeds hay, hay, oats, and more hay, by the way, and they all have access to a large area of grass/weeds. 

It works quite well for him, frankly, but he also does his own chickens, turkeys and ducks, and has just last year started pigs and goats in a field he has rented.

My wife is the only reason i am not self sufficient on some of our meat, and she would go nuts if we ate our pig. (german micro, so would be a bloody expensive bacon butty anyway, lol.)


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## sharpstrain (May 24, 2008)

marthaMoo said:


> This must be the only forum section about small animals where its actually ok to post about keeping them and killing them for food...
> 
> I dont know why its seen as acceptable. If I posted in reps about killing a snake because I wanted to eat it there would be hell fire.
> 
> I honestly dont think these posts should be posted in the pet section. There are plenty of other forums and websites out there about rearing and keeping animals for meat.


 
So you have posted to tell me I shouldnt post - jog on matey


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