BASICS OF RABBIT KEEPING

BASICS OF RABBIT FARMING
Definitions

• A female rabbit is called a doe. A male rabbit is called a buck.
• When referring to the parents of a rabbit, the mother is called the dam, and the father is called the sire.
• When you mate two rabbits together, this is called breeding.
• When you check to see if the doe is pregnant or when you breed her again before she is due to give birth, this is called testing.
• When you put a box in the hutch that is lined with hay, this is called nesting.
• When the doe gives birth, this is called kindling.
• The period of time between breeding and kindling is called the gestation period.
• She gives birth to a bunch of bunnies called kits. This bunch of bunnies is called a litter.
• When you take the young rabbits away from the mother, this is called weaning.
• A group of Rabbits is called herd.
• Fryer is the meat of a young Rabbit (3 – 5 months old)
• Roaster is the meat of a mature rabbit.
• Giblets, is the collective name of the liver, kidney & heart.

INTRODUCTION

KenBunny Enterprises started a small hobby in early 2008. The first breeding stock was comprised of four does and a buck; which after two week, two does died.  We sought three more does to bring the number up to five does and one buck. The first round of kindling was quite challenging as we did not have the knowledge to manage rabbits. Between fifty and a hundred young rabbits died in the first six months alone as we tried to learn rabbit management.

Today it is no longer a hobby but a business venture. We have both the knowledge and experience to manage rabbits. The stock has grown well over 300 Rabbits today. In order to move towards large scale farming, KenBunny is constructing a second Rabbit barn at Kenol, Murang’a County that would hold up to 2000 rabbits. Further many aspiring farmers have bought breeding stocks and gained from information obtained from KenBunny Enterprises.

KenBunny hopes to contribute towards Vision 2030 by contributing towards national food. Already KenBunny has started creating awareness of the goodness in rabbit meat. The feedback is incredible.

BREEDING STOCK

There are hundreds of different rabbit breeds in the world. In Kenya the common breeds include California, New Zealand white, Flemish Giant, French Lop, Angora, Dutch, Palomino and the traditional Kenya white. For meat production, New Zealand White and California appears to be the principal breeds used in Kenya because of their many desirable traits such as rapid growth rate, good carcass quality, high reproduction and mothering ability. The other major meat breed is Palomino. Although it finishes at a slightly lower weight than New Zealand White, it has higher carcass yield and meat-to-bone ratio. Flemish Giant, a heavier slower growing breed, has potential as a terminal sire breed despite its poor reproductive performance and high maintenance costs.

A small breed doe (mini) is normally ready to mate when she is 5 months old, and a buck is ready at 6 months. The medium size doe (standard) is ready to breed when she is 6 months old and the buck at 7 months. The heavy breed doe (giant) is ready at 8 months and the buck is ready at 9 months. It's usually a good idea to select rabbits to breed whose ancestry has evidence of good productivity and good genetics. Keep productivity records of your herd just for this purpose. You may keep a ratio of one buck to 10 does if you wish. The buck may be bred up to 7 times a week effectively. Sometimes, you can use the buck twice in one day.

HOUSING

In general, the type of housing is dependent upon the climate, location and size of the Barn. Effective ventilation is required to control extremes of temperature and also to remove ammonia. Housing is a critical issue for rabbit health. Poor ventilation will result in irritation to the respiratory tract and susceptibility to infection from bacteria. Heat stress will cause major rabbit mortalities and reproductive failure. The cages should be shielded from direct wind and direct heat like Sun shine. A standard cage for one mature rabbit should be at least 2 x 2.5 x 1.5 feet. However the cage size can be varied to accommodate say the doe and its litter before weaning.

HANDLING

Lifting rabbits by the ears should be avoided. To pick up a rabbit put one hand around the bottom of the ears to control the animal and hold the loose skin on the back of the neck. Use the other hand to take the whole weight of the rabbit.

FEEDING

Hay - Perhaps the single most important item in the rabbit diet is grass HAY, and it should be fed in unlimited quantities to both adults and baby rabbits. A rabbit fed only with commercial rabbit pellets does not get enough long fiber to keep the intestines in good working order. The long fibers in the hay push things through the gut and keep the intestinal muscles in good tone. In addition to keeping the intestinal contents moving at the rate at which nature intended, hay may also help prevent intestinal impactions caused by ingested hair or other indigestible items. The chewing action your rabbit uses whilst eating hay also helps to wear down the teeth, which in a rabbit grow continually, and prevent them overgrowing. As well as fibre, hay is also a source of vitamins and minerals.

Pellets - A good-quality commercial rabbit pellet provides trace nutrients, vitamins and minerals that a rabbit might not get if fed only hay and fresh foods. However, very little pellet feed is required for good health. A rabbit fed with too many pellets will often ignore his hay, to the detriment of his intestinal system! If you find your rabbit is producing a large amount of soft droppings rather than the usual droppings, then you may be feeding too much pellets or a pellet that is to low in fibre. Try reducing the amount of pellets and topping up the diet with more hay.

Commercial pellets fed as the farmer wishes may exceed the needs of a healthy adult rabbit, and will not only promote obesity, but discourage the rabbit from consuming enough hay to ensure intestinal health. However, during the cold season, rabbits may need an increase in pellets to maintain a healthy body weight as they use more energy in keeping warm.

Changing Your Rabbits Diet - Any change to a rabbits diet need to be done gradually. If you changing one sort of pellet feed for another you should gradually mix the new feed into the old over a period of around 7-14 days. For example, start off with a mix of 10% of the new feed and 90% of the old, and increase the new and decrease the old each day. During this time you need to watch out for changes to your rabbits’ droppings. If they become soft or runny you are changing the feed too rapidly. Our experience is that sudden change in pellet feed product results in sudden mortality.

Water - The importance of adequate water intake cannot be overstated. A rabbit that does not drink sufficient water will gradually begin to suffer desiccation of the intestinal contents. A rabbit will usually drink more water from a clean, heavy crock than from a sipper bottle. It’s important to be sure that the crock, if porcelain is lead free, and that the water is changed daily and the crock washed thoroughly with clean water and detergent to prevent bacterial growth in the water source.

DISEASES

Rabbits should be inspected daily for any signs of ill health. All sick rabbits and those exposed to diseases should be isolated and held in quarantine. Dead rabbits should be removed immediately and disposed of hygienically. Prevention of a disease outbreak is better than cure, and more so because most of the diseases do not have a ready and effective treatment.

Disease control has been one of the major hurdles for new rabbit breeders. It is vital you seek as much information on rabbit health as you can find. Some of the most common diseases are:

Coccidia Use of a coccidiostat is usually administered in the drinking water or the feed. Prevention of coccidiosis can be aided by daily removal of faecal material from cages.

Hair Balls They are caused by a build-up of hair/fur in the digestive system. Symptoms - Listless rabbit, rabbit hunched in cage unresponsive, rabbit isn't eating or drinking, rabbit isn't pooping, and rabbit is loudly grinding his teeth (a sign of extreme pain). A diet high in fibre or hay will help the rabbit pass these hairballs.

Pneumonia It is caused by poor housing, overcrowding and poor ventilation especially in cold areas. Ensure that there is sufficient bedding to prevent draughts coming through the floor, and that the rabbits are not subjected to cold winds, especially at night. It is advisable to have the ends of the units protected with plastic or heavy duty shade netting. It is also advisable to have roll down 'curtains' over the front of the unit, made of plastic or shade netting, that are let down at night to keep the whole unit warm.

Mange is caused by mites. The disease appears as beige to whitish crusts, often starting around the borders of the ears, edges of the eyelids, the nose, mouth, and toes.

Ear Canker. This is a very common disease of the ear. It is caused by mites, small parasites which burrow into the skin of the ear canal (inside ear).

REPRODUCTION

Generally a doe is ready for mating from 5 months of age and bucks mature from 6 months. Breeds will vary in age of sexual maturity with most New Zealand Whites and Californians ready to breed at 4.5 to 5.5 months, whereas Flemish Giants aren’t ready until 7 to 9 months. It is important that Does are taken to the Buck’s cage for mating as Does are territorial and a strange rabbit in their own cage causes agitation and may result in failure to mate. The gestation period is 30 days and may vary between 29 – 34 days depending on the breed of the Doe and/or litter size. A nest box with bedding materials should be provided in the cage around 5 days before the expected kindling. The doe will also pluck fur to add to the nest a few days before kindling.

Daily checking of nest boxes is essential. Frequently, does give birth to a larger number of young than they can nurse. Most rabbits have 8 teats. It is common to foster a doe’s excess kittens to another doe with a small litter of about the same age. The litters open their eyes between 7 – 10 days and care is needed during this period to avoid any eye infections. Litters can be weaned from 8 weeks of age. Weaners are generally ready for slaughter at about 12-20 weeks of age. Young rabbits should be sexed before they are 4 months old to avoid inbreeding. The diagram below is an example of how to determine sex.

A number of factors like infertility, physical condition of the animal, pseudo pregnancy, sore hocks and retained foetus play a role in preventing conception. High temperatures, improperly balanced rations, and malnutrition can all cause temporary infertility. Another factor for seasonal fertility is the lighting. Hence it is advisable to have a light in the shed so as to maintain day light hours.

BENEFIT OF KEEPING RABBITS

Meat - A research by the U S Department of Agriculture stated that domestic rabbit meat is the most nutritious meat known to man! 

Meat Type	% Protein	% Fat	Calories per kg	Moisture
Rabbit	20.8	4.5	1,753	67.7
Veal	19.1	12	1,852	68
Chicken	20	17.9	1,786	67.6
Turkey	20.1	20	2,623	58.3
Lamb	15.7	27.7	3,131	55.8
Beef	16.3	28	3,175	55
Pork	11.9	45	4,519	42

Other benefits of eating rabbit meat are; Low in cholesterol, Low in saturated fatty acids, Low in sodium, All white meat, It is a good source of niacin, iron, phosphorus, and vitamin B12, High digestibility, Low bone-to-meat ratio and pleasant taste and fine texture. Rabbit meat has been used and is suitable for special diets, such as those for heart disease patients, diets for the aged, low sodium diets, weight reduction diets, etc.

Manure - Nitrogen is a very common component of a good fertilizer. Of all animal wastes, rabbit droppings have are said to have the highest nitrogen content. It also contains phosphorus and potash.

Skins – Rabbits skins are widely used in the West to add warmth on clothes used during cold season. They are also used in making beauty articles.

MARKETING

A lot of farmers are eager to know where to market their rabbits. My strategy is start creating market from the family level by eating rabbit instead of buying red meat which is readily available from the butchery. Introducing to family, work colleagues, neighbours and friends cooked sample and tell them about the health benefits of rabbit meat.

Prices: Rabbits are available from age of 1 month. The price for breeding stock from 1 month to mature ones is negotiable depending on age & Breed type. Meat is also available in whole, cold dressed in Kilograms, and pieces.