Originally Posted by bacpacker
Yes it is 2.5 inch galvanized pipe I got from work for the chicken run. The rabbit cages have no framework, just the wire bent to shape.
Yes it is 2.5 inch galvanized pipe I got from work for the chicken run. The rabbit cages have no framework, just the wire bent to shape.
Last edited by helomech; 12-09-2011 at 10:25 PM.
This was in the local paper a while back. got me thinking... in fact it got me to collect a buinch of stuff to get started... but my wife has a few issues with killing and eating the cute little things (gag).
I only shoot wild ones an eat them when she isn't home.
Rosenfeld-area rabbit farmer Viktor Maier holds some of his livestock with son Jon, 9, and daughter Leah, 7. Maier, who keeps 1,000 rabbits on his farm, got into the business after a friend gave him three rabbits, who multiplied.
NEAR ROSENFELD -- There's that old Super Bowl commercial where modern-day cowboys are comparing scars obtained from their so-called profession as "cat herders."
Tough? You want tough? Try rabbit ranching.
Viktor Maier has been a rabbit rancher ever since a friend gave him three rabbits. The rabbits multiplied like mad, living up to their reputation. So a neighbour suggested he go into the rabbit business.
Five years later, Maeir had 1,000 rabbits. Today, he keeps 1,000 rabbits and sells up to 2,000 per year as meat in several Winnipeg food stores.
The largest rabbit farm in Manitoba is believed to be one near Neepawa with about 5,000 hares. There are about 15 rabbit farms sprinkled around the province, but most are smaller.
Kurt Porteous and wife Elaine, who farm cattle near Marquette, a short distance northwest of Winnipeg, got rabbits for their daughter Kathleen, now 13. Kathleen had up to 100 rabbits that she would sell into the California market.
"We got into it because our daughter really liked rabbits. The kids built our cages and got to keep money from it," said Porteous.
Rex Pettyjohn of Rorketon, north of Ste. Rose du Lac, keeps up to 500 rabbits. He trucks about 500 rabbits for himself and other breeders into California every five weeks. The rabbits are slaughtered for their meat, but also for their blood, which is used in various human drugs. The brain is also used, made into a powder and used as a clotting agent on the operating table.
The Maeirs raise rabbits strictly for the meat market.
Irene Maier compares rabbit meat to chicken. "We like it in the oven or in a slow cooker," she said. The family eats rabbit once a week either as a stew, roasted, barbecued or as rabbit noodle soup, she said.
Their rabbits are processed at Waldner's Meats in Niverville and sold in De Luca's, La Grotta, Classy Meats, and Portuguese Fish and Food Market. Retail prices range from $6 to $7 per pound. They also sell the meat at their farm, about 85 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg.
Rabbit farming is about as soft and cozy as it sounds, until you get to the slaughtering part. There's no roping rabbits or rabbit roundups. The rabbits at the Maeirs' place are caged, like in a pet store. The cages are stacked three rows high in an old barn on the family's seven-acre lot.
Maier has suffered no scratches or bites whatsoever from his rabbits. Even when they get out of their cages now and again, they come right back because they know where the food is.
What's meant by "breed like a rabbit" is that the female can give birth to six to eight little ones, and sometimes up to 14, every five weeks. Gestation lasts four weeks and the females are ready to breed a week later. A doe rabbit will give birth to about 100 rabbits per year.
This schedule is followed like clockwork on the farm. The family raises California and New Zealand rabbits that are best for meat. The rabbits are fed until they reach a weight of eight to 10 pounds, a process that takes just three to four months.
from here:
Local - Winnipeg Free Press ... 14209.html
could be lucrative...
I'd love to see pic's. I haven't even thought about chain link. Did you find a buy and do the install, or hire it out? I like the way it looks, very secure. It's sure worth exploring.
I'd also like to see/hear about your automatic water system. I will rig up one of those for mine. Once I get the water tanks set up, that'll be a convenient system.
Well you and Bp have definitely planted a seed in my wants and needs psyche to get the ball rolling on our coop. Money is very tight right now due to me being laid up for awhile and Christmas coming but come the end of January our coop WILL be underway. It won't be the build that I want but that can come later... right?
Going to make a new thread about the chicken coupe, automatic water, and automatic door.
I'm not a fan of wire cages for many reasons not the least of which is sanitation and rabbit haunch health. In lieu of we went to wood slat. We aren't taking our breeding set with us, 5 does and a buck. 3000 miles is a long way for them to go, so we will restock in NY. I sold the whole set up today, plus tractor and giant cage. I'll be looking to get rabbits the second I hit NY, there is nothing better for a garden then rabbit poo.
What is unsanitary about a wire cage. The lady we are getting ours from shows many different types of rabbits, and sells commercially and she uses wire cages. BTW her daughter won 2nd place in Houston last weekend.
Have you ever had rabbits? I have had rabbits for years and years...wire cages are just such a pain in the ass to clean was my only point. Winning ribbons doesn't necessarily mean anything. I sell registered Checkered and Flemish rabbits all the time. Many rabbtis from our group have taken all sorts of accolades for the 4H crowd as well. My only other comment on your plan is just because you can breed a rabbit every 5 weeks, does not mean that it is in the best interest of the doe...you'll burn them out really quickly. I breed three times a year.
*** damn auto correct
Nope never had rabbits. Just going with everything on the internet and a the friend that does it. Well winning in a contest means the rabbits are very healthy, and also that they hold the breed standards. So it does mean a lot. Especially in a contest the size of the one in Houston. Sure the small town ones are fairly easy to win. I only plan on letting them breed when we want more meat. So not very often, the babies will be killed as soon as they are off the mother.
I've heard 2 schools of thought on the wire bottoms.
1. use it.
2. don't use it.
lol
seriously, the issue with the wire is that if the tractor isn't on level ground, there could be a place where there is a gap under the wire. when the bunnies hop over to this area their feet/toes can slip down between the wires and/or straddle the wires. They can get cuts around their feet tops or bottoms, and between their toes. being that the wire is on the ground, and the bunnies are hoping on dirt/poop, and their feet come in contact with the wire, it is safe to say that the wire isn't the cleanest.
Infected hurting bunnies dont grow as big as fast. so while you may be able to save some bucks innitially, you could be setting yourself up for greater costs down the line. esp if it is your breeders that are getting hurt.
Just my .02 cents
or 2-5/8 cents USD
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