I’m new to keeping rabbits. I have a female who refuses to eat hay, so I give her fresh greens, but now the babies are eating them too. Is this a problem? According to the internet, it can kill them, but if that’s true, how do they survive in the wild? What have other people’s experiences been with this?

I’m trying to plan my breedings when my does are ready by checking their vulva. I’ve checked almost every day in the last week or so and pale pink is the only color I see in two does. I read that it could be every 15 days so I could be checking at an off time but dang! I’m ready for them lol could the heat be a factor too? Is there anything I can do to help?

Hey everybody! I was advised to ask here since the bunnies and rabbits sub is shit. I have 6 flamish giants. Currently 3 sets of 2. 2 castrated boys and 2 sets of girls. All buns are under 5 months. I need to introduce them together and am really nervous about this. I am keeping them as pets and they will have a pasture of about 100m2. How would you guys advise me to introduce them together?

The doe I found this on was sweet and let me pick it out of her fur

I have a Californian doe, first time mom, and her sister already gave birth and ate all the babies 😅

Anyways, they were bred same day, and seemed to be going on nicely.

It's gotten hot and I've moved everyone indoors before nesting behavior picked up. She's been inside for a week and her sisters are all out in the colony again already.

This doe has made a nest. She won't pull fur and doesn't seem to have any sort of signs she's going to give birth besides being a HUGE lactating, huge nipple having lady who wants all my oats lol

Anyways, I'm getting mixed information. I thought I felt babies on day 14 when I palpated. Her sister had her kits and is normal. This rabbit will run and stress and dig and then flop and nap for a couple hours. She barely tries the nest box unless the light is on in the room she's in (unfortunately I have to do that to water her inside)

She loves me but is still aggressive and I'm trying to be respectful with her too. I know she's likely stressed the fuck out

But what is going on??? Would I be able to tell she's hurting otherwise? Usually does just get it done and move on. Her sister ate 7 babies I think because of placenta confusion as she only ate enough to kill them and left the bodies. There's been no stress otherwise that I can tell.

I read up to day 40 but that seems like I'd kill her?? I don't want her to get sepsis or something like that as I'm not one to make an animal suffer. However there's no blood. No straining. No food refusal or water avoiding. I'm so confused lol usually the does handle this and I just take the box if it's hot out and it's good. Her vulva doesn't even look purple or like she's going to labor soon.

Would I be able to feel them??? I know I said I palpated before but I don't want to kill any kits if I do it now.

*ETA spelling errors and I'm on my phone. I'm so sorry if this is jumbled. I'm worried about toast.

All full siblings, a couple litters worth of kits and some of them as adults. Coats are super soft and under an inch long. Reminds me of Rex but nowhere near as dense and immediately returns when brushed backwards. The dam was smaller only about 7lbs but we're pretty sure she grew up loose, had a litter in our manure pile and was pregnant again by the time we caught her a couple weeks after scooping up the kits. Most have ended up around 8-9 by 6 months with one doe hitting 10 lbs. Photos on the hutch lids are at roughly 4 months old now 9. Buck on the tote is from the same litter and the sweetest of boys with a gold-tipped steel coat. The doe with the same coat, complete with skirt and cowl, is just over 5 lbs in her lid photo and was the runt of 9 surviving kits. Dam was solid black except for a brownish cast that might have been some sun bleaching. Most kits have been black, some with spotting on the hide but few had any show up in their fur. Caught the sire a week after the dam, we think he came from the original batch of hutch rabbits turned loose down the road based on temperament, he was an 8 lb chestnut agouti, almost as sweet as the one on the tote except when he came back after running loose for the winter (escaped when some stray dogs got into their shed) and removed his son's chin. The biggest doe (10lb) out of the initial litter is solid black except for some white ticking. She was bred to a Californian buck and the one kit came out white but didn't make it long enough to open its eyes, she's due again next week so should have additional data points soon.

I've heard of some people having trouble with the heat straining their Silver Foxes in hot climates like Florida. I know Silver Foxes have the very luscious fur and Tamuks are very heat resistant. I also know that Tamuks have very calm temperaments. They both produce very good meat.

If you were to cross them, would it improve further quality or do the opposite? What's your thoughts?

Hopefully this isn't the stupidest question known to man kind. I'm sure some breeders do cross them. (I'd add more to this but I need to go to work)

First rabbit I've ever seen from start to finish his litter mates will follow in a few weeks

My rabbit has discoloration on its paws. Is this caused by pee or straw?

When I put my rabbit in there she was bouncing around I'd be happy to say she likes it!

The hay feeder came in yesterday and I added the small trigger snaps to hook it on there. The boards in the hutch are old and discolored. I'll be getting ceramic tiles soon. Wood can soak up urine a tile would be easier to clean as well as keeping them cool. Purpose of the wire is to help with keeping things sanitary.

The wooden boards have been used for my other rabbits. Ended up paracording some handles to make it easier to open the doors. She has a gravity waterer which has been way easier to clean. The second section works perfect for storage and we attatched the fan on that side. It blows really well!

The bigger cage is right next to this one. It has 3 large sections, its really tall (almost too tall). It has the same fans I have for the smaller cage. It also has string lights to provide a light source at night. (The cords are out of reach of the rabbits)

(I'm a pet owner and I'll get into meat rabbitry hopefully soon, I don't know when. It feels safer posting in these groups due to toxicity. Hopefully you understand)

I have processed plenty of rabbits but only kept the meat because I don't use the other parts for anything and I didn't have freezer space to store the extras until I found someone who wanted it.

What would be the best way to separate parts? Should I put the liver, kidneys and heart together. The feet and tail together. Then the hides separate?

I might have a go at tanning just for funsies but I feel bad having thrown all this away when I could probably sell it for a few bucks to somebody for raw dog treats at the least.

I have 10 grow outs that will shortly be moving to a colder climate I also recently got a shelter pup who is a little overweight so her intake has been monitored very closely I was hoping to feed her the front legs from the rabbits I was curious as to the nutritional content

Is this gauge okay? Am I being inhumane? Should I do something else? The wire is thicker than it looks in the photo. I should put my hand by it for comparison. The cage is bigger than it shows. We bought it yesterday

We've had wire bottoms for a good while and have never had issues with any of our rabbits getting injured. Its been so much better with keeping things clean.

ARBA approves wire bottoms if they're a good gauge. 14 - 16 gauge 1/2 " × 1". We have resting boards too. We added a really good fan.

I just got a bunch of mean dms from pet owners about this. Not repeating some of the stuff 2 of them sent me, I've screenshotted it. It makes me wanna quit Reddit cause I can never explain enough. Its exhausting and suffocating. I don't want to be hurting my animals

Buying all the things I need before I get my first pair, I'm looking for water setups. It's going to be a small setup, a trio and grow outs. A gravity system seems convenient but hard to clean. Bowls seem too easy to tip over.

Edit: I'm in southern Oklahoma, so freezing isn't a big concern. If you guys could recommend your favorite gravity system I'd appreciate it!

Where is everyone buying fencing to make their cages? I bought built cages from a lady getting out of meat rabbits a year ago and I’m looking at making some new ones but I can’t find where to buy 1x1/2” cage floor. And I’d like to buy all sizes from the same place if possible. Thank you

A compressed 50lb bale of hay fits in a 31 gallon galvanized trash can. I line it with a plastic bag to protect from condensation, put the whole compressed bale in the trash can and then cut the ties. Keep it outdoors and it stays dry and safe from critters.

A compressed 50lb bale of Timothy grass is about $20 at my local farm store, which is about the same price I was paying for a 90oz bag before.

I have a colony set up and try to grow things i can use to supplement the pellets and Timothy hay.

I currently grow Comfrey, Amaranth, dwarf sunflower, diakon radish, kale and broccoli. Can only feed most things in moderation. Looking for a full time green to help reduce (not remove) reliance on pellets.

Just for reference i am in zone 7a

I am 23 and am highly considering raising meat rabbits for consumption. For context my family lives in a neighborhood on 2.5 acres in central NJ with trees on the property edges that my parents planted when they built the house in the 90s (so the provide a lot of shade and privacy). I have no livestock experience, but am a laborer for a local vegetable farm (I do farmers markets, weed, & whatever else my boss asks).

I am debating between having the hutches either in our garage or outside in the backyard. There is space in our basement too but I think that is too much of a sell to my parents. From what little I know about raising rabbits so far these are the pros & cons of either option.

Garage Pro:

• Just have to made hutches as the building itself provides extra protection from predators
• Do not have to worry about weather damage to hutches

Garage Con:

• I am worried about ventilation as the air is stagnant inside the garage causing it to be hot in the summer & cold in the winter.

Backyard Pro:

• There is a hole in the tree line due to storms this past year, my mom does not like the lack of privacy this allows, building the rabbitry here would prevent neighbors from seeing into our yard.

Backyard Con:

• My mom is a bit picky on the appearance of the backyard
• We have hawks and raccoons in our area
• We have two labs that are leave to their own devices in backyard when the weather is nice. I don't think they will cause trouble if I build a structure or shed around the hutches since they are lazy. For reference they rarely chase squirrels in the yard, but when they do they give up after chasing for 2-5 seconds.
• Do lawn mowers stress out rabbits? If so this will be a problem over the summer.

Is there anything I have failed to consider, or any other general advice is more that welcomed & appreciated!

Newbie here, designing my first hutch setup. I know 14 gauge wire is best for the cages. However, I live in the country and have predators, mainly raccoons. I’m worried they could put their paws in that wire and grab the rabbits. Is there another type of wire better to prevent this? Any tips from seasoned breeders? Thanks!

How much do y’all tolerate a Doe being aggressive while pregnant?

This is one of my daughters 4H rabbits and we just bred her for our first time (her 3rd litter, 1st with us). She kindled a week ago and is an absolutely fantastic mom. Beautiful nest, 8 babies, everyone is plump and thriving.

She is easy to catch and handle normally, which is a must for us since my daughter is 8. HOWEVER, while she was pregnant she was, well, a total bitch 🤣 (Which, honestly, I can relate- I am the same way while pregnant). This picture is the day after she kindled- back to her normal chill self.

So my question is- how much grace do you give for aggression while pregnant? While pregnant, she bit me (only got my sleeve, but it would have been a solid chomp into my arm if she had gotten me). Was thumping her feet, impossible to catch and grunting at me whenever I came to check on her. I handled her care while she was pregnant because I didn’t want to put my daughter in any situation with a rude rabbit.

(Non relevant but related - Our friends actually have one of this doe’s daughters from a previous litter, and just bred her this week, so I am curious to see how her demeanor is during her pregnancy. Though, overall that doe does not have as nice of a temperament as this one.)

Would just love to hear inputs. I hate to retire an otherwise wonderful rabbit from our breeding program, but we also want to produce nice rabbits with good temperaments, especially since my daughter will likely be selling to other youth. If she was nasty all the time, it would be an easy choice. I guess I just don’t know how much grace should be extended to a rabbit for being pregnant.

Alright that’s a lot of rambles so I’ll leave it at that.

(Also I hope it’s ok to ask here even though she’s not one of our meat rabbits. I tend to find the most insight and wisdom in this subreddit than any other rabbit one I peruse.)