>>1971482>meat rabbitsI started late this summer and one of my does just had her first litter. I have been autistic about it for the last few months so sorry if this is tldr. Storey’s guide to rabbits is a pretty well rounded reference, and its free on libgen or <$10 on ebay. I also made a kikebook because there are a lot of good local meat rabbit groups on there if you want help.
As far as tips go,
>Get your breeding stock from people who know what they are doingShow autists who cull all but the best from each litter are a good sign. They’ll cost more but a good $50 rabbit beats the hell out of a shitty $10 one very quickly. I learned this the hard way. Get a good breed too
>Buy your breeding stock when they are 8-12 weeksA ton of people try to pass off their older rejects or failed breeders as “proven” or “ready to be bred”. Be patient and get your stock young so you don’t get scammed. Also learned this one the hard way
>Find a local feed millYou probably have one nearby the sells better feed for way less than the farm/pet stores, get it in bulk and store it in a secure container so pests don’t get it. I use 5gal buckets with lids. Also for hay find somebody selling bales on craigslist or fb marketplace. One or two will last you a long time and cost way less than at any store.
>Use J feeders and set up an automatic waterer for above freezing weatherFilling up bowls is really tedious and they get super dirty. J feeders and an automatic nipple waterer (lots of videos on youtube using 5 gal buckets) are well worth it. If it gets below freezing, rubber feed bowls are good for water.
pic not mine but a good setup
