>>2134657I have a small-scale setup, but I've read books on the topic to know how larger rabbitries operate. A meat rabbitry has at least 50 breeding does in order to provide the scale necessary for profitability. One of the reasons for this is to have pelleted feed, the primary food source for meat rabbitries, delivered by the truckload instead of in consumer-oriented bags.
You can supplement with Alfalfa hay to supplement growth, gestation, lactation abilities, or digestive health. Timothy hay or other types of 'drier' grasses are for correcting gastro-intestinal issues that may come from feeding a diet that is causing bloat, and as a form of recreation for your rabbits. Quonset-style cages placed next to each other provides a way to simply drop hay on top of cages to make it accessible to the occupants.
Many commercial rabbitries keep 1 male for every 20 to 30 does in order maximize his productivity in producing kits for meat. On a smaller scale operation, you'd want to round up to ensure you have a few healthy males lying around. The goals of a meat-breeding program usually revolve around rapid growth. Studies suggest that many other desirable characteristics such as feed efficiency are linked to this trait. Otherwise, you want good conformation to the breed standard, animals free of obvious genetic defects, and an important one is no sore hocks, which is also linked to a specific paw pad trait that is genetically avoidable. Eugenics are a very important part of operating a rabbitry, and that involves keeping extensive breeding records. Usually the solution is more culling.
