Breeding rabbits is a profitable business and does not require very large cash investments at the initial stage. In order to achieve good results, however, one should know not only how to properly feed and mate animals. Among other things, you need to be aware of how the slaughter of rabbits is done.
What you need to know
Many rabbit farmers turn over this unpleasant job to workers who specialize in it. However, there are those who prefer to perform this operation without their help. Of course, this way you can save some money. In this case, in the room where the cages with animals are installed, it is imperative to provide for a separate fenced place designed specifically for slaughtering animals. In addition, you need to have an idea of the timing and order. Of course, similar skills will be useful to those who breed these animals in the country.
Dates
Slaughter of rabbit skins is made exclusively in autumn or winter, after molting. Of course, this takes into account the age of the animals. Young animals are usually killed at the age of 7-8 months. This cannot be done before. The animal skin ripens by this time. The meat breeds of rabbits are slaughtered at any time of the year. In this case, only age is important. Slaughter is usually done in 3-6 months. Rabbits under 3 months old have very tasteless meat. And the animal, even of a large breed, does not walk up marketable weight until this time.
Preparatory Activities
So, how many rabbits grow before slaughter, you now know. Upon reaching an appropriate age, animals are transferred to separate pens or left in the old ones, but drinkers and feeders are removed. Food for rabbits should be stopped 10-12 hours before slaughter. Drinking them during this period is also not necessary. If the intestines clogged with feces can also be removed from the carcass during cutting without any problems, then they will arise with the bladder in an inexperienced rabbit breeder. One has only to accidentally push this bag, as an odorous liquid will pour over the whole carcass.
Slaughter procedure
Of course, you can take an ax and just chop off the animal’s head, like a chicken, after tying its legs together. However, this method is considered by most rabbit breeders to be extremely inhumane. The fact is that after chopping off the head, the heart of the animal continues to beat for a long time. Blood, of course, flows out faster, as a result of which the carcass acquires a pink color that is pleasant to the eyes. However, the animal itself, being conscious, at the same time experiences severe suffering. Therefore, in many countries, this method of slaughter is even prohibited by law.
Much more humane is the technique in which the animal is first “turned off” the nervous system, and only then they kill and release blood. Most often, the slaughter of rabbits at home, as well as in small farms is performed as follows:
- The animal is taken by its hind legs and raised above the ground.
- With a stick (40 cm) wrapped with rubber on the working side (you can take a piece of hose), a sharp blow is applied to the rabbit in the back of the head behind the ears.
If the procedure is performed by a not very experienced rabbit breeder, sometimes it turns out that the first time the animal does not come out to kill. In this case, you need to immediately strike a second blow.
How to bleed
After killing the animal, care should be taken to ensure that the carcass subsequently has a salable appearance and that the meat is tasty. That is, it is necessary to bleed the animal blood. After hitting a stick, it begins to ooze from the nose and ears. To facilitate draining, one of the rabbit's hind legs needs to be twisted towards the back. It will also be nice to cut the nasal septum or remove one eye. Sometimes a slaughtered rabbit is also cut in the throat. Blood should be flushed for at least 5-7 minutes.
Skinning
So the rabbit is dead. Now you know how to slaughter. And the cutting of the rabbit, and skinning are carried out immediately after killing. The procedures are quite simple. The skin is removed as follows:
- The carcass is suspended on a special crucible for the hind legs so that they are maximally spread apart.
- Further, in the region of the hock muscles, circular cuts are made on both. The knife must be taken quite massive and very sharp.
- The skin is then cut from one incision to another along the inside of the paws through the anus. This is the only incision to be made.
- Peel the skin down (like a stocking from a leg). This procedure must be performed carefully, trying not to tear the mezra.
- The head of the rabbit can be removed beforehand. But usually the skin is removed directly through it. To do this, make incisions around the eyes, lips, ears and nose.
Carcass cutting
After the skin is removed, proceed to remove the internal organs of the animal. This procedure consists of the following steps:
- The pelvic muscles are cut and the genitals and intestine are separated with a knife at the entrance.
- Cut the abdominal cavity in the center to the diaphragm.
- Remove the gastrointestinal tract and urogenital organs from the carcass.
- They take out the liver, trying not to crush the bile.
- Carefully remove the latter. Rabbit liver is an expensive delicacy and really tasty enough. Therefore, throwing it away, of course, is not necessary. It will be necessary to get rid of this body only if it has white inclusions (about 5 mm). The latter are a consequence of one of the infectious diseases of rabbits and are quite common in the liver.
- The heart and kidneys should be left in the carcass.
- If the head was not cut before removing the skin, the next step is to remove it.
French way of killing
Slaughtering rabbits for meat and for skins can be done differently. Very often practiced, for example, the so-called "French" method. It is popular mainly in Western Europe. In this case, the animal is taken by its hind legs and head and wait for it to calm down. After that, sharply spread their arms to the sides, at the same time wringing the head of the animal towards the back and pressing on the neck. Death occurs instantly, and the rabbit does not suffer.
other methods
On large farms, slaughtering of rabbits is sometimes done by electric shock. In this case, electrodes are attached to the temples of the animal. A current of approximately 5 A is sufficient for slaughter.
In Russia, in addition to the method of hitting the neck described above, farmers often practice a slightly different method. In this case, the stick is not beaten on the occipital part, but on the bridge of the nose. Technologically similar operation can be considered more complex. After all, getting a stick on the bridge of the nose is somewhat more difficult than getting on the back of the head.
In addition to using bits, there are other mechanical methods for slaughtering rabbits. For example, one of them consists in pushing the animal’s head under a bracket mounted on a wall. The rabbit should be placed with its back up. After the head is under the bracket, the hind legs sharply raise up. At the same time, the rabbit's neck breaks.
On large farms, the slaughter method with a pin has recently begun to be practiced. This is the name of a tool similar to a syringe, in the body of which there is a movable needle connected to a piston. The pin is placed on the head of the animal at the intersection of the lines of the right eye - the left ear and the left eye - the right ear and press on the piston. Death of a rabbit occurs instantly due to damage to the medulla oblongata with a needle. Such a method is not too convenient because of the impossibility of instant blood drainage.
Meat
So, with how slaughter of rabbits and cutting of carcasses is done, we have figured out. Now let's see what can be prepared from the meat of this animal. This product, by the way, is very useful for cores. The fact is that rabbit meat has absolutely no cholesterol. At the same time, it differs in pretty good taste. An important rule: in no case should you cook the meat of a freshly killed animal. It should be aged for at least 12 hours (preferably a day). Otherwise, your dish will turn out tasteless. It is necessary to withstand the carcass until ripening in the refrigerator (but not in the freezer). Fresh rabbit meat is not eaten.
You can cook anything from the carcass. But most often, rabbits are fried, smoked, stewed or baked in the oven. Soup from the meat of this animal does not come out too rich. Of course, to get a tasty product, you need to know the age of slaughter of rabbits. Before three months, this procedure can not be performed, as already mentioned. Before smoking carcasses, it is better to boil a little in water. Otherwise, the meat can be tough.
What to do with the skin
Dressing rabbit skins - the event is technically quite complicated and time-consuming. Here is an example procedure for performing this procedure:
- fat and veins are removed from the mezdra;
- in a special solution, soaking is performed;
- skinning is done, that is, loosening of the fibrous tissue of the skin;
- the material is treated with a solution containing acid (pickling);
- the skins are kept in piles under the load for about a day;
- tanning and oiling are made.
Slaughtering rabbits with their own hands in personal and farm enterprises is practiced quite often. But skins for dressing are usually rented out or sold to enterprises specializing in this operation. In this case, after slaughter, they must be preserved. To do this, after cleaning from fat and veins, they are stretched on a special rule for drying. Each skin should be carefully straightened. Otherwise, the mezdra will be gathered “accordion”, and the fur will come out in the places of folds. It is impossible to delay the conservation procedure. Otherwise, removed skins may rot.
So, how much the rabbit grows before slaughter and how this procedure is carried out correctly, we have found out. The easiest way to kill is to use a stick. If you have a large farm, you should use a pin. Use humane methods of slaughter. If you do everything according to the rules, the carcasses will have a pink presentation in this case.