Keeping rabbits in the garden is an interesting and very profitable business. These animals grow and multiply rapidly, and are not particularly fastidious in their care. There are three main ways to raise rabbits: in open-air cages, free-range and in cages. In household plots, the latter is usually practiced.
The advantages of cell content
Compared to the rest, this method has many advantages. The content of rabbits in the cages allows you to accurately normalize the amount of food they eat and make sure that they receive all the vitamins and minerals necessary for normal development. Also, when breeding rabbits in cells, the possibility of uncontrolled mating is completely excluded.
Infectious diseases, these animals often get sick. At the same time, the attack in the herd is very large, since the infection spreads quickly. With a cellular content, animals contact each other less often. In addition, it will be much easier to notice a sick animal and isolate it on time.
Keeping rabbits in their cages has another plus. Since animals move with this method of breeding a little, they gain weight faster. In addition, meat in animals grown in this way is much more tender and tastier than in aviaries.
What should be the cells
Of course, dwellings for animals should be prepared in advance. Cages for rabbits come in several varieties: for males, for young growth and for females with offspring. If animals are supposed to be kept in very large quantities, housing for them will most likely have to be purchased. For a small livestock in a household plot, cells can be made independently. Their walls and lid are usually made of boards. The floor is arranged from a metal mesh, under which a pallet for collecting manure is installed. The entrance from the facade is closed with bars. Feeding troughs and drinking bowls are located outside the cage. The easiest way to hang them in front of the door so that the animal can easily reach for food, sticking his head between the bars. Usually this design has cells for street keeping rabbits.
The floor of the "houses" for animals is sometimes done differently. For example, a farmer with twenty years of experience, N.I. Zolotukhin, advises making it slightly inclined towards the back wall and solid. In this case, the tiers of cells are shifted relative to each other so that the manure can slide out into the hole closed by the grate. Keeping rabbits in cages of this design has some advantage in terms of purity. There is practically no manure on the floor, and animal housing is less necessary to clean.
In the cages for females, a place should be provided for the queen cell. In it, the rabbit will feed the cubs.
Optimal sizes
Spacious housing is one of the rules for successfully raising animals such as rabbits. Dilution and maintenance (cells can be either purchased or home-made) under inappropriate conditions will lead to frequent diseases. Rabbits - animals are mobile, they endure crowding very poorly. In addition, with large crowding, various infections spread more quickly. The specific cell sizes depend primarily on the breed of animals. For small animals, you can make smaller cells. For large animals, accordingly, it will be necessary to produce dimensional dwellings.
The minimum cell sizes for keeping rabbits are:
- width - 70 cm;
- height - 50 cm;
- length - 150 cm.
This option is suitable either for a female with offspring, or as a home for two teenagers. For a rabbit-producer, a cage with a size of at least 70 x 50 x 100 cm will be needed. The length of the dwelling for young animals should not be less than 3 m (about 10-12 heads).
Ready-made cells: which ones to buy
In an industrial way, rabbit dwellings are often made entirely of galvanized wire and sold in modular units. In such cages, rabbits will also be comfortable. But in this case, it is necessary to additionally build a special barn for them - a shed. Keeping rabbits in winter in cages of this design right on the street is unlikely to be a good solution. Fully mesh cells are blown, and there is nowhere for the rabbit to hide from the wind. Animals may even freeze. In the summer, rabbits will suffer from heat due to lack of shade. The shed is a long barn in which blocks are placed in rows along the walls.
Thus, the content of rabbits in cages from the grid on the street is unacceptable. If you don’t want to build a shed, you should look and buy ordinary cells. They are also found on sale. They make such homes for rabbits and private traders. They are sold at the bazaar - in the same place as the animals themselves. Do not buy used cells. In any case, they should be thoroughly disinfected before being populated.
Cage rabbits: detailed experience
Of course, for beginner farmers the advice of those who have been breeding these animals for a long time would be very useful. Therefore, hereinafter we present to your attention information on the cultivation of rabbits, collected at specialized forums and based on the recommendations of experienced fur farmers.
How to choose manufacturers
Experienced farmers advise newcomers to purchase rabbits and rabbits only in trusted farms. In this case, you can be sure that the animals are vaccinated and healthy. 4-5 females are usually bought per male. The most popular breeds among domestic rabbit breeders at the moment are the Soviet chinchilla, flanders, rex, gray giant, California and some others.
Feeding rabbits
Such an activity as keeping rabbits in cages can be difficult for beginner fur farmers, so each animal needs to be fed separately. In the aviary, for example, this is not necessary. But if there are few cells, this will not cause any special difficulties. On large farms, automatic feed lines and special drinkers are usually installed.
The ratio of feed types for rabbits can be, for example, as follows: boiled potatoes and vegetables - 50%, concentrated feed (mainly barley crushed) - 35-40%, protein supplements (meat and bone meal, fish waste, whey, etc.) ) - 10-15%. Carrots and grass can be given plenty. Cabbage is fed once a week and little by little. Fresh branches (willow, elm, elm, birch, etc.) must be included in the daily diet. In winter they give hay and dried brooms.
Breeding
The first mating is carried out at the age of 6-8 months (depending on the breed). The female is always put in a cage to the male, and not vice versa. In this case, he will be more confident in himself and the chances of success will increase. A control mating is performed after two weeks. At the same time, they monitor the behavior of the rabbit. If she snarls and does not allow the gentleman, then soon she will have cubs.
The female rabbits hatches for about a month (28-32 days). The number of newborns also depends on the breed. They can be from four to 16. Young rabbits bring fewer cubs, experienced - more. The content of rabbits in the cages (see photo of newborn babies below) also has the advantage that at the end of pregnancy you can observe a sucral female and accurately determine the time of the round-up.
About a day before the birth, the female begins to arrange a nest. She wears his own down. Therefore, if you notice its scraps on the floor of the cage, it means that, most likely, by the morning your stock will replenish. During the bunny rabbit drinks a lot of water. It stimulates lactation. Therefore, it is advisable to put an additional drinker in the cage. If there is not enough water, the female may bite a part of the litter. The mother liquor is placed in the cell a few days before the okrol.
Why does the female gnaw rabbits
There are several reasons for this unpleasant phenomenon. The main ones, in addition to the lack of water during the rounding, include:
- Mastitis. So that the female does not get sick, the floor in the cage must be kept clean.
- Foreign smell. It is advisable not to touch newborns with their bare hands. Inspection of the nest after okrol is carried out in rubber gloves.
- Lack of space. As already mentioned, space is what rabbits really like. Breeding and maintenance (cells should not be small, especially in females with litter) should be done according to the rules.
- Fright. Rabbits are generally very afraid of sudden noises, and in fear they behave unpredictably.
But the main reason for eating rabbits by females is still a lack of milk. If during the pregnancy of the animal the recommendations of the specialists regarding the diet are not followed, the probability of losing the litter is very high.
Baby rabbits feeding
After the mother, the cubs begin to leave the nest after about 3.5 weeks after the okrole. Mainly in order to eat herbs with it (it is better if it is slightly dried). Feeding can begin to be given already at this time. It can be, for example, crackers or bran. Gradually, crusher and root crops are introduced into the diet.
Rabbits are sedimented from the rabbit in 2-3 months (not earlier than one and a half). The next mating can be carried out in a month or two after that. The animal's body must rest.
Rabbit diseases
In terms of resistance to infections, rabbits are significantly inferior to most livestock and poultry. They can get sick very easily. Moreover, the infection usually affects most of the herd immediately. Therefore, it is very important to carry out preventive measures - to be vaccinated on time, cleaned daily in the cells, and disinfected at least once or twice a month. There are many diseases that rabbits are prone to, and they all have different symptoms. The most dangerous are:
- A typical form of pasteurellosis. At the beginning of the disease, the animal rises sharply. The rabbit does not eat, and from his nose there are serous discharge. There is no cure for this disease.
- Cysticercosis. Symptoms of the animal with the disease begin to manifest only after intense damage to the body. The animal refuses to eat, its mucous membranes become icteric. On the sixth day, the rabbit dies.
- Myxomatosis. Symptoms of this disease are swelling, the appearance of gelatinous nodules on the body. Tubercles and red spots may form on the ears and eyelids.
Infected rabbits are necessarily isolated. The carcasses of dead or slaughtered sick animals are most often burned.
Very often, the infection is transmitted to rabbits through infected food. Therefore, do not buy a crusher in the market. It is through her that all rabbit infections usually spread. It is better to purchase feed more expensive, but from trusted suppliers with a good reputation. It is highly discouraged to keep rabbits near chickens and other poultry.
Often rabbit infectious diseases affect the entire herd, and the farmer has to start all over again. Of course, it is unprofitable to throw out dwellings in which sick animals died. Especially if these are expensive modular mesh cages for the industrial keeping of rabbits. But in any case, a thorough disinfection should be. This can be done with "White" or a strong solution of iodine. Metal mesh is additionally scorched by a gas burner.
How to slaughter
Most often, rabbits are bred for meat. Slaughter animals less than three months old is not allowed. The meat by this time they have not yet ripened and tasteless. Animals are slaughtered on skins in the cold season, after molting, and not before they are 5-6 months old. The skin of younger animals is also not ripe. Slaughter can be done in several ways. In private households, most often use a stick with a piece of hose on. The rabbit is taken by the hind legs and sharply hit the occipital region.
It is impossible to kill an animal by chopping off the head. The fact is that after this, the rabbit's nervous system continues to function for a long time. All this time he experiences severe pain. When hit with a stick, the nervous system shuts off immediately. Before slaughter, the animal is not fed or watered for 12 hours.
Flushing carcasses
Cutting is carried out by hanging the rabbit on some branch or pole. Tie the carcass with twine for the hind legs. To better drain the blood immediately after killing, you need to cut the nose. The skin is removed as a stocking, cutting it around the hind legs and cutting it on their inner side.
All organs are removed from the carcass, except for the liver, with which bile is carefully cut. Before cooking, it is advisable to keep the carcass in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours. During this time, partial breakdown of the protein will occur, and the meat will become tastier.
As you can see, keeping rabbits in their cages is quite troublesome. However, following the rules of feeding, the most important thing is cleanliness in the cells, and the success of this enterprise is guaranteed.