# Meat rabbit growth question



## Treewhisper (Nov 24, 2010)

I've just started raising rabbits for meat for my family (not commercial). I have a litter of 8 Giant chinchilla X Silver Fox crosses that i put in the freezer. 

At 10 weeks their weights were (lbs) after butchering: 2.3, 2.2, 2.7, 2.0, 2.1, 2.3, 2.3, & 2.2 respectively. Their pre-butcher wts ranged from 3.0 to 4.5 lbs.
Are these numbers about right?? I was expecting them to be 5 pounders.

When they just started taking solid food i feed each about 1/2 cup pellets a day then when they got older they were up to a cup each supplemented with alot of hay and fruit/veggie scraps. Should i just free-feed pellets till 10 wks?


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## MaggieJ (Feb 6, 2006)

The magic 5 pound figure is the live weight. Your fryers at 3 .0 - 4.5 pounds at ten weeks were a tad light, but considering how they were fed, I think they did rather well. I think you need to free feed them a good quality pellet in order to do better. The dress out rates were pretty good, all things considered.

I agree with making grass hay available to fryers to prevent GI problems, but be aware that your feeding methods are a trade-off. Pellets give faster growth but you may lose some fryers to weaning enteritis. Natural foods are less likely to cause problems, in my experience, but growth will be slower. 

My rabbits are fed alfalfa/grass hay, whole grain (not corn) and fresh foods and normally are ready to butcher at 14 - 16 weeks. They have never had GI problems, they taste wonderful and, because the feed is cheaper, the cost per pound of meat produced is considerably less, even though it takes longer. It is a question of knowing your priorities and how to achieve them.


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## Treewhisper (Nov 24, 2010)

I have another litter of giant chins that are 4 weeks old. I will start free-feeding them and see how they do. I thought the magic number for taste-wise was 10 wks without their hormones influencing the meat but i'll stretch this lot out to 12 wks and see how they taste. Thanks Maggie! What kind of a grain based diet do you use? Pellets are a bit pricey here.


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## MaggieJ (Feb 6, 2006)

Regarding flavour, it is a matter of what you like. In Europe, rabbits are seldom butchered at the fryer stage... People there tend to prefer roasters aged 16 - 20 weeks. As do I. I prefer beef to veal. I like my coffee strong, my cheese old and my rabbit mature. Other people have different tastes. They want fork tender, very mild meat. And that's fine, but difficult to do with rabbits unless you free-feed pellets. All I can suggest is that you try a couple of roasters and see how you like them. They are not the best for frying on high heat, but are great roasted or seared and cooked with a bit of moisture on medium heat. Apple juice adds a nice touch.

I do not feed a grain-based diet. It is a hay-based diet with a smaller amount of grain fed as a supplement. You pretty much need a good alfalfa or clover hay to give the buns enough protein. Best grains are oats, barley and wheat. I do not feed corn because of recent issues. From April to November, I gather free greens (weeds and tree leaves mainly) from our fields and they really want only a bit of either hay or grain during this time. I keep it available though. For tips on what greens to feed, see the Draft Safe Plants sticky and the Natural Feeding sticky at the top. Willow and poplar are excellent additions and can be dried for winter feed. They have a protein content that compares favourably with alfalfa hay. A quick word about hay. Most alfalfa or clover hay has a grass or timothy component and I believe this is a good thing. If it is nearly pure legume hay, best to get a couple bales of grass hay as well and feed a bit of it as well. The rabbits should have free choice hay, ample greens and fresh foods when available (winter greens is a whole other topic) and small amounts of grain. Nursing does and growing kits should get more grain, provided they are also eating their hay. Occasionally one does encounter a "grain piggie" and that can require careful monitoring.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

I don't understand what's the issue with giving growing babies all they need? I have never restricted the feed to my growing babies. I start free feeding when they are 10 days old. thats when mom's milk production really starts getting heavy, and she needs all the feed she wants. To restrict feed in the fast growth stage of a baby animal will stunt its growth, because the body needs energy and the food bowl is empty, so the body starts to eat itself away from the inside.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

while the doe is nursing the kits SHE needs free food, but a newly weaned kit that is just getting used to solid food needs to be moniterd closely for how well its adjusting and this is easyer done with not over feeding straight pellets all at once, once the kit is used to a solid diet then yes pour on the food and let them grow fast,


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

how would you feed her free and not them? they are together in the cage. the babies begin to nibble pellets slowly as they become able. Once they are of a wean-able age, they are eating pellets with mom all the time.
I don't wean kits before they are eating solid food regularly. For my tans this is around 5 weeks, although I have weaned at 3 weeks in an emergency and they did fine.
I wonder if certain breeds are more suseptable to this than others?


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## Dead Rabbit (Oct 30, 2010)

those weights are very low IMO. at 10 wks a good meat rabbit should be 5+ lbs. im thinking the g. chin in the cross slowed them down. i understand the silver fox is a good meat breed.

there is a grow out thread at backyard poultry where someone gave the weights of the silver fox crosses. and they did very well.

at 12 wks mine are 7 lbs plus or minus. but i free feed pellets from their birth to their death. which is 10-12 wks of age.

doe gets free feeding from day one of kindling.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

kits do better on the hay and other less processed foods early on, when i had caged rabbits i always mixed oats in the pellets, the kits ate hay and the oats WAY before they really went after the pellets, in my colony where they are born under ground they dont come above ground untill much later than you would see kits falling out of a nest box, add about a week or so onto that time, when they first came above ground they had access to all the hay and grass/greens they want and they also eat the whole grain and other feed for everyone else to a limited extent, they dont spend much time out in the open eating for the next week or so, they end up easing them self into solid food on their own time, never have had any problem with dietary problems in the little kits, they all grow fast and bounce all over when they are ready


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## wolffeathers (Dec 20, 2010)

With my Silver Fox, the does get free fed with their litter, then when the litter gets pulled they get a larger feeder that stays full. To prevent loosing weaning kits, I always make sure to have about a handful of fresh hay in their cage especially around the 2-4 week mark. I used to use alfalfa, but now I just use handfuls of bermuda from the round bales we feed the rest of the stock. It seems to have taken care of the occasionally lost kit when they discover the feeder.

I free feed the rabbits until their date with the freezer. They eat more, but they grow faster. I think that if you keep your kits feeders full you will see a big difference.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

I am no expert with rabbits, I think we've been raising them now for about 3 years but I have always free fed pellets & hay to all our rabbits, adult does, bucks & kits in grow out pens with out any problems of over eating, etc.
I use the J feeders inall my hutches & make sure there are plenty of pellets a.m. & p.m. & in my growout pens I use dishes that I make sure & fill twice a day.

Like I said all my rabbits have hay all the time too.

We have butchered some at 10 weeks & some as late as 14 & 15 weeks & we don't notice a difference in taste because of the ages.


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## Dead Rabbit (Oct 30, 2010)

Backfourty said:


> I am no expert with rabbits, I think we've been raising them now for about 3 years but I have always free fed pellets & hay to all our rabbits, adult does, bucks & kits in grow out pens with out any problems of over eating, etc.
> I use the J feeders inall my hutches & make sure there are plenty of pellets a.m. & p.m. & in my growout pens I use dishes that I make sure & fill twice a day.
> 
> Like I said all my rabbits have hay all the time too.
> ...



me either. and one time i butchered some does i was holding over for breeders, but decided against using them....they were 6 months old. and they were still tender enuff to use for frying. i was pleasently surprised at this.


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