# New Zealand Whites



## ducks4you (Aug 24, 2009)

WOW!  Never got to open a forum before!  

When I was a kid I had New Zealand Whites.  Started with a pair (not on purpose) and had 2 litters, 2 successive years.  Believe it or not, I sold them to the local Ben Franklin store, since they had a small pet department and the babies were weaned a few weeks before Easter.  (1970's, small town at the time, now BIG suburb of Chicago--people did that sort of thing, then.)

Anybody else keep em?  Write back and show some pics, please!


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## Nikki28 (Aug 24, 2009)

I have a buck and two does. Just mated them so hopefully we will have babies soon!

For some reason photobucket wont show me any of my pictures so hopefully I can post some soon!


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## waynesgarden (Aug 25, 2009)

No photos of the NZW bunnies yet. Have to send the digital camera out for repairs since it lost the battle with gravity. (Yes, yes, I dropped it.)

I had NZ Whites many years back and had a small but thriving meat rabbit business. This time around, I looked more carefully and bought better breeding stock to start with. First litters should start popping a a few weeks.

I also got a few Californians. They offer a contrast to the snow-white color scheme of the NZs and from what I've read, a cross between the Cals and the NZs produce a splendid meat bunny. I tried one cross breeding last week. Time will tell.

Wayne


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## big brown horse (Aug 25, 2009)

waynesgarden said:
			
		

> No photos of the NZW bunnies yet. Have to send the digital camera out for repairs since it lost the battle with gravity. (Yes, yes, I dropped it.)
> 
> I had NZ Whites many years back and had a small but thriving meat rabbit business. This time around, I looked more carefully and bought better breeding stock to start with. First litters should start popping a a few weeks.
> 
> ...


I love your chicken avatar Wayne!


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## currycomb (Aug 27, 2009)

have a nz buck, very happy with him. one of the does is a great mom, the other one better straighten up or else. she is due on the 1st. her last litter was on the wire instead of in the nest box, so hubby just bred her back, time will tell. the best mom we have had is a white and black spotted doe. same size as a new zeland, and when crossed on NZ buck, get spots, solid white and solid black, but all nice meat rabbits. have a large size dutch doe that crosses well on the NZ. could it be the NZ are just a good outcross rabbit?


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## ducks4you (Aug 28, 2009)

currycomb said:
			
		

> ... could it be the NZ are just a good outcross rabbit?


I'll bet they are.  I'm not sure, but they might be the equivalent of a "Heritage Breed.", since they've been a standard breed.

I got my two from a rabbit farm across the street from my housing development (around 1969).  They were selling the property (which ended up as a bunch of apartments) and moving to OK.  They picked up one baby from one cage and another baby from another cage and I took them.


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## Beekissed (Aug 28, 2009)

Used to raise them for some years but no longer do so.  I like the breed for meat production and good mothers.


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## jenlyn9483 (Aug 31, 2009)

I raised NZ and Rex crosses several years back. I just got back into rabbits this past March. I have 2 Does that are NZ, 1 NZ buck and one Cali buck. So far I have had my first litter from my mature doe, babies are 9 weeks. They are from the NZ buck.  She had 6 babies all healthy. I still have 2 does and a buck from them. I have handled them from birth so most of them are pretty sweet. I like the size of them, they are pretty meaty in my opinion. I have rebred her to the Cali buck this time so Im interested to see how that turns out..

If a doe has still born babies or has them on the wire and they die or she doesnt take care of them. If you are going to give her a second chance and rebreed her I would wait 3 weeks to rebreed so that her body has time to regenerate from the pregnancy. I also wait 3 weeks to rebreed after babies are weaned. I just feel like I have a better chance of a successful litter if my Doe has time to rest and regenerate


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## Goatzilla (Oct 13, 2009)

I love my NZW's. I keep and breed 6 does and a really nice Californian doe for a good meat outcross. Here's a pic of my herd buck. He produces outstanding offspring.
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





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## JoieDeViveRabbitry (Nov 5, 2009)

Goatzilla,
 This is going to sound odd, but that pic of your NZ buck looks REALLY familiar. Are you in RI?


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## Goatzilla (Nov 6, 2009)

Yes Jenna, I'm in RI. I'm over in Tiverton. You probably have seen this rabbit before. I often use this pic when I run ads on Craigslist to sell breeding stock. Another thing too. If you are showing rabbits in the New England area, you have probably seen some of this rabbit's cousins on the show table up for Best in Show" nearly every show. I got my foundation stock from Jim B., who is the NZW breeder out of Westport MA. He has won more BIS than anyone I know. I am an old friend of his and visit his rabbitry every once in a while. Part of the reason that everyone has such a hard time beating him is because he keeps around 125 rabbits, and they all look like clones of each other. He always has a fresh batch of show rabbits to rotate out. Many times a breeder will have a certain "hot rabbit" that wins a couple in a row then they're done because they don't have another one as good to replace him after the show circuit takes it's toll and sucks away the bun's conditioning from the constant stress.

I used to show rabbits really seriously during the 90's. I raised Netherland Dwarf, Florida Whites, and dabbled a bit in Satins. I used to go to all of the Nats and Conventions, and even placed well and won some huge classes with FW's and ND's. I don't think that I would ever go that route again but you never know. I recently found and bought a few FW's that trace back to my old line of stock that I was winning with years ago.





			
				JoieDeViveRabbitry said:
			
		

> Goatzilla,
> This is going to sound odd, but that pic of your NZ buck looks REALLY familiar. Are you in RI?


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## JoieDeViveRabbitry (Nov 6, 2009)

I knew it! I went out on a limb there but I knew I had seen that pic/rabbit before.
 I'm in Coventry. How many NZW do you keep?


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## JoieDeViveRabbitry (Nov 6, 2009)

This is OT but do you sell already butchered rabbit? 
 I'd love a whole one or two...


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## Goatzilla (Nov 6, 2009)

I currently have a pretty small rabbitry. I concentrate mostly on my birds. I'm working with 15 holes and I keep 4 NZW brood does. I also play around a little and I have a Standard Chin doe that I cross with my NZW buck. The offspring are all chin colored, but they have NZ type. They end up looking like a Std chin on steroids. I also have a really decent Californian doe that I cross with the NZ buck to make purely meat rabbits.


I primarily focus on selling breeding stock, and I will sell only the best, so I occasionally end up with a few NZ culls that get whacked. I also send the crosses to freezer camp. I don't normally sell processed rabbits, but I can easily set you up with a couple the next time I process a batch. I'll get in touch when they are available and you can come take a ride and check out my little menagerie. 





			
				JoieDeViveRabbitry said:
			
		

> I knew it! I went out on a limb there but I knew I had seen that pic/rabbit before.
> I'm in Coventry. How many NZW do you keep?


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## JoieDeViveRabbitry (Nov 7, 2009)

That would be great! 

 I currently have 15 holes right now myself. Though I am expanding  (by the moment it seems!)


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