# Crossing wild to domestic for meat quality



## Irishmeat (Jul 27, 2011)

Any europeans here cross wild rabbits into their domestic stock to improve the quality of the meat. I realise that american wild rabbits are a different species to domestic rabbits and cant cross breed.


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## woodleighcreek (Jul 27, 2011)

I don't think they can cross breed as they have a different number of chromosomes.

eta: sorry, didn't see you said European wild rabbits. Sorry!


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## dewey (Jul 28, 2011)

Irishmeat said:
			
		

> Any europeans here cross wild rabbits into their domestic stock to improve the quality of the meat. I realise that american wild rabbits are a different species to domestic rabbits and cant cross breed.


Even if possible, I'm curious how that would be considered an improvement on domestic rabbit meat quality.  



eta: is domestic meat there of low quality?


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## hoodat (Jul 28, 2011)

An occasional cross like that (if possible) migh reinvigorate the line but then you'd have to breed some of the undesirable traits back out.


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## dewey (Jul 28, 2011)

hoodat said:
			
		

> An occasional cross like that (if possible) migh reinvigorate the line but then you'd have to breed some of the undesirable traits back out.


My thinking, also, regarding, basically, reinventing the wheel.  

OP, meat quality of wild european rabbit (not wild european domestic rabbit) is usually not considered a desirable quality to attain to.....selective breeding was used to breed out certain qualities of the true european wild rabbit to improve meat quality.  

I'm still very curious about the reasons it would be considered an improvement on meat quality of domestics.


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## Irishmeat (Jul 28, 2011)

It is possible to use a wild buck. it will obviously decrease the size of the offspring however it adds a gamey taste aswell as producing healthier more desease resistant stock. very suitable as grazing/ pasture reared rabbits in chicken tractors or whatever you want to use. You may argue that wild rabbits can transfer disease  to domestics but if you know that an area is free from VHD or myxomatosis, by breeding in wild blood to your stock you are effectively vaccinating the offspring as wild rabbits have built up resistance to harmfull diseases through natural selection. hope this helps.


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## dewey (Jul 28, 2011)

Irishmeat said:
			
		

> It is possible to use a wild buck. it will obviously decrease the size of the offspring however it adds a gamey taste aswell as producing healthier more desease resistant stock. very suitable as grazing/ pasture reared rabbits in chicken tractors or whatever you want to use. You may argue that wild rabbits can transfer disease  to domestics but if you know that an area is free from VHD or myxomatosis, by breeding in wild blood to your stock you are effectively vaccinating the offspring as wild rabbits have built up resistance to harmfull diseases through natural selection. hope this helps.


Ah...thanks for the reply.  Regarding the meat quality, it wouldn't be something that's my cup of tea (to me, the less gamey qualities the better ) but to each their own.  
I didn't know that some wild rabbits are immune to VHD, etc., or isolated from its spread.  Interesting.


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## Irishmeat (Aug 2, 2011)

Natural sellection is an amazing thing. No amount of human interferance is as good as it when it comes to survival of the fittest. We can however borrow some of those genes from the wild into our own stock.  making the stock much hardier and healthier. rabbits can even be free ranged this way.


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