Cages
- Thread starter VickieB
- Start date
P.O. in MO
Overrun with beasties
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2013
- Messages
- 171
- Reaction score
- 48
- Points
- 78
I start weaning at 5 weeks and pull 2 a day until they are all out. I separate by sex and put in 30 x 30 cages for growing out. I try to keep it at three to a cage in a 30 x 30 but have had 4 and they do ok. You should be about ready to do some butchering and start getting some payback for all your work.
- Thread starter
- #3
Moonshine
Chillin' with the herd
We have some that are about 10 weeks that came from a Dutches and they are the same size as the 6 week old NZ babies. My poor grandpa can't hardly stand it that the 10 week old babies aren't as big as he wants them for butcher. He can't hardly stand to wait much longer to eat rabbit! He's so funny! So impatient!! I'm trying to get him to wait just 2 more weeks till the NZs are 8 weeks and the dutches are 12 weeks and we will butcher all 14 at one time.
- Thread starter
- #5
VickieB
Loving the herd life
I was pretty impatient myself. I wanted to raise them up to 5 pounds, but they were almost 11 weeks, and I was wanting them to be fryers so I finally dispatched them at 4 1/2 pounds.
I'm hoping my later litters will reach 5 pounds by 9 weeks which is what the rabbits I got them from were doing. I'm wondering if they're smaller because they're first litters, and because it has gotten to the dog days of summer...
I'm hoping my later litters will reach 5 pounds by 9 weeks which is what the rabbits I got them from were doing. I'm wondering if they're smaller because they're first litters, and because it has gotten to the dog days of summer...
Moonshine
Chillin' with the herd
Are you keeping feed in their bowl at all times? We are and a friend looked at my rabbits and said the babies are so big and healthy. Her babies were skinny compared to mine and the only difference was we are keeping their bowls full of feed at all times.
sawfish99
Loving the herd life
Vicki - towards the end of growing, I try to limit to about 5 or 6 in a cage that size. However, it depends on how many we have on hand and how many empty cages there are.
Yes, the heat can slow down growth.
Yes, the heat can slow down growth.
nawma
Chillin' with the herd
I try to limit the numers in my 30x30 grow out cages to four bunnies. Sometimes I can have less depending on numbers and other empty cages. Have occasionally had to pull out two small temp cages to prevent overcrowding and fights till we can dispatch a few.
- Thread starter
- #9
VickieB
Loving the herd life
By 9 or 10 pm I try to see the food eaten up and gone. We started having problems with rats showing up at night. I would see 3 or 4 at a time out in the cages with the bunnies. My cages are on the back patio and I can't have rats that close to the house, so I started seeing to it that the bins were emptied by that time, and will fill them back up in the morning.
sawfish99
Loving the herd life
Do you leave hay available all the time?
