Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
piece of advice is to find a market and local processor if you do not want to process them
yourself.
Marshall spends five hours a day on the weekdays and four to eight hours a day on week-
ends caring for his rabbits. Much of his time is spent on his three tasks: cleaning the barn
and cages, butchering and packaging rabbit meat, and feeding and watering the rabbits.
Cold winter weather makes his work more difficult when he has to thaw out water cups and
tackle frozen manure. Predators can be a real problem as well: Stray dogs, raccoons, pos-
sums, cats, and coyotes can kill adult rabbits. Rats can kill young bunnies. Bees and wasp
stings also can kill a rabbit. Marshall counters these dangers by having a barn with a strong
door and a lock.
As for health problems, Marshall has some great advice for the beginning farmer: “Clean,
clean, clean, and protect,” he said. “What I mean is clean water, clean feed, clean housing
and nest boxes, and protect from weather and predators. That will take care of most of the
health issues. In my 30 years raising rabbits, I have been lucky not to have had any major is-
sues.”
Marshall also had to deal with sore feet, colds, and ear mites, “That was my fault for bringing
in new stock and not quarantining them,” he said. “Quarantining new stock is very important.
Also, do not become a petting zoo. Sick people can make sick rabbits. It also stresses the
rabbits. And that weed a kid pulls to feed the bunny could be poisonous.”
The Marshalls take great satisfaction in knowing they provide their family and customers
with healthy, quality meat, and they enjoy raising rabbits. Marshall is optimistic about the fu-
ture market for rabbits. He loves the renewed interest in eating local. “It is back to the basics
— the way our grandparents and their parents ate,” he said.
Raising Rabbits as Pets
Rabbits are popular pets. The AVMA estimates that there are 6.1 million pet rabbits in the Un-
ited States. Each household that has rabbits is estimated to have 3.4 rabbits. It seems you can-
not have just one.
What to expect
There are many things to consider when choosing a pet rabbit. Ideally, you will have some
idea of the personality of the individual rabbit. This is often one of the most important factors
in choosing a rabbit. You also should consider how large the rabbit will be when it is fully
grown. There can be a big difference between the smallest breeds and the largest ones. Keep-
ing a male or female rabbit can also make a difference. An intact doe may be territorial when
