# Is rabbit too lean?



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

So, once I have my own property, I plan on raising rabbits, mostly for the dogs (Mainly, I'm not really a huge fan of it) I would like to ideally raise enough for half of their meals to be rabbit. I am worried about rabbit being too lean to feed as such a large part of the diet. Would this be an issue? The other half would mostly be made up of goat, deer and beef.


----------



## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

Since I have fed ONE entire rabbit I feel that I am knowledgeable enough to answer this. :tongue::tongue1:

YES they are too lean to feed as a large part of the PMR diet. The one I fed had hard any fat on it.


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

Even with fattier meats like beef and venison? I know that goat is pretty lean as well, but they wouldn't get much of that. What if fat scraps were added to the meal?


----------



## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

Well of course if you add fat then it's not a problem. I feed a lot of venison that is really lean but I add a lot of pork, beef, and chicken.


----------



## GoingPostal (Sep 5, 2011)

I'd just buy some beef suet and throw it in personally. How much of the diet would be rabbit?


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

GoingPostal said:


> I'd just buy some beef suet and throw it in personally. How much of the diet would be rabbit?


Shooting for half in rabbit. When I buy my own property the goal is to raise 90% of all food needed to feed me and my dogs. The other half will be beef, pork, some chicken, goat and venison.


----------



## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

RedneckCowgirl said:


> Shooting for half in rabbit. When I buy my own property the goal is to raise 90% of all food needed to feed me and my dogs. The other half will be beef, pork, some chicken, goat and venison.


So, when are you getting property because unless it's soon then this is a moot point, right? Rabbit is very lean so is venison, and with the reports now out about beef, unless you raise your own I'd stay away from that too.


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

whiteleo said:


> *So, when are you getting property because unless it's soon then this is a moot point, right*? Rabbit is very lean so is venison, and with the reports now out about beef, unless you raise your own I'd stay away from that too.


Um, I don't find it a moot point at all actually. Just because I'm not planning on having my own property for a while doesn't mean I can't ask questions! I like to be prepared and figure things out way in advance so I don't have to scramble to figure things out last minute. If you don't want to add anything constructive to the conversation, please hit the back button on your browser. :smile:


----------



## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

I was being constructive, rabbit is very lean, so is venison and I wouldn't feed beef unless you raise and butcher it yourself.


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

whiteleo said:


> *I was being constructive*, rabbit is very lean, so is venison and I wouldn't feed beef unless you raise and butcher it yourself.


There is a difference in being constructive and being rude.


----------



## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

I wasn't being rude.........I just say things that pop into my head and say it how I see it, or in this case read it!


----------



## wolfsnaps88 (Jan 2, 2012)

Oh hey I have fed one rabbit too! LOL and one in the freezer. (and a snowshoe too!)

It is lean. Add small chunks of fat to the meal or else feed something fattier at the next meal. Your dogs will love it, I am sure. But, I think you may have a hard time making it half of their overall diet. While rabbits do breed well, it does take time to have enough to accommodate even two large dogs. It is also not the most efficient financially wise (or so I have been told from my home steaders forums). I was considering it too and I still might one day to provide variety (because rabbit ain't cheap and I don't pay for it!) but not any time soon. Gary is s l o w l y building me a chicken coop so I will update how that goes. I may decide to raise broilers at some point but at first just for eggs. 

I don't see anything wrong with daydreaming about the future and asking questions to things like that. This is how we learn.


----------



## Scarlett_O' (May 19, 2011)

Just add candy to the feed for them....itll fatten them up!!:tongue: :rofl:


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

I figure, raised in cages they aren't that efficient BUT, I plan on building a sort of rabbit tractor (like a chicken tractor, but for rabbits :smile, so they will have unlimited grass. Of course they would still have pellets/veggies/some hay as well. I worked it out, and I will need 1000 pounds per year to feed rabbit as half the diet for 3 100 pound dogs (granted, the Beezer won't get that big, and my two aren't that big, but rabbit is lean so I figured I'd round up). NZ Whites dress out at approx 10 pounds and most litters have 8-10. Does can be bred/kindle three times a year. That is approx 240 pounds of meat that one does can produce in a year. So I figure 5 does and a buck to start with. Each doe will have their own tractor, as will the buck.


----------



## wolfsnaps88 (Jan 2, 2012)

Assuming you have low mortality rates, the does accept the bucks, etc. etc. 

In theory it sounds great. Get back to me when its put into action  (no snark intended)


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

wolfsnaps88 said:


> Assuming you have low mortality rates, the does accept the bucks, etc. etc.
> 
> In theory it sounds great. Get back to me when its put into action  (no snark intended)


Yea, I figured that this will be after the does learn how to be moms and stuff like that. I have no issues culling does that just aren't cut out for motherhood, searching for a good buck, etc. :smile:


----------



## Dude and Bucks Mamma (May 14, 2011)

whiteleo said:


> So, when are you getting property because unless it's soon then this is a moot point, right? Rabbit is very lean so is venison, and with the reports now out about beef, unless you raise your own I'd stay away from that too.


Ok, so I'll wait until I have property and a herd of cattle to start asking questions about them...

Why is planning ahead a bad thing? 

ANYWAYS! We feed lots of beef heart that was meant for human consumption so it has been completely trimmed of fat. We add in some strips of fat to keep his diet from being too lean. If you can get fat then I don't see rabbit being a problem.


----------



## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

wolfsnaps88 said:


> Oh hey I have fed one rabbit too! LOL and one in the freezer. (and a snowshoe too!)
> 
> It is lean. Add small chunks of fat to the meal or else feed something fattier at the next meal. Your dogs will love it, I am sure. But, I think you may have a hard time making it half of their overall diet. While rabbits do breed well, it does take time to have enough to accommodate even two large dogs. It is also not the most efficient financially wise (or so I have been told from my home steaders forums). I was considering it too and I still might one day to provide variety (because rabbit ain't cheap and I don't pay for it!) but not any time soon. Gary is s l o w l y building me a chicken coop so I will update how that goes. I may decide to raise broilers at some point but at first just for eggs.
> 
> I don't see anything wrong with daydreaming about the future and asking questions to things like that. This is how we learn.


Do the meat chickens! They only take 8 weeks to grow! :biggrin:

And for all of you ladies planning your farms, I would love to hear all your ideas!!! Shall we make another thread?


----------



## wolfsnaps88 (Jan 2, 2012)

Yeah thats what broilers are. Like I said, if I enjoy chicken raising, I might....

This will be my first chicken experience.


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

Sprocket said:


> Do the meat chickens! They only take 8 weeks to grow! :biggrin:
> *
> And for all of you ladies planning your farms, I would love to hear all your ideas!!! Shall we make another thread?*


Would you like to do the honors? I'd love to share mine


----------



## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

wolfsnaps88 said:


> Yeah thats what broilers are. Like I said, if I enjoy chicken raising, I might....
> 
> This will be my first chicken experience.


I know I just hate calling them broilers for some reason! LOL

Chickens are AWESOME. I could watch them for hours.


----------



## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

RedneckCowgirl said:


> Would you like to do the honors? I'd love to share mine


http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/general-talk/17327-ranch-journal.html#post216213


----------



## xchairity_casex (Oct 8, 2011)

if you want to fatten up rabbits, feed them alot of alfalfa hay instead of timothy, more claories, makes them fatter (used to own a holland lop bunny)


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

xchairity_casex said:


> if you want to fatten up rabbits, feed them alot of alfalfa hay instead of timothy, more claories, makes them fatter (used to own a holland lop bunny)


You can't feed alfalfa to a baby bun. The levels are wrong (at least I think its babies, not totally sure lol)


----------



## xchairity_casex (Oct 8, 2011)

RedneckCowgirl said:


> You can't feed alfalfa to a baby bun. The levels are wrong (at least I think its babies, not totally sure lol)


Alfalfa should only be fed to babys they will tell you due to them needing more calories then move onto timothy once they hit about 5 months to prevent them getting fat


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

xchairity_casex said:


> Alfalfa should only be fed to babys they will tell you due to them needing more calories then move onto timothy once they hit about 5 months to prevent them getting fat


I knew it was one of them! I just got it mixed up :tongue:


----------



## xchairity_casex (Oct 8, 2011)

yep, i only know because when i got my bunny nilla i joined an AWSOME rabbit forum with tons of info and i did SOOO much research and asked SOO many questions while i had her


----------



## lab mom (May 6, 2012)

I would think you would be able to track down beef scraps from smaller meat processors or a butcher cheaper than buying beef suet from a store. (Around here they charge more for suet in the grocery store to make a buck off the bird lovers.) I am not able to afford the luxury of organic food for my family or my dogs, other than venison. I guess it is not a perfect world. When you get closer to buying your property be sure to check the zoning regulations. Some areas require you to have a certain amount of acreage to raise certain animals. As long as you are entertaining thoughts of raising rabbits, why not some chickens?


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

lab mom said:


> I would think you would be able to track down beef scraps from smaller meat processors or a butcher cheaper than buying beef suet from a store. (Around here they charge more for suet in the grocery store to make a buck off the bird lovers.) I am not able to afford the luxury of organic food for my family or my dogs, other than venison. I guess it is not a perfect world. When you get closer to buying your property be sure to check the zoning regulations. Some areas require you to have a certain amount of acreage to raise certain animals. *As long as you are entertaining thoughts of raising rabbits, why not some chickens?*


I will be, but more for me then the dogs.


----------



## Elliehanna (Jan 16, 2012)

I have fed rabbit, about 6 total so far, and though they are lean, if you keep the skin on and the dog eats it then its not too bad, I did like every other day around 2 lbs of rabbit for a 65 lb dog that normally eats about 1.5 of anything else, he did great on it, I think its just you need to watch the fat intake just so they get enough, but its a very rich meat


----------



## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

I think it's not just that it makes them fat, but also that it's too high in calcium or something? 

By a rabbit tractor do you mean just like.... put them down and let them do their thing? Because males WILL fight if not neutered, generally.


----------



## Elisabeth (Jul 18, 2011)

whiteleo said:


> and with the reports now out about beef, unless you raise your own I'd stay away from that too.


what is the report? because it's feed lot cattle?


----------



## RedneckCowgirl (Oct 28, 2011)

Caty M said:


> By a rabbit tractor do you mean just like.... put them down and let them do their thing? Because males WILL fight if not neutered, generally.


Each doe would have her own, the buck would have his own. 


Elisabeth said:


> what is the report? because it's feed lot cattle?


The newest thing is to feed cattle candy, as corn is to spendy


----------

