Rabbit How To's.....
Purchasing
commercial stock for a new rabbitry can be a real challenge. The
following are some areas we would suggest that you examine before
making the purchase.
1. Length of time the producer has been
involved with commercial and/or show rabbits. What is his
primary focus? Shows or meat production? A combination of
the two?
2.
Type of records kept on the rabbitry production. Does he know
the weights of the litters at any particular time? Does he know
how many fryers are produced per doe annually? What is the
average number of litters produced annually by the doe? How many
litters will the producer breed for each year?
3.
Genetics. Does the breeder have a good understanding of
how to apply genetics to improve his stock?
4.
Check the rabbits very carefully for any obvious genetic faults.
Make certain the feet are well furred. Are the teeth growing
properly?
Ask
questions. Don't be afraid to be picky! It's your money!
"What records should I maintain
to improve production for my meat rabbits?"
This is a typical question discussed on
rabbit forums and the weekly Rabbit Production Chat. I wanted to
provide some insight into improving the genetics of a commercial
rabbitry as I have learned.
When I purchased my first group of 32
producing does, the fryers were taking about twelve weeks to reach
five pounds. Huh! Did I not read that people have fryers at five
pounds at eight weeks? What was I doing wrong?
At this time I did not own a computer,
much less know about rabbitry management software. I was spending a
lot of time tracking data on forms in a notebook. This was not working
for me as I was increasing to a 100 doe inventory. I needed to utilize
my time more efficiently and urgently needed a better way to evaluate
performance.
After purchasing a computer and
learning the basics, my next step was to purchase a rabbitry software
tracking program. During the next year, the overall performance began
to improve. It still wasn’t enough for me. I took a class in Excel, a
spreadsheet solution. Shortly after that, I decided to attend classes
for Access, the database portion of the Microsoft Office Suite. I had
found what I needed! Fortunately, the builder of my computer had
suggested that I purchase Office after he learned how I would be
utilizing the computer. Great suggestion and a good investment for me!
Many computers are purchased with
Microsoft Works as part of the bundled software.
This should be enough to get you
started with production and financial data. If a spreadsheet or
database program is not included, it’s fairly easy to set up a table
in a Word processor. This will also allow you to track chores and
analyze data for your rabbitry.
I recently realized that many
commercial producers are not concerned with tracking pedigrees. Many
people believe that pedigrees are only for "show" people. Pedigrees
are an important part of my records. Dr. Steven Lukefahr attended one
of the Rabbit Production chats and I was able to pose a question
regarding the use of "inbreeding coefficients" relating to commercial
rabbits. "How high a coefficient is too much?" Dr. Lukefahr replied
that the inbreeding coefficient should remain under 25% for those of
us concerned with "production". I have attempted to maintain a
percentage under 15% in my breeding stock. I will allow the number to
be higher in the sires but try to keep the does at less than 15%.
Please remember that I am referring to the commercial line of meat
rabbits. I am not speaking about line breeding to set physical
characteristics in my rabbits such as needed by a hobby breeder for
the show table.
If you are interested in learning more
about inbreeding coefficients and free software to analyze pedigrees,
do an internet search for "Wright’s Inbreeding Coefficients" and
"Fspeed2".
Are there other areas that I track?
One of the areas initially seeing the
most improvement is the 28 day weights. Because I started out weaning
at 28 days, I incorporated this weight into my system instead of the
21 day litter weights. Handling the babies at 21 and 28 days was not
time efficient in my rabbitry. Once I had established certain criteria
for the selection process of future does and bucks, there was a
gradual improvement of 28 day weights as well as shortening the time
it was taking for fryers to reach five pounds. .
Other areas of importance to me are:
- Growth rates of does and bucks
retained as replacements
- Doe performance such as
nest building, number of kits weaned and the ability to maintain
condition and rebreed on schedule
- Conception percentages
- The efficient conversion of feed
Because categories are so easy to add
to the database, I will add new areas to analyze as the need arises. I
have to remind myself that I don’t need to get bogged down in data.
As other areas have improved, I am
seeing a marked decrease in the feed consumed to yield a pound of
rabbit. The next objective is to spend more time with feed testing of
various families to determine the most efficient genetics. The effort
spent in this area should help lower the cost of gain and increase
profits.
If someone researching a commercial
rabbit operation were to ask:
"What are your suggestions on how to
begin?"
My reply would be:
"Purchase your starting inventory from
someone who maintains records and begin keeping records from day one."
A
Topic In Our Discussion Forum.....
"Can someone explain
Young Doe Syndrome? "
From what I understand, this
term is used when a young doe dies
mysteriously. We go to the barn and find that a doe about to kindle
has died from no *obvious* reasons. Sometimes a young doe with
a young litter will be found dead from unknown causes. Yet, if we
had been more observant, we might have noticed a symptom.
Rabbit Production, 8th Edition, states that Enterotoxemia is the major
factor in Young Doe Syndrome along with staphylococcal mastitis.
It is further stated that the condition can occur in does with any
number of kindlings.
Their suggestion is to gradually increase the feeding by an ounce per
day once the doe has kindled. It is stated that this practice of
bringing the doe to full feed has been effective in eliminating the
enterotoxemia phase of Young Doe Syndrome.
Enterotoxemia
Clinical signs are profuse diarrhea, dehydration,and reduced feed
intake.
Mastitis
This is an infection of the mammary glands. It can be caused by
several bacteria. (I've had does tested for the culprit and it has
been Staphylococcus aureus.)
I found the following at Merck which *may be* related to what some
people refer to as "Young Doe Syndrome".
Ketosis (Pregnancy Toxemia)
Ketosis is a rare disorder that may result in death of does at or 1-2
days before kindling. The disease is more common in first-litter does.
Predisposing factors include obesity and lack of exercise. The
probable cause is starvation. For some reason, not well understood,
there is anorexia. Other signs are dullness of eyes, sluggishness,
respiratory distress, prostration, and death. The most significant
lesions are fatty liver and kidneys. The body mobilizes fat and
transports it to the liver to be broken down for energy, thus the
fatty liver.
Diagnosis depends on clinical signs and necropsy lesions. Injection of
fluids that contain glucose may be helpful in correcting the disease.
Breeding junior does early, before they become too fat, is also
helpful. Hairballs in the stomach are often a factor in ketosis.
A
Topic in our Discussion Forum.........
"How
should I do feed testing?"
Guidelines for Feed Testing
If you are interested in performing feed tests, I hope the following
suggestions will be helpful in establishing the trials.
The cages should be the same size.
Feeders need to be uniform in size and placement. And don’t forget the
number and placement of the water valves. Place the same number of
rabbits in the cage. Don’t overcrowd.
Select the rabbits for uniformity. Only have same sexed kits in each
cage. Time and time again we read that faster growing animals more
efficiently convert feed to meat. In my rabbitry, the male fryers, on
average, will grow faster to 5 pounds than the females. Having a cage
predominately male and another predominately female can provide false
results. Make certain the starting weight is fairly uniform for the
rabbits in the test. Do not combine very small or very large kits in
the groups.
As a need for starting with a uniform group, let me share this. I was
provided some data from a test facility for feed conversions at
different weights. Rabbits weighing from 4 to 5 pounds converted at
4.43 pounds of feed to one pound of gain. Rabbits weighing from 5 to 6
pounds converted at 5.37 pounds of feed to one pound of gain. One can
see why having random weights in the groups is not beneficial. It
would also be easy to slant the results of the test group or the
control group if one were so inclined.
After placing the selected test animals into the cage, wait a few days
before beginning the tests. If you are changing the diet on a group,
have the rabbits weaned onto the new feed before starting the trials.
How will I manage the feeding? I have containers that will hold many
pounds of feed. The feed is weighed and placed into a separate
container for each cage. Make certain the containers are properly
labeled to avoid any confusion at feeding time.
Why would I want to perform feed
testing?
Not all rabbit feeds are created
equal. With the rising cost of feed, it is helpful for me to determine
which feed provides the most efficient cost of gain.
Feed to gain ratios are important to
establish feed efficiency in certain families. By selecting bucks and
does from feed efficient lines, the cost of gain will be lowered and
profits will increase. Of course, all of this is dependent upon the
feed providing good nutrition, good growth and maintaining the health
of the animals.
Good luck with the trials. This type of research should benefit you
tremendously
Special thanks are sent to Ron
Obermark and his staff at the Purina Rabbit Research Facility for
sharing the guidelines for setting up my feed tests.
A
Topic In Our Discussion Forum.....
"What type of
system should I be using to manage replacement does? What works
best for you? "
From several studies,
I have learned that it is best to select from the heavier of the
does...........at birth. Not very practical for me. I begin the
selection process at 28 days by noting on the litter card whether this
is a *potential* according to my established selection criteria.
The next step comes on market day when I check the age, weights and
conformation of the rabbits. If they have good weights for their age,
they would be retained. The next culling point is at the age for
breeding. They need to have good weight and good covering over their
frame.
Although I used to keep the does (from the same litter) together until
almost breeding age, I have found that this isn't always the best
method of handling future breeding does.
Some will be piggies and consume more feed while another might not
gain as well. Separating into an individual cage has a lot of
advantages in proper management of junior stock. Does should consume
enough feed for growth without becoming obese.
As I've said before, I have found that the does who last the longest
in my herd seem to have one thing in common. They maintain their body
condition. I recently read a paper presented at the 8th World Rabbit
Congress in which the authors stated that does in production need some
fat deposits because it is beneficial for life time productivity. We
also know that obese does and bucks are not good producers.
Proper weight must be maintained.
Individual management of junior does is necessary for me. I am
not able to manage properly when sisters are allowed to remain
together until breeding time.
Updated:
08/07/07
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