Show choosing right breed of rabbits important market demand should govern selection every farmer who wishes to raise rabbits should become familiar with market demands in order to select a breed that will find a ready sale says a U of california publication rabbit raising by H M butterfield and W E lloyd some rabbits will satisfy the market demands better than others for example a market that prefers a small fryer rabbit weighing from to 2 pounds dressed or 3 to 4 pounds live weight will justify the producer in considering a breed that develops early and soon reaches a marketable condition with a low feed cost breeds that are slow to develop or that do not fill out well when young are better suited for markets using large meat rabbits weighing five pounds or more only a few breeders bleeders bre eders cater to a fur market and sell the meat from rabbits producing the fur for whatever it will bring the meat from a six six month old fur rabbit will asua usua usually lly weigh four or five pounds or more it is important to find a market that is willing to take dressed rabbits of this size such meat is usually low in price five to nine cents cent 4 a pound live weight being a fair range in list price the production of breeding stock calls for a wise choice from the many breeds now available the newer breeds usually sell for more than the old established breeds and the beginner should anticipate a drop in prices for some of the ores present high priced new breeds nearly always the final choice will rest on the value of the animals for meat and fur A new breed may possess excellent fur qualities and yet have no value on the fur market because the pelts are not available in sufficient numbers for matching breeds for the beg beginner brier most rabbit raisers f ind find it best to start with but one breed the characteristics acte and requirements of one breed are far easier to learn than those of several As skill is acquired and markets are developed the producer may then find it profitable to cater to several kinds of demand certain breeds have become popular because they have r returned a profit and have had the approval of buyers for example the new zealand red or new zealand white and the flemish giants are very popular for supplying the market demand for high quality meat among the fur rabbits the chinchilla the american white the new zealand white the white flemish giant the havana the lilac the castor rex arid and its crosses and certain blue and silver breeds have been very popular for fur and have considerable meat value all these breeds are produced in quantity so that stock is easily purchased ed and the market demand is kept up by a regular supply some of the newer breeds might be more popular if they could be secured in larger quantities and at smaller expense the introduction of a little littie known breed is not always a paying undertaking selection of individuals some general characteristics which should affect the choice of breeding rabbits regardless of the breed or variety are 1 ability to maintain health and vigor under commercial conditions not unduly susceptible to disease 2 meat white fine grained firm and delicately flavored in the case of meat rabbits 3 dressing percentage high with a large percentage of the best meat cuts saddle body compact meaty with fine bone for the meat eat trade 4 ability to thrive on inexpensive feed 5 market weights and desirable plumpness reached at an early age 6 value sufficient to leave a profit for the producer under existing conditions 7 ability to reproduce true to color and type 8 A good breeder the year atoun around d 9 females good mothers able to bear and rear large litters utility vs fancy stock the first concern of the breeder should be with utility rather than with fancy stock rabbit breeders bleeders bre eders have too frequently wasted much time on unimportant characteristics t acs ics leg bars black toenails and nose or ear markings have little effect on the utility value of any rabbit though such markin markings 9 s may sometimes be correlated with certain desirable colors in the pelt ultimately the popularity of a breed will largely depend on its utility value |