A difference between types of rabbits

Press, 29 August 1980, Page 18

A difference between types of rabbits

It was important to appreciate the difference between the small white rabbit that had been about in New, Zealand for the last 2'5 years and the large commercial New Zealand white developed for meat production that could produce a quick growing young rabbit that could be killed at about nine weeks of age, Mr T. Pilling, who is senior technical officer at the Christchurch Clinical School, emphasised in a session on rabbit farming at the annual conference of the New Zealand Association of Smallfarmers at Lincoln College earlier in the year. There was no way, he said, that a good carcase could be produced from the small light boned animals.

Mr Pilling, who has had experience with rabbits in his position at the Clinical School and also has a rabbit unit on his property at Leeston, said he believed that freak albino rabbits had been taken to the

United States from New Zealand .and used in the development of the commercial New Zealand white, which was now produced in the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe for meat production.

When it was about five months old and weighed about 4 kg or 9 lb Mr Pil« ling said it was ready for mating. The gestation period was about 31 days. Litters of about 10 should be looked for, which allowed for a loss of one or two before weaning.

While does could be remated again when they produced a litter, he said that they should produce a litter about every two months, which meant that a doe should produce a youngster for every week of the year. He weaned young rabbits from their mother at six weeks and then placed the doe in a clean cage in preparation for its next litter.

On a liveweight basis he said that a doe should wean about 54 to 55 kg to 68 kg (120 to 150 lb) of young rabbit per year.

Quite good converters of cellulose to white meat, Mr Pilling said that they could be fed grass, carrots or turnips but for large scale feeding he said he did not think that it was possible to have a cheaper feed than a pelleted one. At about eight weeks of age Mr Pilling said that rabbit meat was very tender and rather similar to chicken. On its own he said it tended to have a mild taste, but with a few herbs it could be made to taste beautiful.

Talking about housing rabbits in cages in an enclosed house, Mr Pilling said that they did not like getting wet and at temperatures of about 80 degrees Fahrenheit and higher they tended to become stressed.

On unit size. Mr Pilling said that in the United States units of 100 to 200 does were found to be the most efficient. The labour requirement for a 100 doe unit was about two hours a day and a 300 doe unit would require the attention of one person for seven days a week.