7 in the freezer, 1 in the crockpot!

Brody...stop reading right now. I'm going to get graphic.

Mike took them out to the farm and let them settle overnight in the back of the truck with food and water while he set up shop. The next morning, he started processing. One at a time. He used a .22 pistol at the back of the head and said it was quick, painless and they bled out right there in the snow. He took the carcass inside the barn and hung it up after cutting off the head BUT after the first couple he didn't bother because there was no extra bleeding.

He was upset that it took him so long to do all 8...almost 3 hours. Then he said he'd refined his skinning technique by the 4th one and things went a LOT more quickly. He'd been trying to be gentle because the skins are so thin..like a chicken but then he got ticked off with one and just started pulling. Low and behold! It pulled off like a sock pealing off your wet foot. He was a lot happier then.

I brought them home and finshed (he'd gutted them, too, of course). They're in the packs, cut up, but a whole rabbit to a bag because 1, I'm lazy; and 2 I can give a couple away to friends who want to try rabbit.

I am AMAZED at how much meat is on the ribs and loin area. goodness. The loins look really intriguing, too. Large and heavy for the size of a rabbit. I'm going to try taking a couple of loins, slicing them in 1" slices, and 1)shishkabob; 2)wrap in bacon and broil like you do those strange appetizers with livers.

The flanks...those look like they'd make a great rolled miniroast. just spread them out, spread a seasoned filling on them, roll them up, toothpick the heck out of them, and roast. Maybe with a pork sausage stuffing? or...maybe wrapped in grape leaves...that would be interesting...

Yay! Glad things went well, its always hard the first time.

Im going to start the butchering thing soon - with my culls. I plan to broomstick them, seems fast and easy to me.

There are some good videos out there on youtube.

Was there any tricks he used when he was gutting, skinning?

I'm glad it went so well, Ann. Tell Mike it is always slow the first time but after a few litters it will become so routine that it will go along much more quickly.

Yes, you can stuff and roll the flanks... My sis and I did that once and they were very tasty but a bit fiddly to work with. Can't remember what we stuffed them with now.... It was a few years ago.

Congratulations on a successful venture! You won't be afraid to breed those meat rabbits again now.

No tips or tricks that I know of, Jesse. I'll ask him to come online this week and update with what and how it went for him tho. I think his biggest surprise was just how quickly they bled out from the gunshot. And then, of course, that the skin would hold together so well.

Maggie...I think the next batch is going to be put up for sale on craigslist as 12week old NWZ rabbits... to see if there is any interest. Then if we don't sell them all (or any) we'll process. I'm just astonished at the amount of meat on those critters. Granted..they were a little older than your normal fryer :roll: but I think it was well worth it. I wasn't going to do any frying or grilling with them anyway...so this works out well.

I have to admit....I went upstairs and felt around on the adult angoras earlier...and they're pretty puney. Mama-san tho....NICE big girl..I'm rather looking forward to growing a couple of her kits out to 6+ months.

hey ann - I am a euthanasia tech
I could not broomstick any living animal but a 22 seems like a pretty humane choice to me - more humane than some of the techs I know actually

the gutting part I skimmed

glad it's done

Brody":xlr19wv9 said:

hey ann - I am a euthanasia tech
I could not broomstick any living animal but a 22 seems like a pretty humane choice to me - more humane than some of the techs I know actually

the gutting part I skimmed

glad it's done

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Broomsticking is just as quick and painless. Most people use that way to butcher rabbits around here. Its a fast method that brakes their neck fast.

Smashing the head with a rock, and throwing them at the ground, are some that i dont approve of at all.

I agree if done properly any complete spinal/brain dislocation is humane - I just have seen too many errors made with that method - but if people are comfortable and humane I have no arguement with it - I just learned my trade with drugs ... not much use to meat bunnies but to me it seems a bullet or dead bolt would be equally humane

The broomstick is an alternative to the 2 handed method of dislocating the neck, the 2 hand way needs a lot of expertise. However the broomstick is used on the floor with you feet (and bodyweight on it) on either side of the rabbit. The broomstick holds the head and neck in one place while you use both hands on the hind legs. It happens quick and with no mistakes.

I had a rabbit that broke her back and I attempted the broomstick method to put her down. Did not work, the rabbit just looked at me. Maybe I was doing it wrong or maybe it doesn't work on rabbits that have broken their backs? I actually have a friend that is going to butcher for me (we are going to start raising meat rabbits, in a colony setting within the next year). He will butcher and skin for 1/4 of the meat. Worth it for me! That video helped a lot though, wasn't sure what to do with the rabbit once it was butchered and skinned =)I still would like to learn a method in case I ever have a rabbit hurt itself that has to be put down. We can't do the gun method where we live, has to be a "quiet" method.

All Ears Rabbitry":1uhgeydv said:

I still would like to learn a method in case I ever have a rabbit hurt itself that has to be put down. We can't do the gun method where we live, has to be a "quiet" method.

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For years I used a pellet gun. It's pretty quiet. I used it in the utility room with people sleeping in the house and it didn't wake them up.

Very easy on the rabbit. I put the rabbit in a storage bucket with some fresh veggies and wait till the bun's head is down. Gently place the muzzle at the base of the neck and pull. Rabbit goes without pain or fear while doing something he loves to do. (I should go so easy) But it's not foolproof, I had a case where a rabbit needed two shots. Most rabbits will kick a bit after they are dead, sort of the chicken with its head cut off reaction.

The pellet gun should have the highest speed of feet per second as possible, I wouldn't recommend anything less than 500 feet per second. I used the pointed pellets.

Marian

I second the idea of trying a pellet gun. They are incredibly quiet, and I know quite a few people who use them for putting down small animals. Mike used the .22 because he has it and no one CARES if they here a shot out where we are. (also..he's a guy and a guy who grew up hunting. :roll: "Pelletgun? when I have a .22? are you CrAzY?" )

I use the pellet gun also, it's a .22 and I use the hollow point pellets. They work fine although I've had a couple that needed two shots. I figure it was just my aim.

Granted..they were a little older than your normal fryer

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I regularly grow mine out to four or five months. I know it takes more food to do that but I just don't find a ten week old fryer to be big enough. Mine usually butcher out to between four to five pounds which gives me two good sized rear quarters and about a pound of other meat. I will eventually start using the heart, liver and kidneys and making soup out of the rest so I think I get my money's worth out of them. Also, I can sell one here and there and that pays for the food so they're basically free for me.

I am leery of shooting a rabbit. I prefer to club with a piece of rebar or broomstick (now best option). I can kill, process and have a bun in water in 10 min.

Why are you leery of shooting one? It's extremely humane, (very very quick, and without warning) and the animal bleeds out fast, so you don't need to hang them up or put into water to draw out blood. Just curious. I know some are not gun people, so...

I am concerned about ricochet etc. I have learned to broomstick very effectively and it allows a quick severing of the head and bleedout. A .22 is gonna go right thru a rabbit, so the potential for injury is quite real.

All Ears Rabbitry":28sv6vj3 said:

I had a rabbit that broke her back and I attempted the broomstick method to put her down.

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The broomstick method will not work on a rabbit with a broken back because the weakest point of the rabbit will now be the broken spot in the back and you will just pull that apart more. It's like trying to break something at one point when there is already a crack in a different spot. The place that will break is the cracked part.

As for the pellet gun I have a friend who attempted to use it, and well the pellet ricocheted off the back of the rabbits head and nearly took out his wifes eye.

Using a hammer at the base of the skull can work pretty well but it can be messy, sometimes they eyes don't stay where they are supposed to.

you'll have trouble persuading me that a hammer to the skull is humane

In fact any method can be barbaric unless people are properly trained and aware of the problems and pitfalls of the method

I really don't think people can speak well to methods they haven't actually personally used or been present for

There is no danger of ricochet if one knows how to handle firearms safely. (I'm not sure what your etc. might be, CH.)

A .22 is going to go right through the rabbit into the ground. Unless you are foolish enough to place the rabbit on a rock, there is no danger. A pellet gun presents even less of a risk. An added advantage of shooting the rabbit - apart from being easier on both rabbit and human - if that there is no bruising of the flesh.

I don't want to get sticky about terminology, but hitting a rabbit to kill it - clubbing it - is NOT called broomsticking. It is clubbing (or bopping if you prefer a euphemism.). It can be an effective and humane method if done correctly. I don't personally prefer it as there is some danger of not hitting hard enough or in the right place and therefore not making a clean kill. Even an effective blow that is just a tad off can bruise the meat. I would think this would be an important consideration, particularly when offering the meat for sale.

True broomsticking is an effective and humane method as well, and many people find it a good method to use. Broomsticking is cervical dislocation using a piece of broomstick or rebar across the back of the rabbit's neck, held firmly in place with one's feet while the hind legs are pulled upwards. Please do not attempt this from my description. It has to be done properly and it is one method I have never used because you need agility and coordination. In my case, with arthritic knees and too many extra pounds, the rabbit would be halfway to the woods before I got my feet in place.

There are several good and humane methods for dispatching rabbits. It is just a case of finding one that you are comfortable with and can manage effectively.

cereshill":1ixs5sn1 said:

I am concerned about ricochet etc. I have learned to broomstick very effectively and it allows a quick severing of the head and bleedout. A .22 is gonna go right thru a rabbit, so the potential for injury is quite real.

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potential for injury? er...no. You shoot down into the ground. bullet isn't going ANYWHERE. and it's certainly not going to ricochet off the skull. A pellet gun, unless you're using the highest powered ones, will need to be held what..an inch? back from the skull in order not to get the buildup of air going pearshaped. I do understand that many people aren't familiar with, or comfortable with guns, so it does seem that the broomstick method works well if done correctly.

MaggieJ":1x3rzym7 said:

.
There are several good and humane methods for dispatching rabbits. It is just a case of finding one that you are comfortable with and can manage effectively.

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I'm going to add and can be competently trained in to your requirements of comfort and ability to manage

while I have never used a pellet gun I have used a .22 to kill a rabid groundhog and been present many times for dead bolts being used on large animals; I have used cervical dislocation and once I had to relieve suffering by clubbing (as I had none of my tools with me) I have also used drugs

my choice hands down are gun or drugs*** - more humane to my mind, less room for error and I have been carefully trained (though if I use a gun for rabbits I will ask Maggie to species train me)


*** and yes I do realize that for most of you drugs for various GOOD reasons - aren't an option