How to start a colony

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bunnychild

bunnychild

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Hi! I am new to this forum but I think it looks like a lovely place.
I am wanting to colonize my French Lops, but I am not exactly sure how to go about it.
I have a location to build it. It is approximately 55ftx6ft
I want to have more than one pen in that area. 2-3 breeding does in one pen and other pens for meat pens (3 rabbits) and a pen or two for roasters and stewers.
The area is well shaded but it isn't very well protected from the wind.
 
Welcome to the forum! :)

So long as they have a place to go to get out of the wind, it should be fine. I live right next to one of the great lakes, so it's ALWAYS windy here...my rabbits are used to a strong breeze through my lean-to. ;)

For colony setup, you want to get input from those who have successful colonies. Zab comes to mind, hope she sees this!!! ;)
 
Welcome bunnychild!

I am sure you will get lots of good ideas here. It might help to have a bit more info from you:

how many rabbits do you have, ages, sexes;
what is this pen area like- floor, indoors, outdoors, maybe post a picture.

The more info upfront, the more folks will be able to guide you.
 
For 2-3 does that get along and removing offspring as they reach weaning age you want about 100sq ft so you could do 3, 6x18' pens in that area. If you have a pushy doe or are leaving offspring longer you would want bigger pens and could only make 2 out of that space.

There is some mild concern with the width. 6' with objects to hide in, waterers, feeders, etc... can make bottlenecks where rabbits have to pass close to each other and may trigger arguments or does staking out a section as their territory and not letting others through to food and water. Squares are better than strips. You will have to place things carefully and be observant with narrow strips.
 
I currently just have one french lop (Big Louis) He is in a large cage. He is among my 7 Jersey Woolies.
He is about 1 year old.
I am planning on buying two young does in either September and October. Maybe later depending on how long it takes to make the pen.
I am also thinking of building it in a larger area rather than the 55ftx6ft. It is about 60ftx90ft.
This will be outside.
I was thinking of using panel fencing to build the pens, with small chicken wire around the bottom. I also want a gate so that I can open up the pen (the rabbits would be moved to travel cages) and rake out waste.
One more question, since these are meat rabbits and won't be bred as closely as show rabbits, can the does be litter mates? I thought this would make them less prone to fight.
 
Rabbits can be closely bred so long as you are eating the offspring or culling heavily for problems. Even show rabbits it's preferred to breed somewhat related stock to get a predictable result rather than completely unrelated animals.
 
Okay I was way off with those measurements. The larger area is 27ft x 40ft. The average French Lop cage is 36in x 30in, so I thought 144in x 120in would work for two does

__________ Fri Sep 06, 2013 11:59 pm __________

For hiding places, I saw the idea of a five gallon bucket with the bottom cut out placed on its side in a diagonal hole then covered with dirt. Would this work?
I also thought maybe I could take a metal nesting box and put it in the ground and cover the lip of it with dirt. Should I take the wood floors out or leave them in? This method would save me money because I already have some.
 

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