Good source for beginner type questions about wool rabbits

OK, so I just joined RT today (finally) after lurking a while, because I will be starting to raise meat rabbits this winter. HOWEVER... I also spin (have a wheel but prefer a spindle) and knit (along with other fiber arts). And the idea of having Angoras (or other wool rabbits) is appealing - not as a commercial venture, more as a hobby (probably with a pet rabbit overtone), as I love the thought of producing my own fiber, and I'm not up for getting a llama, mohair goat or sheep at the moment. I've read the Storey's Guide to Raising Rabbits, and it mostly focuses on raising them for meat and for breeding stock/showing. Not a lot of details on wool producing.

I've taken a stab at reading through this part of the forum, trying to glean what I can, but it occurs to me to ask - what would you consider a good source for the "beginner" type info on wool rabbits? (Including links to any particularly helpful thread/posts... Books, blogs, whatever) If I asked specific questions here, we'd be here all day, but the gist is a source that covers (for a beginner-dummy) how you decide on a breed (French, English, huh?), how to find a good breeder, how are they best housed (I am in a very hot climate, so would keep them indoors), differences in their care and feeding, breeding, how often is grooming and how is it done (I have no idea what molting vs blowing vs grooming vs. shaving vs. other means - I actually feel a migraine coming on...), and other specific points of interest, blah, blah, blah.

Just wondering if there's a good source that folks found helpful and accurate/trustworthy for me to learn about wool rabbits as I consider whether I might want to get one (or more)...

Many thanks in advance for any insight any of you may be able to provide...

- Ant Farm

The Angora rabbit clubs can answer many of your questions

http://nationalangorarabbitbreeders.com ... ticles.htm

Other articles/sites from a Google search - rabbit angora fibre

http://www.pocketfarm.co.uk/keeping-ang ... for-fibre/

http://www.angorarabbits.co.za/index.html

Cooler climate is best for Angora. Grooming needs to be routine. Large pens are best. High protein diet. Quality forage will help with digestion and wool block. Lots of breeds to choose from, but French are easiest for grooming and harvesting wool, IMO. Also good growth for meat if you breed and cull.

There is a gal that goes to Texas A&M that raises angoras, not sure which breed though. I know she has downsized since going to college, so she may not have a lot for sale, but she could probably refer you to some others if she didn't have what you are looking for. She would be a good resource, too; she has very nice rabbits. Message me if you want me to send you her name. I know her through shows and am friends with her on Facebook.

Fire Ant Farm":3ncm5bu2 said:

If I asked specific questions here, we'd be here all day

Click to expand...

I don't see a problem with that.

Anyone else see a problem with that? opcorn:

(Fire Ant, you obviously have not been lurking here long enough to realize that in addition to the myriad forms of Rabbitosis we suffer from, many of us also have a severe case of RabbitTalkitis and love nothing better than posting away on RT.)

Dood":iv3ewgtf said:

The Angora rabbit clubs can answer many of your questions

http://nationalangorarabbitbreeders.com ... ticles.htm

Other articles/sites from a Google search - rabbit angora fibre

http://www.pocketfarm.co.uk/keeping-ang ... for-fibre/

http://www.angorarabbits.co.za/index.html

Click to expand...

Very helpful - you would've thought I could have figured that out all on my own, but I had reached an ovewhelmed sort of breakdown point once I was three pages into the Wool rabbit section and was trying to avoid meltdown...

Zinnia":iv3ewgtf said:

Cooler climate is best for Angora. Grooming needs to be routine. Large pens are best. High protein diet. Quality forage will help with digestion and wool block. Lots of breeds to choose from, but French are easiest for grooming and harvesting wool, IMO. Also good growth for meat if you breed and cull.

Click to expand...

Excellent info. I am resigned to having them fully indoors if I do decide to take the plunge - it's HOT here. French appeals, but on a cursory search, can only find English breeders (and a solo satin breeder) in TX. I have to decide whether I want bunnies indoors. I recently lost a geriatric cat followed by a very very old sick greyhound, and have laying hens outside as "pets" now - and I'm warming up to the idea of no animals in the house for the first time in decades... ("You mean I can have NICE THINGS???!!!")

fhjmom":iv3ewgtf said:

There is a gal that goes to Texas A&M that raises angoras, not sure which breed though. I know she has downsized since going to college, so she may not have a lot for sale, but she could probably refer you to some others if she didn't have what you are looking for. She would be a good resource, too; she has very nice rabbits. Message me if you want me to send you her name. I know her through shows and am friends with her on Facebook.

Click to expand...

I will do so - I don't want to waste her time if I end up not wanting to do it, but maybe she'd answer some questions about local sources, special considerations here in the hot, etc.

MamaSheepdog":iv3ewgtf said:

Fire Ant Farm":iv3ewgtf said:

If I asked specific questions here, we'd be here all day

Click to expand...

I don't see a problem with that.

Anyone else see a problem with that? opcorn:

(Fire Ant, you obviously have not been lurking here long enough to realize that in addition to the myriad forms of Rabbitosis we suffer from, many of us also have a severe case of RabbitTalkitis and love nothing better than posting away on RT.)

Click to expand...

:roll: :roll: :roll:

OK, soooooo.... Here goes...

For those who keep them inside, shall I assume that they are caged when unsupervised?

How messy a proposition is it - do you keep them out of the main living space or do you feel it's ok to cage in living area if you set it up right and keep clean/good housekeeping? (OK, I just got a horrific visual of using the deep litter method in the house, which sort of matches an episode of hoarders I saw once. :shock:

Is shedding a nightmare when they "roam" inside?

How is the temperament with regards to companionship, say, for a French Angora (I think I would have a nervous breakdown taking care of an English with the face and feet...)? Cuddly pet, demon from hell, or crapshoot? (My neighbor had two house bunnies for a while - just some non-Angora REW, not sure of breed. They were FROM HELL. She had to find new homes for them, and she was a real animal lover who usually put up with everything - house banty rooster, snake, mouse, 8 cats, two dogs, etc. The rabbits bit her one too many times...)

How do you store your loose wool, as you get bits over time? Do you have to clean the wool somehow (not sure how one would do that pre-spin)? (Do you have to bathe the bunnies???!!!)

Do you just spin a bit at a time, or do you tend to save it up and binge-spin?

AAAAAAANNNNDDDDDD begin!

Yes, cages, because they chew and I have carpet.

They smell. Or at least no matter what I can still smell them. Indoor buns are upstairs not in the main rooms.

Shedding depends on the line of Angoras. My French don't molt so they don't shed everywhere until it's time to clip. Some are better than others. Temperment also depends a lot on the breeder. Mine were not raised for pets, they aren't cuddle buns, nor are they bunicula. :twisted:

Since they don't molt, I clip them all at once and store the fiber in a paper bag. If they molt then you can usually pluck them all at once and store that way.

I don't comb in between clippings, though I do use a blower and lose a few hairs I don't worry about. Combing stimulates growth and you will lose more fiber that way. The blower cleans the dander off the wool, and I spin it as it is. Bun is "clean" wool is clean.

But I also spin in the grease , so unless it was really awful (I would throw it away at that point) I would still spin without washing, because Angora is so easy to felt.