Newbie to RabbitTalk & perhaps raising rabbits as well! : Welcome to RabbitTalk

Hello, everyone! My name is Megan. I'm nineteen years old and live near Kansas City, Kansas in the USA. I have had two rabbits, Annie and Echo, since I was eight or nine. They have been a wonderful part of my life and always brought me joy. I have always been interested in animal husbandry, but never had I actually considered rabbits as a real option until I attended the 2018 National Tan Show last week! It was the most incredible thing, I couldn't stop smiling, and everyone was so friendly and ready to talk to me about their animals!

I've been fascinated by genetics and animal care since I was a little girl, and always wanted to do something with these two interests. With that introduction into the community, I've been just dying to get another taste of rabbit showing! I joined RabbitTalk because I would like to learn more and perhaps gain a few friends!

Thanks for reading, have a wonderful day, and I hope to see you around!

Welcome to RabbitTalk, Megan!



Going to shows is how I made my first real-life rabbit friends, and it's been a tremendous resource for me! My first show that I attended was the ARBA National Convention, and walking around all the wonderful breeds was breath-taking! I personally found my happy place with the Rex folks (and rabbits, I mean come on, just touch them!), but MamaSheepdog has a delightful Tan that she brings to the shows... Sir Gridley is well-loved at our California shows!

If you'd like to get into showing more regularly, it's a good idea to reach out to some of the local breeders that also show (with the breed you want to show, of course). Go once or twice and just hang out with them to learn the ins and outs of the breed, and the show etiquette in your area (some places are super strict about chairs, etc.). Then, when you're ready, get some decent stock to start showing! It feels a lot better if you're not always the bottom of the selections from the judges.

It sounds like you want to get into breeding, too. When you buy stock, make sure they compliment each other (produce showable colors, don't necessarily have the same faults, etc.) and only keep the best offspring for future breeding. Also, it's good to come up with a plan for your culls before you get into it too deep, because if you want to improve the herd, there will be lots of culls. Some people are successful with selling to the pet market (small breeds, especially), while others use their culls for meat (either for themselves, or if it's a small breed maybe for raw-fed animals like dogs or cats).

Do some browsing on our older posts to find information that interests you, the genetics threads are fascinating! But if you have questions, it might be best to start a new thread so it's not lost or takes another thread off-topic. I hope you find everything you hope to here in RabbitTalk, because the community is amazing!

Cheers!
Nymph

welcome Megan

Thank you both very much!

~Nymph, I really appreciate your advice! I’m considering several breeds at the moment... mostly smaller rabbits. I’ll definitely be going to another show soon to see if I can find a local breeder to talk to! Again, thank you!

Welcome. It's nice to see other young people getting into rabbits (I'm 20 myself). Rabbit shows are great fun, and if you have any questions about potential breeds or picking out show stock, feel free to ask. Out of all forum sections, I'm most active on the colors/genetics part, so if you have any genetics questions, I'll probably talk to you there.
Best of luck

SableSteel wrote:Welcome. It's nice to see other young people getting into rabbits (I'm 20 myself). Rabbit shows are great fun, and if you have any questions about potential breeds or picking out show stock, feel free to ask. Out of all forum sections, I'm most active on the colors/genetics part, so if you have any genetics questions, I'll probably talk to you there.
Best of luck

SableSteel is a super resource for newbies to showing, and color genetics!

Thank you, aha! I'm really happy to be here. :> Hope to see you both around!

Hello all, I have a adorable 2yr old rabbit named thumper. We inherited him from my neice who left to go away for college. I have no idea what kind of breed he is and would love to know, but their is sooo many types of breeds I have clue where to start.

Aloha jrfklf,

Welcome to Rabbit Talk!

Do you have a picture or a description of the rabbit? There are a lot of different breeds as well as mixed breeds, but with a picture or a description, maybe folks here can help you figure out what sort of bunny you have.