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Of course most would agree that nature is about the brutal truth of survival and that mercy generally doesn't play any part in it. However, humans have a way to interpret animal behavior by anthropomorphizing with said animal. While this is often essential as a starting point, it is often ill...

You are right MamaSheepdog. Now that you said it I remember our neighbor pasture raising dozens of white geese for Christmas and his own dog killed every one of them! Went on a total rampage. Our own JRT just kills the rats, but doesn't eat them. We use her to go after mink that come too close...

There was a German study done with cats about this (Dr. Paul Leyhausen; Katzen, eine Verhaltenskunde; 1982, p.113). It was concluded that in cats the instinct to hunt overrules hunger. In a room with a continuous supply of mice, the cats played and killed one mouse after the other without eating...

That is great advise michael4gardens. We put her back on the higher 0.6 cc dose today and will stabilizer her on that for a few days before going to the every-other-day administration per your suggestion. It will be 14 days tomorrow since the accident. I may as well bring it up now and in this...

Really? I have heard mink do this. Its called food stashing. But I am not sure if any wild predator would truly kill for fun (except, perhaps, orcas) or if this is just our interpretation of a behavior we don't fully understand. Hunting a bunch of domesticated birds in an enclosed space is...

Hey Olimpia, thanks for sharing the pics! Sounds like they were happy to stretch their legs after their journey home. Its not hard to start collecting bucks ... the hares - but especially the boys - are so gregarious. I have 5 now! My two foundation bucks and then the best of their offspring ...

Thanks crookdbeak13. :up: I had glanced at the Medirabbit site, but was probably too flustered to find what you found for me! Here is Agoti in her hospital cage: Her feet the day she broke them: They were sooo swollen! Before the accident: BTW, she broke her feet having a run in the...

Hi all, sorry I haven't been on RT in the last little while. Its been so busy at work and the farm and over the holidays. I hope everyone had a very nice X-mas. 12 days ago by prettiest junior doe (4.5 months old Belgian Hare) broke BOTH of her hind feet below or at the hock. My junior buck...

Olimpia, congratulations! I've been away from the forum for a couple of weeks and totally missed the new development. We should stay in touch for future stock exchange. At least I'd love to look what you have and don't mind flying them out. Also, there are precious few hare breeders in Canada...

I totally agree with everyone else. Definitely show your rabbits at the same show and give credit where credit is due. If the rabbit does well, this is to the benefit of the breeder and the breeder should welcome that. If my buyers show my rabbits and they win, I would be so proud!

I would say go for it! You never know when you will find available hares again. Taking the whole herd may be a bit much, but at least get 2-3. I have 3 bucks living in the house with me right now, because the rabbitry is being expanded on, and it works pretty well. They get to run in the garden...

:up: Zass, we are totally on the same page. Our farm also raised lamb and, to a lesser extend beef, and all the animals need to pull their own weight to make it work ... in a partnership, like you said. Even my cats contribute. The rabbits will, too, in time. We have been raising animals for a...

Definitely. To each their own. We all have different philosophies. I don't raise commercial rabbits. I raise a rare breed. Each of my rabbits has a personality and they are allowed to be rabbits instead of breeding machines. They are all good rabbits, but none of them are perfect - like people...

Maybe your little doe isn't ill tempered or a bad mother, but is simply a non-conformist :lol: She has her own ideas. I don't mind that in my own does, personally, but that doesn't work for everyone, I understand. Maybe she doesn't want to breed on command, maybe she doesn't like the buck...

That is excellent! Well done and thank you for sharing. A reminder that there is always hope and a little help can go a long way! What a good mama ... both of you :D

Thank you for the feedback. I had planned on using the linebreeding chart in the ARBA guidebook, but wanted to know if I could/should restructure the chart to preserve the type of this particular buck. I am not opposed to linebreeding. It is essential in developing a breed and is at the root...

The Belgian Hare is a rare breed in need of preservation. Get them, because you love them and you enjoy keeping rabbits as a hobby, but don't get them to make a profit. It is my hares which dress out at 3 lbs carcass at 11-12 weeks old. Live weight is almost 6 lbs at that age. I am not sure if...

I don't have a mate for him (Albany). I could make Albany a half sister with his mother or a niece with his sister, but I am really not excited about the second foundation buck I own and would use for that. He has many qualities, but type isn't one of them. What about line breeding Albany's...

Sorry for the quality of the photo ... it is a snapshot, but really shows the conformation of this rabbit. This is my best Belgian Hare so far. I bred this buck myself. He is 6 mos old. I am happy with his color, but I absolutely love is type. What are my best options to fix this type in my line...

Like Zass said, there are many different ways to be successful with rabbits and there isn't one right way of doing things. My does, for example, are in 8'x8' stalls with shelves and I don't bother weaning the kits. Buck kits stay with the doe until they are butchered at 10 weeks. Doe kits stay...