Does culling always hurt?

[MamaSheepdog]

Part of being a responsible owner and breeder is to have a plan.

If I breed these two animals, what am I going to get?

Is there a market for them?

How much do they sell for in my area?

Will I be at least making enough to cover the cost of raising them, or is it actually going to cost me money?

If they don't sell...

Can I afford to buy enough cages to keep them all?

Can I afford to feed them?

Do I have time to keep them clean and cared for?

If not, what other ways can I use them?

Can I sell them as food for reptiles or other carnivorous pets?

Can I donate them to a local raptor rehab or wildlife sanctuary?

Is there a cull buyer that attends shows in my area?

Can I butcher them for meat for myself and my family?

I'm thinking about culling her and moving into NewZealands because I found some really pritty ones

Instead of just looking on your local CraigsList or other sales sites, I would suggest that you attend some shows and talk to breeders there. Tell them about your plans to show in 4-H or ARBA as a youth exhibitor.

If they have any rabbits for sale, ask a judge or another exhibitor of the breed to look over them with you before making a purchase. Unfortunately, there are some breeders that will take advantage of a Youth exhibitor and sell them what amounts to their cull rabbits, so you want a second opinion.

if i can get my mom to agree.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but if you were my child, I would not agree. You haven't shown true responsibility with the rabbits you have in that you are trying to get mix bred babies just for the sake of having babies with no plan of what to do with them once you have them.

Show your mom that you are really serious about this by doing lots of research not only into the breed of rabbit and it's requirements for food, housing, nestbox size, litter sizes, etc., but by trying to find good breeders in your area so that you can start your program with quality rabbits and be competitive.

Choose a rabbit breed that fits with your goals and comfort zone. If you can't really imagine killing and eating a rabbit, New Zealands (which are a meat breed) are probably not the best choice.

Maybe Holland Lops, Jersey Woolys, or Mini Rex would be a better choice since they can be sold as pets, and you will hopefully have fewer that you need to terminally cull.

 

[MaggieJ]

:yeahthat:

Oscar, I don't know how old you are, but to be a responsible rabbit breeder, you need to look ahead to what kind of a future your rabbits will have.

It doesn't sound to me as though you have sufficient autonomy or financial resources to be breeding rabbits at all. Animal ownership brings with it a whole host of responsibilities. Maybe you should content yourself with pet rabbits for the time being and devote your efforts to giving them a good life.

 

[Oscar]

:yeahthat:

Oscar, I don't know how old you are, but to be a responsible rabbit breeder, you need to look ahead to what kind of a future your rabbits will have.

I'm only 12 1/2 but I am responsible and I don't really care if I get the mix babies and I have a feeling I never will because my buck is to high and my doe won't lift. I'm the only one in my family that has ever taken an interest in rabbits, and when I think about it I have eaten wild rabbit before and it wasn't that bad so I don't think culling will be that hard for me. I am working on showing responsibility and every time I am on the computer that's all I look at is what the breeds need and how I can take care of them, I always have money in my money jar and we have a couple of old dog kennels so I do have a place to keep them and I also am cleaning out some of my old chicken coops so I could keep a couple in dthere we could also eat some if we didn't have enough space. I do have a
plan on what I want to do and here it is, I want to have show able babies so when it comes spring time maybe next year I can show them and sell them there, or sell them to kids who have a dream like me that want rabbits or to have a rabbitry, or even just a pet so I can sell them quality rabbits sinse nobody in my area does. And there is my plan. What do you guys think?

 

[Dood]

I think it is very admirable but the problem is that maybe one, and often none, of the kits in a litter is "show quality" the others will have something that will prevent them from winning. These less than perfect rabbits either need to be sold as pets or eaten to make room for the next litter and hopeful show quality kit.

If you would prefer to sell rabbits you should do some market research and find out what people and other kids want to buy? If pets or showing then which breed and what colours do they like so you can meet the demand in your area.

In my area, Holland Lops are very popular and "interesting" colours so not black, white or chestnut/brown. Almost no one eats rabbit meat and there is not much interest in meat rabbit breeding stock so I butcher mine for family use and have a found a market for them as pet food for reptiles and animals on raw meat diets

You need to figure out what will do best in your area or find a use for the meat before jumping into breeding

 

[Oscar]

I have a couple of family members that didn't draw a big game tag and they need some meat and would be happy any time for meat and I know a couple people that could use it for bating traps to catch big cats. I guess I don't mind that not all of them are show quality because I just want to work twards body shape and future showers and a good activity to keep me busy all year round.