housing question for doe and kits

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PTJeff

PTJeff

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I was wondering if anybody would humor a few questions about housing?
Let me set up my scene: I want to raise for meat with one buck and 2 does. Thinking about the medium breeds: NZ white, Rex, Californians, Champagne and the like.
I want to have one doe with kits at a time. When i harvest the litter at 3 months max, it's time for the other doe to have a litter (kindle?).
My space is limited, 8'x8'x4' and have a 3 cage setup in mind. Buck gets a 36" x 24", the resting doe gets a 36" x 24", and doe with kits gets a 48" x 24". it is a stacked design with the 48 on top of the 2 36's.
1. is the 48" cage large enough for the litter to reach harvest with the doe or
2. should i just make 4 36" cages and move the doe out to seperate cage and let the kits grow out in the 4th 36" cage?
 
Four cages would give you a lot more flexibility, I think. I hope the ventilation in your space is good. It is very important. You could make a large cage the whole length of top of the two 24"x36" cage but make it with two doors and a partition or doorway that could divide or join the space.
 
lots of ventilation. I am going to fashion my design in Bob Bennett's book "Story's Guide" 2009 edition page 52. I will add lattice to the back and sides for protection and ease of access. I guess my real question should be, is the 48" x 24" cage big enough to house the doe and kits till 3 months?
 
A lot depends on the size of the litter. Some does kindle average litters of 5-9 kits, in which case it would likely be enough space, although it will get crowded before they are ready for butchering. If you have an over-achiever who kindles 12-14 then no, it will not be big enough. Since you are building, is there any way at all that you can make the space a little bigger and have a few extra cages? Trust me, you'll be glad of it later on.
 
Some does won't tolerate 3month olds either. They'll start attacking them. It's better to wean them off to their own cage. Some also like to wean early because they grow faster on pellets than milk while others want them on milk as long as possible to cut pellet costs.
 
I'm not sure who that last question is directed to, Jeff, but I would say that "some does" refers to certain individuals rather than to a breed of rabbit. Litter size depends to an extent on breed, however, and meat rabbits are often selected for large litter size.
 
Don't want to hijack this thread but it may be helpful to PTJeff also.

If not keeping the doe with the kits till 3 months....then when is a good time to wean???

Thanks, Lowell
 
PTJeff: Our does, that we wean at 6 wks, appear to be quite happy to have their own space again and our litters do just fine on their own at that point.

Lowell: I think there are a variety of different weaning ages and opinions on the subject.
I'm not sure that there is a right age or just one that works for you.
Having said that we wean all ours at 6 wks and have had no problems at all, but that is just what we do.
 
Most wean by 8weeks but a few leave longer and many wean earlier. We wean ours at 4 weeks and haven't had a problem.
 
Most does will not tolerate staying with a litter till 12 weeks. I am with Maggie, you really need a 4th cage, that way you can use it to keep the doe in when you wean her, and you will always need a spare cage.... trust us :)

Your plan sounds good on paper, but it is much better to have at least two doe kindling at the same time. Often, especially with first time does, there are problems where one needs to foster the kits. If you have one doe kindling, and she won't take care of the kits, or isn't producing milk, or possibly even dies, you would loose the kits also. You may have one doe kindle 12, and another kindle 4 (this actually happened to me last week, where a new doe only kindled 4 but was a great mother. The other doe had raised 12 by herself before, but why not give all her kits a good chance of growing well) That way you can foster over some of the kits. BTW, they were 10 days old when I moved 4 of them to the other doe, and I didn't clean them, or put vanilla on them or anything, and the other doe accepted them just fine.

__________ Thu Apr 05, 2012 12:25 pm __________


Are you short on Freezer room? Unless you are raising them in an air conditioned environment, you are probably not going to be able to raise litters during the hot summer months. With the separate cages, and breeding the does at the same time, You can re-breed the doe when her kits are 5-6weeks old, and have more litters during cool weather that will make up for June, July, and August.
 
Thanks for the great information guys! i just keep soakin' it up. if I do add more cages, i will need to make them 18' tall.
Do you really think that its enough head room for the medium sized rabbit? according to the book, its sufficient, but want some input from experience.
 
My Rex seem perfectly happy in 18" high cages. I believe it is the standard size for the breeds you mentioned. I hang 5 gallon plant pots horizontally from the roof wire to give them more square footage and a place to rest off of the wire.
 
Jeff,

My meat rabbit doe (satin) insists on weaning when they start coming out of the nest box ... at 2 weeks. So, I am keeping my other doe on the same schedule ... I start the weaning at 2 weeks and bring the does to the babies for "pressure relief" over the next week. I also start sprinkling oats and pellets in the nestbox at the end of the first week, and I feed as much natural as I can ... dried grasses in the winter, fresh greens as they come in season, so the babies are also on that same diet.

As for the 18", my does are perfectly content with that height, but I think my buck likes a little bit more head room and he is in a 24" cage. This also allows me to build him a taller resting shelf, which puts him "above" the level of the does when they are on their resting shelves or nest boxes.
 
So now for the next question,
How far above the ground would you suggest i have the lowest cage? I have no dogs or cats, mostly skunks, squirrels, and an occasional groundhog in my back yard.
 
You need to consider that other people have dogs and cats that may bother your rabbits. Skunks don't climb, but raccoons and possums do. I feel it is best to have a barrier keeping critters away from the bottoms of the cages. That way you won't find rabbits missing toes.
 
when mine's were outside, the hutch was 2 feet off the ground. the higher the better. besides i like having the buns at head level.
 

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