Cal and nz mix (first for me)

[TheChad]

I had some animal destroy two cages and my buck and one doe. So I set out to replace the buck and one doe. I found a guy who does show rabbits and meat mutts. I am not familiar with Cals, but he told me he gets the best meat producers from mixing Cals with NZ. He actually gave me a 7 month old pedigreed Cal because he didn't have any NZ bucks. He showed me the mixed meat rabbits and they were a good size. So now I will be using a Cal buck with NZ does.

I am guessing this is normal for people to do. I should have asked on here before pulling the trigger, but it was a spur of the moment decision. Worst case is I literally eat the $10. :lol:

I went with him because he offered the rabbits at 4 to 5 months for just $10.

He did say that the kits would come out NZ or Cal. Not pure, but that they would have one or the other color scheme.

Would love to hear any thoughts and if you have tried this as well. Thanks for all the comments and I look forward to learning more! opcorn:

 

[shazza]

i've heard wonderful things about the hybrid vigor of nz/cal crosses, so i think you did a good job, haha. i have also heard that if you were to breed the offspring, the benefits would disappear, so it's in your best interest to not keep a daughter to replace your doe or anything down the line - just buy a new doe.

 

[TheChad]

i've heard wonderful things about the hybrid vigor of nz/cal crosses, so i think you did a good job, haha. i have also heard that if you were to breed the offspring, the benefits would disappear, so it's in your best interest to not keep a daughter to replace your doe or anything down the line - just buy a new doe.

That is interesting. He didn't mention that, but a possibility since NZ are pretty plentiful around this area.

 

[2CrazyFools]

From my own short experience with this, we had purchased a 50% NZ/Cali doe and she certainly was a big girl! Bred her to a pure NZ and we were less than impressed by her offspring (grew to size quite slowly) though the people who I purchased her from said she was part of a large litter. So I'm assuming her and her siblings were a product of hybrid vigor being 50% but her daughter, who we ended up replacing her with never quite got to size. Mother was probably about 11lbs and her daughter only got to be about 8-9lbs.

So, pretty much just concurring with what Shazza stated with my own very limited experience with my meat mutts.

 

[Rainey]

We started in 2014 with NZW does and a SF buck. That first generation was ok, but we kept 3 does from that year and bred them back to the SF buck. They didn't get as big as the NZW does, but their litters grew out as well or better. The next year we kept a buck and started using him for breeding. He's bigger as an adult than the full SF was. Any hybrid vigor was lost a while ago, but by choosing the best to breed, our production is improving and I'm hoping that will continue.

 

[Dwc77]

Hybrid vigor or not. Not every rabbit in a litter is meant to go into breeding stock! There is so many other factors on why rabbits grow faster or slower. Heat is one rabbits don't grow as good if its to hot out. Litter size, a litter of 4 should be quite a bit bigger then a litter of 11 at weaning time. Some does don't produce as much milk. I have noticed in the grow out cages some kits are just more aggressive. I have Cali -FG cross does and have a pure bred NZW buck and could not be happier with the bunnies they produce,

 

[PSFAngoras]

I had a Cal NZ doe. Pretty much same as what everyone above has said.

She was a 2nd gen, so she was small at 8.5 pounds, and at 3rd gen she had a litter that half had hybrid vigor with a Champagne buck (kept a doe who made 10# by 16 weeks) and a litter with a French Angora were just decent rabbits, but slower growing and the second largest doe only ended up at 9.5.

The FA/CA/NZ doe produces smaller kits no matter who she's bred to, about 3.5# at 8 weeks, and the CD/CA/NZ doe's litters depend on the buck she's with. A litter with a FA/SA buck produced decent sized kits, about 4-4.5# at 8-9 weeks or so, a FG/SR buck produced tiny kits at around 3.5-3.75# at 8 weeks, and a litter with a pure FA buck produced little 5# monsters at 8 weeks.

The hybrid vigor is definitely hit or miss after the 1st gen, but all in all, the does were all wonderful mothers and produced anywhere between 5-12 kits per litter depending on what they were crossed with. The original doe was culled for biting, but her daughters were sweet. I sold the Champagne mix as she got too fat if not kept bred but still have the Angora mix doe for the moment while I work back over to Angoras.