Colony contemplations.

[Kyle@theWintertime]

I don't mind being all kinds of doting on my breeding and showing rabbits, but...my meat rabbits, I'm tempted to switch to a colony setting at some point. Weighing the pros and cons right now, and I have a question. How much space would, say...one buck and two to three does require? Bearing in mind that for each litter, I'd move all kits to a "grow-out" pen once weaned, so I don't think I really need to worry about space for all the bebbies.

Oh, and another thing...I'm willing to bet I'd have to dress out all my current meat does and either use a pair of sisters from a litter here or buy a pair of young sister does, right?

 

[kotapony]

I'm a rabbit newbie but I've read a lot, and since those with more experience haven't had time to chime in yet, I'll throw some thoughts out there.


I'm tempted to switch to a colony setting at some point.
Colonies are awesome. I love watching my buns interact and hop around together. I get swarmed at feeding time, and it's neat to walk in amongst the buns, trying not to step on anyone. I don't think I'd enjoy my buns nearly so much raising in cages. 

Weighing the pros  How much space would, say...one buck and two to three does require? Bearing in mind that for each litter, I'd move all kits to a "grow-out" pen once weaned, so I don't think I really need to worry about space for all the bebbies.
There just is no real answer to this question. A basic rule of thumb seems to be 30 square feet per doe. More is nice. If you're removing the kits to grow out, you might be able to get away with less. Especially if you add some levels to add more area (although that makes cleaning harder).

So many factors effect how much space you need: how your does get along, how often you breed, how big your average litters are...

Oh, and another thing...I'm willing to bet I'd have to dress out all my current meat does and either use a pair of sisters from a litter here or buy a pair of young sister does, right?
 Again, depends on your does. If they're generally mellow girls, they may get along. Some does are fighters, some will get along with anyone. This is where more space is nice. It betters your odds of does getting along.

As much as I love my colony, it does present its problems. Mine is 15' x 6'. I have 1 adult doe. I bought 2 does originally, one died on me (I'm growing out a replacement in the colony now). I bred them at the same time, and when they kindled I only had one nest with 11 kits. I never could tell if they shared a nest, or if all the kits belonged to one doe or the other. One of the flaws of a colony.

I had originally hoped to leave the buck in the colony full time and just let the buns be buns. So far I haven't had much luck with that. I removed him the first time the does were due to kindle since they were first time moms. The second time I tried to leave him, but he ended up harassing the doe endlessly the day before she kindled so I removed him again. Then I didn't remove my growing does quick enough, and horny buck actually started attacking the young girls. I'm hoping he will mellow with age, and if you're removing kits you won't have that particular problem anyway. If I recall correctly, Akane has been able to leave her buck in the colony full time, but she has a lot more space than I do. I know Maggie splits her space, has one doe on each side, and alternates the buck between the two areas.

The beautiful thing about a colony is that it's easy to change and work with. There just is no single setup that works for everyone all the time. Nothing about my colony has gone according to plan, but I've learned and adapted and enjoyed doing it.

 

[Legacy]

Oh, and another thing...I'm willing to bet I'd have to dress out all my current meat does and either use a pair of sisters from a litter here or buy a pair of young sister does, right?

Just curious, instead of doing away with what you have now so you can have a colony that might or might not work out for you, why not just continue what you have and add a colony from some of your young does to see how it works out for you. If it works for you, phase out the cages and if not, you don't have to start all over with your stock. And your colony does don't have to be sisters as long as you put them together at young age.<br /><br />__________ Mon Jan 09, 2012 11:02 am __________<br /><br />

I'm hoping he will mellow with age...

I know that it depends on the buck but the more freedom my colony buck has, the more dominant and domineering he gets. He thinks he is the king supreme of the whole place. He is the only one not in cages now. At this point he is more like the rabbitry mascot.

 

[MaggieJ]

The divided colony helps because the buck can be easily moved when a doe is about to kindle. Since there is a wire divider, he still socializes through the fence and the does accept him back.

My colony consists of two pens, each 4 by 8 feet. Normally I have a doe on each side, but at the moment I have Alice, our matriarch, in one pen (she can be a bit bossy) and Samantha and her two grown daughters in the other.

Sam and the blue doe kindled and shared a nest a couple of months ago. The third doe had two on the floor and they did not survive. She will go to freezer camp along with the youngsters when it is time. I wanted to grow out two so I was more sure of one good one.

It is too crowded in Sam's pen with 11 youngsters and three does, but the youngsters often go through the divider to spend time with Granny Alice. She is tolerant until mealtime... and then watch them run home! Alice has a litter of five in the nest box. Their eyes are open and they are doing well but she is keeping the entrance blocked with hay, as is her practice in winter.

If I had room for a third pen, I would have a buck pen between the two doe pens. As it is, I have to remove Pudge, our buck, and cage him from time to time to give the does a rest. The buck pen could also be used for grow-out of those youngsters who might be harassed by the buck as they approach butchering age. (I grow mine out to about 16 weeks... on a natural diet it takes longer for them to reach butchering weight.)

Regarding size of the pens, I think I could successfully keep two does to a side if I had a third pen in the centre. But that would require at least 10 feet by 8 feet of floor space. As it stands we have to be vigilant that the set-up is still working.

 

[akane]

For 2-3 does without keeping kits past weaning (which is about 4-5weeks in a colony) 8x8 or 10x10' would do it. You could do that in pens but once they adjust to life as a colony instead of a cage they tend to work out how to live in a colony and get along. Does that start out really violent will chill after 4-6months or so after spending time with daughters or rabbits they do like in a colony type situation. Now all my does except a few mini rex that I mostly kept caged can be combined. Even the ones who fought all out when I first set up a colony. They have to first go through the shock of another rabbit being able to get in their space and then learn how to communicate before unrelated does will get along.

 

[waymire]

1. As much space as possible. If we are talking minimums it depends on your rabbits as individuals and how tolerant they are of each other. Enough room for feeders, nest boxes, etc. and still enough space to hop around at speed without crashing into everything. I would think 3-4 rabbits would be ok in maybe 6x8 or 10x10? If they like each other. My suggestion is go as big as possible.

2. Depends on your rabbits. We have always culled nasties.. just simply refuse to put up with them. So all my rabbits had pleasant personalities. I put 16 mature rabbits that had never known anything but hutches in a 14x30 colony, added two more (young buck and young doe) at different times later, and had only one problem.... a young fryer buck that had gotten mauled by a dog. He survived, but was pretty messed up, and the rest of the colony refused to accept him from day one. I do believe they saw him as a threat/weakness to the colony. Everyone else gets along just fine, occasional foot thumping or jumping displays, nothing serious. I do have 14 does and two bucks, one of which is young... so the bucks stay busy.

 

[greeleyfarm]

I have recently turned my battery cages into a colony setup and everything is going great! I have three does who more or less have the run of the place and one buck who has a spot in one corner of the colony that communicates with the main part so he can flirt with the ladies. There are also eight kits growing out right now, and when I heard here that bucks are good with juveniles I decided to make a small opening that only juveniles up to, say, two pounds can get through and that has worked out awesome; the little ones get to hop through and cuddle with Dad (and eat his food) and, while he does sometimes try to hump them, they are able to get away easily from his more lecherous moods. Mostly, they seem to love being able to come and go. I will be monitoring the situation closely as they get older.

The does did not grow up together for the most part, but they have readily adapted to one another's company. In fact, I have one doe who kindled yesterday, so she has been in a secluded, isolated corner of the colony until the newborns are out of the box (I am going into the colony thing very cautiously) and this morning Mom BROKE OUT of her pen and back into the colony to visit and gossip with her girlfriends! I have since added more wire to the part of the birthing cage that communicates with the rest of the colony.

This colony is made from two battery cages that were roughly W:11' x D:2.5' x H:2' The upper cage had four enclosures and the bottom had three. I simply cut rabbit size holes in the wire between the enclosures so they can run the length of the battery, while the remaining wire maintains the structural integrity, preventing sag and so forth. I also used some of the panels I cut out to build a ramp and enclosed landing between the upper and lower levels.