Evaluating type in meat rabbits.

[6riversfarms]

This is one of the NZ bucks that my Uncle gave to me. My impression of this 6 month old buck is that he is of poor type, but I can't really explain why. He seems kinda weak in the hindquarters and not well balanced. Am I off base? What do ya'll think of him?

I want to learn to evaluate both meat and show rabbits but really need some input from folks with more knowledge than I have. Any tips?

I know the pics are not the best but I was dealing with a squirmy rabbit and a squirmy 14 year old :lol:

 

[Pink]

He's very stretched out... It would be great if you could put him onto a table and pose him. Maybe some yummy treats will convince him to sit still?

 

[6riversfarms]

He's very stretched out... It would be great if you could put him onto a table and pose him. Maybe some yummy treats will convince him to sit still?

Immediatly after this little adventure I started rummaging thru the lumber rack for material for a table. I told the boy that there is a better way for this.......

 

[3mina]

I'd say you're right.
-the shoulders are narrower than the hips, you have a wedge you want a block.
-there isn't a good rise over the hips, one breeder told me think basketball

Now having said that, it could be that if he was posed on a hard surface he would look totally different
Take a look through the threads here and you'll see what I mean.

The top of a cage works pretty well as a temporary table & my buns will sing for alfalfa cubes :roll:

 

[Miss M]

my buns will sing for alfalfa cubes :roll:

I'd pay for an mp3 of that!

 

[3mina]

my buns will sing for alfalfa cubes :roll:

I'd pay for an mp3 of that!

I could make a nice little video & make a killing on YouTube :lol:

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

Yes you are right about poor type, He is very very pinched in the hindquarters which is why you see his haunches/hips sticking out so far. A good meat type is wedge shaped with the hindquarters slightly wider than the shoulders. From the side there should be a gradual rise from shoulders to hindquarters. He should look like a modified door stop, so to speak, with the front end almost as high and wide as the back end bit not quite. He is a bit long in body too. His hinquarters are also chopped/flat a bit. The pinched hindquarters is a hard thing to deal with/fix. The rest not so.What you want is for his hocks to be parallel to each other and a good distance apart. That is probably what you are seeing,your instincts on that are correct! Meat type or commercial doen't really vary that much in the purebreds, although there is a school of thought that a longer rabbit has more loin. I find this somewhat untrue as the longer rabbits are usually a lot narrower. What a show type NZW has is height (and width) which actually makes up for that loin!

 

[Secuono]

Pose him correctly and take new pics to show us. Wrists under shoulders, hips between the foot[hock and toes]. Is that right you guys?

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

also pass your hand over his body. Where his neck is there shouldnt be much of a dip there. If there is ....There should be no more than a finger, But prefer none . aslo you should have at least 4 fingers in width between his hips.

 

[6riversfarms]

Pose him correctly and take new pics to show us. Wrists under shoulders, hips between the foot[hock and toes]. Is that right you guys?

Im gonna get more pics in the AM.

 

[A&BRabbitry]

Here's a couple of shots of a young Cal buck that has descent type. He is also posed close to correct but was only 8 weeks in this photo and still a little squirmy.
Alot of determining type has to do with the pose as much as the actual rabbit. One can take a pour rabbit and often try to bunch up the rabbit too much to hide faults while you could also incorrectly pose the best rabbit ever and make him look weak and unbalanced. Hope these help a bit.

 

[6riversfarms]

Alright, I hope this is better. Please chime in on what I can do better as far as posing goes too.

__________ Sun Jun 10, 2012 3:58 pm __________

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

It is allot better pics. Nice posing. YOu did a good job there.
Now for the rabbit. It needs allot of work .

 

[A&BRabbitry]

It looks like from the side pose you've got it right...he just doesn't. Looks like the height of his back is a little far back, or his rear feet are way to far forward, If you move them back though you will lose the gradual rise of the back through the shoulders and midsection. From the top view though he is quite weak in the mid section and too much flat in the hips. He is quite cut in the rear and could use a bit of a**.

 

[SatinsRule]

He's a little late on his rise coming off the shoulders. You should also look for more rise on the back just above the hip. His appearance is a little flatter than you'd normally like to have.

Coming over the hip and into the hindquarter, he rounds off well. That's a definite plus.

Overall, the rabbit lacks development, and time may fix alot of that.

 

[6riversfarms]

I appreciate the input everyone. I feel like I learned a lot. I had pretty much decided to cull him and the other one I got from my uncle before posting originaly as neither look good to me. I just needed some input to be sure that I was seeing them right and help with the terminology of the shortcomings I thought I was seeing. I have much stronger members in my herd and 2 litters due in a week so it is freezer camp for the two boys my uncle gave me. What I am looking for is a strong meat type NZ buck that is on the small side to cross with Florida White does. I have one that fits the bill I think but want another. Thanks again.