good meat rabbit?

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If you just want meat rabbits, then mutts seem to be the way to go. They also seem to be more hardy as alot of people are having heath issues with their purebred stock, likely due to much inbreeding.

My purebred Am Chins do pretty good but the kits from my New Zealand mutt (likely some flemish in him) crossed on my Am Chin does do much better at growing out. However, I do not get consistency as some will be be meatier and some more boney. I am keeping my mutt does who grew out well and will be crossing them to my AmChin buck to see if I can get more reliable results.

There are also the commercial varieties of New Zealands and Californians who wont win any beauty pagents but are good producers. They can have temperament problems however since they are not bred to be pets but to live in a safe secure barn where they only look at other rabbits all day.

If you want to show as well as have meat then I would go with a rare breed. The ARBA website has a list of recognized ones and make sure the breeder grows for meat and not just show or you could end up with rabbits that dont like to get pregnant, only have 4 in a litter and then dont produce enough milk for those 4.
 
I use a Champagne buck on Flemish Giant does. Flemish giants make great mothers and have large litters but they have a lot of bone. I think the Champagne refines the bone while still maintaining the fast growing large size of the Flemish. My kits average out at 5+ lbs at 8 weeks with plenty of meat IMO. That has just been my experience but I know some people dont like to mix in the Flemish.
 
I have calis. and meat mutts. for my self I want meat I do not care about show or pet.
I like color, but I also like a rabbit with a fast grow out rate. I believe most of my mutts are cali. and new zealand. as I process them at 8 to 9 weeks reguardless of live weight.
 
Rather than recommend specific breeds, I suggest looking up meat breeds. There is a whole group of rabbits classified as commercial breeds. Make a list of your wants and priorities and see what fits. Then there are dual purpose, and if you want to use the hide or wool, those are the ones to get. If you want a fast growth rate, make sure you choose a breed bred for that, from a breeder who breeds for that. If you have any plans of showing, which is totally a personal choice, start with purebred stock of good quality from a breeder that keeps good records of litter sizes and weights at fryer age. Someone who regularly does meat pens would be good.
 
Having Californians and New Zealands to cross seems to be the most common practice for purely meat production that I have found. Either breed is good, but the first generation crosses are supposed to produce larger, faster growing kits. That is what I learned in my research, but I haven't actually done it yet so I can't give any first-hand testimony.
 
Before Cali's and NZW came along Silver foxes were the meat breed to go to but they've declined since just because people wanted white pelts that could be dyed.
 
After doing a lot of research, we settled on Silver Fox. As mystang mentioned, the SF and American Blue were "the" meat rabbit prior to the newer commercial breeds. I narrowed my list to either SF or Am Blue because the idea of helping to perpetuate heritage/endangered breeds appealed to me. The grow out time seemed to only differ by perhaps a couple of weeks, and to perpetuate the breeds, that seemed a fair trade. Ultimately, we chose the SF because we could get them locally...can't find an Am Blue breeder within several hundred miles of us :( It's still on the list though...and at some point, I plan to add a couple to our rabbitry.
 
SF are on my "want" list for the future, but I don't know of anyone anywhere even remotely close. If I ever find some, I am going to try some out.
 
I'm with Sky's on this one, look up meat breeds and go from there, keeping in mind many smaller breeds do very well as meat rabbits also. By smaller I mean rabbits like Standard Chinchillas and Florida Whites. A plus for the smaller ones is they usually eat less
 
mystang89":3i8wzeyp said:
Before Cali's and NZW came along Silver foxes were the meat breed to go to but they've declined since just because people wanted white pelts that could be dyed.
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What what a sad thing that is! People miss out on a great rabbit when they overlook the Silver Fox!<br /><br />__________ Thu Mar 21, 2013 9:26 am __________<br /><br />
coffeenutdesigns":3i8wzeyp said:
SF are on my "want" list for the future, but I don't know of anyone anywhere even remotely close. If I ever find some, I am going to try some out.
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Get on the National Silver Fox facebook list...look on the ARBA list for breeders in surrounding states. I traveled several states away for mine (and then discovered another breeder just 30 minutes away!). They are worth the effort. (And, it is actually good that I got mine from further away -- my bloodlines are not as closely matched to the other breeders so we can help each other's breeding programs.)
 
Thanks everyone.. I currently have a californian doe. We were trying to figure out if something with her would go well or if we should get two different rabbits.
 
I couldn't find any on our local breeder list from ARBA, but not everyone signs up on it either. We went to a local rabbit show and found not one but 2 local breeders of SF's. I was thrilled. So, if there's a rabbit show anywhere near, I'd recommend stopping in. Most folks showing bring breeding stock if they have any for sale. Do go prepared with transport cages :)
 
countrymomma1991":1ase5mwm said:
Thanks everyone.. I currently have a californian doe.
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Why don't you breed her to your Satin buck until you find either a Cal or NZ?
 
I used to raise meat mutts and had a good line going but I lost them when I had to spend so much time in the hospital. I gave them to an organic farm operation where I knew they'd get good care.
When I got out of rehab Mama Sheep Dog set me up with a pair of Rex and boy are they dandies. Talk about wide loads in the butts. Classic mandolin shape and very fast growers.
Most people think of Rex as show or pet animals but remember they got their start as meat rabbits in France. They're outstanding in a family meat operation because of their sweet dispositions. Very easy for even kids to handle.
 
Thanks everyone for being so helpful.. I bred my Californian to my satin until I can find a better mate.
 

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