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goslingfever

goslingfever

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We had a lonely Tom Turkey, Hansel

hansel.jpg



so we put up an ad offering to trade him for rabbits. A family with turkey hens contacted us, and offered us New Zealands in trade. And they raise Red, White, and Blue. :) And I LOVE Reds!!

They not only have lovely rabbits, they are COLONY raised rabbits! The does all get along, and they only use one buck per colony pen. The woman said she brought her colony with her from FL. I love that they've been established for a long time, and they discussed the time they tried to bring in new blood, and had problems with mites so they culled them out. They didn't want any of that in since their stock doesn't have that issue. Parasite resistance? Great maternal instincts + great colony relationships among the does? Oh my! I am just thrilled. :bunnyhop:

Better yet, check out the colors:
lance-rabbits-1--11312.jpg


lance-rabbits-4--11312.jpg


lance-rabbits-2--11312.jpg


Now the darkest one is the Red I am used to seeing. The white looks like the standard white. But the lighter ones look to be kind of soft reddish fawns - just gorgeous! I am not sure now if I like the deep Red or the fawn but there was only one doe out of the five, a GORGEOUS fawn, so she is definitely a keeper. I am going to keep the dark Red buck for sure, and may just grow out the rest of these handsome bucks to see how the look.

They are now tattoo'd and I am looking forward to having a colony of these pretties in the future :)

lance-rabbits-3--11312.jpg


The best news yet? They loved Hansel the turkey, and he gets to be top Tom at their farm. There isn't a guy who deserves it more! We are so glad he went to a good place with many hens for company.

I LOVE TRADES!
 
Beautiful rabbits! Thrilled to hear the trade went so well and all benefited! Wishing you all the luck with your new Colony!

Karen
 
curlysue: Thanks, I am so glad too!

Marinea: Oh so very DEFINITELY! :)

Mary Ann's Rabbitry: So true.

And they emailed me back and said Hansel is loving his new harem of hens :)
 
Great trade! I'm glad Hansel has a harem of hens. :D

Since the dark red buck is a keeper, maybe you should breed the doe to one of the lighter ones for her first time so you have a light and dark line to work with.
 
MamaSheepdog":ikertyq1 said:
Great trade! I'm glad Hansel has a harem of hens. :D

Since the dark red buck is a keeper, maybe you should breed the doe to one of the lighter ones for her first time so you have a light and dark line to work with.
Click to expand...

LOL!!! You are encouraging my rabbitosis and I LIKE it! :p

I did keep back the sweetest fawn buck. These guys suck up a TON of food, so I named him Dyson. I am thinking Hoover & Kirby for the red buck and the doe.

I am all for two color lines :) But I think I will eventually work in something smaller to bring down the size to save on food. I don't need them to grow big or grow fast; I just want beautiful rabbits that can get along in a colony.<br /><br />__________ Sat Nov 24, 2012 6:35 pm __________<br /><br />Thanks Nadeerah! I love their look.

Thanks for asking Karen! They have settled in very nicely, and I am wishing my lionheads were as nice as these three.
 
So glad to hear they are settling in nicely. Thanks so much for the update.

BTW, would love to hear about your Lion heads.

Karen
 
Ugh, the Lionheads. I love the breed; adorable, tiny, and did I mention adorable?

The first one I ever had was the sweetest, tiniest little guy. A big pet supply company used him in many product photo shoots and he was their favorite rabbit for a time as he didn't struggle or scratch and loved to try out the new toys and cages they'd introduce him to.

I loved him so much, I decided I wanted more LH. But the does frequently have sour temperaments. Some are sweet for a time, but then just turn into absolute bears when they are pregnant. Growling, boxing, :boxed: --and in the beginning, we even had biters :(

I am on a few LH groups through Facebook and a common theme that pops up; lots of missed breedings. One that really made an impression on me was a rabbitry with something like 30 animals bred - but all but two "missed". :shock:

I have had a few of those but thankfully most of mine were pretty fertile - but it takes them a long time to mature. I have a 7 month old buck and he is just now getting interested in breeding. Still hasn't figured out what to do yet though. Yet I have had mini rex bucks that can do the job at 5 months, and be successful the first time out.

I finally have the color I wanted (Sable point) and decent Double Manes. I just need to work on that attitude. I want does to stay as stable and sweet as my mixed breed wonders.

I have also been asked a lot if I have ever seen seizures in my LH. I never have, and was thinking maybe this was one of those myths that get started (like Elops not being able to get around with those big 'ol ears - PAH!!) but a few breeders I trust have told me of their personal experiences with it. Very sad. :( Makes me concerned to bring in any new blood.

Another thing I have read on the lists are the "Psycho Bunnies" -- I know it happens in every breed, but in LH it seems way too common that you get a rabbit that just WIGS OUT -- it startles easy, is impossible to handle without looking like you lost a fight with a cheese grater, and the rabbits have a tendency to catapult off of grooming tables, you, etc etc. I have had a few of these too.
Some days, I am not sure why I am trying anymore :wall:
 
that is really wonderful! what an awsome trade you are very blessed that you found such great people to trade with
 
Thank you Attal! Yes, we really are. They were wonderful people and these rabbits are fantastic. I can't wait for the 1st litter of babies :)
 
The lighter ones look a lot like my Palominos, its is possible to get NZ's with less rufous. If what you want is a smaller, meatier rabbit I'd get a Florida White buck to cross on your does, bring down the size, pump up the meat production and add some hybrid vigor. That was an awesome deal you got!!!
 
How are they doing now?

I love trades too, we just traded six weened New Zealand blue kits for two Asian Heritage Hog piglets. Aka potbellied pigs. They will be picking up their bunnies this week and we will get the piglets when they are weened next month.

And Lion Heads sound a right nightmare to work with. Yipes :shock:
 

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