New pet? I'd like some ideas

[KimitsuKouseki]

Hi guys, yes I know I keep disapearing all the time. I quit my job and now I work from home so hopefully I can have more time. My website is in desperate need of an update too, lots of changes basically.

The pet market has crumbled over here so I hardly ever sell bunnies anymore. So insted all the litters I have, I eat. Rabbit is now the only meat I eat, I do eat fish, seafood and eggs and such though. 1 rabbit lasts me a whole week even with my rabbits being a small breed. So because of this I only do 1 litter every other months or so depending on the litter sizes.

I've always kept babies that died from falling out of the nest. I used to sell em as reptile or falcon food through a friend. She'd sell my babies along with her big rabbits that hadnt sold so it was worth selling basically. But she has stopped breeding rabbits and I can't supply nearly enough babies to sell, mine are accidents not leftovers and I dont want to breed more just for this purpose. But I hate the idea of the poor things just being wasted in the trash and accumulating enough would take too long so they'd go bad in the freezer. I'm ok with eating my rabbits since they serve a purpose in doing so and arent just wasted, but the babies, it just breaks my hearth to let em go to waste and have no purpose. So I've been thinking maybe I should get something that can eat them? I do have a cat, but she's been on dry high quality cat food since I've had her and reacts badly to any changes to her food. Besides I have rabbits in my room and wouldnt want her to start recognising em as food.

I considered a ball python before, had found a gorgeous purple frenzy one, but my father went nuclear on me when I sugested it. Same would happen if I looked at some kind of lizard.
So maybe a chicken? I've never owned a chicken before so I dunno. My father would probably be ok with an egg producer of some kind.
Could a chicken live off of foraging free roam style with the odd baby bunny here and there? I have no idea. The bunnies waste enough pellets, so there's a bunch on the floor and there's plenty of bugs in their manure and stuff. So maybe that would work? Although I might worry about cats or even the chicken picking at the bunny's feet through the wire floorings....

What do you guys think? Do you have other suggestions on what I should consider? Or should I just trash the babies even if it breaks my heart?

 

[michaels4gardens]

If it were me..... I would not get another pet, just to keep from wasting dead baby rabbits..
-- with that said, .. I often have a few hens, or khaki Campbell ducks, running about the floor of the rabbitry, they do eat wasted rabbit food, [and all kitchen scraps] and they produce eggs.
Ducks won't eat the babies without cutting them up first, unless the duck is very large and the rabbit very small. The hens will need the wing feathers on one side clipped, to keep them from flying up and getting on top of the cages. The Ducks I have had, never got on top of the cages. In my opinion... if you like duck eggs, they are a better choice.. because, they don't scratch the manure piles all over the isleways.

 

[MeadowView]

I’d agree with Michael, don’t get a new animal just to dispose of dead kits. Personally my deads are buried under plants outside, they hang out in the freezer until spring. I’m working on a ‘food forest’ and putting a ton of permaculture into my property, so a little boost at the roots to get em started can’t hurt, I figure!

Past that, you can start accumulating them and when you have a decent amount sell them as a bulk unit. Some people I know will also donate their culls/random deads to zoos/sanctuaries. You won’t make money off of them that way, but they WILL serve a purpose!

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

I too am not sure about a new pet either, a snake would've been fine, but birds in general feel like aliens to me wich is why I'm not sure about getting them.
If I was to accumulate them, by the time I'd have enough to sell or give away, the earlier ones would reach overdue dates even in a freezer. As for planting em, this area is badically rocks..... What Material is on top is actually the manure from the rabbits that my dad is spreading around to even out the forest. So adding kits wouldn't do much rly. The raccoon are already digging around for the bugs in the manure too.
I guess I rly should just take the loss of those kits after all sigh... I rly don't like it

 

[GBov]

Just a thought as many people like them loads, what about a ferret? We had one and he was a blast, loved him to bits and will never have another one.

Very funny, VERY VERY SMART, very active for short bursts of time and then they sleep most of the day.

Getting a pet to avoid wasting dead bunnies is perhaps odd but not if you want a pet that can take advantage AND be fun to have.

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Just a thought as many people like them loads, what about a ferret? We had one and he was a blast, loved him to bits and will never have another one.

Very funny, VERY VERY SMART, very active for short bursts of time and then they sleep most of the day.

Getting a pet to avoid wasting dead bunnies is perhaps odd but not if you want a pet that can take advantage AND be fun to have.

Interresting, and I just looked it up they even have angora ones! I love floofy floofy things hence why I do lionheads and english angora XD. I'll think about it, angora would be hard to find here but it's a solid option for later. Maybe in a few years or so. Thanks

 

[GBov]

Never ever seen one of those before, how funny do they look! :lol:

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

So I had a new idea. How about crayfish!? I'm not big on the idea of aquariums since they're kindoff a lot of work, so fishies were a no-no when I was looking for ideas, but from what I know they're relativelly easy to care for and eat almost anything. I asked someone who raises them and they said it would need testing, but they might eat the babies especially if precooked. If they breed maybe I could even eat their spawns once those are big enough?
I'll have to wait till summer to go try and catch or buy some. I would'nt want those fancy pet ones, just some food grade ones would be fine.

 

[michaels4gardens]

JMHO...
having raised crayfish-- I would suggest more than a little research...
--- with a breeding population, you will still need to feed rabbit kits [or any meat] a little at a time to make sure they clean it all up before it makes the water toxic-- and , ...you will need a "great" filter system.. not a mediocre pet store filter.. crayfish need to eat a lot of vegetable material [water plants, or leafy greens from the garden] they dirty the water fast... even with only a dozen crayfish in a 20 gallon tank, you will need a lot of various size hiding places,- so they don't kill each other, or eat the young ones...

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Sigh even for "easy" critters aquariums are always a pain then huh. I'd seen people raise em in buckets so I though it might not be too bad. The ferrets seem fun but as long as I have my cat I dont want to get another type of bigger pet. And sadly my cat is too sensitive to her food and wouldnt eat the kits. Back to square 1 sigh

 

[a7736100]

I like having litters indoors. My cat will reach in the indoor rabbit cage to catch babies but don't bother them when they reach 3 or 4 weeks old. So I keep the rabbit cage in a closed room. She eats dead babies without problem probably because she's a good mouser. She was born feral. I lured her into the house because I had a mice problem. Within a few days I had no more mice.