Pastured Colony

[Dean]

I'd like to get into raising my own meat rabbits. I've got chickens that are completely free range and I would like to do something similar with rabbits.

Does anyone here have experience with warrens? I was thinking of making a row of earth berm dens (almost the entire thing would be covered except for an insulated door to give me access to each individual den. I could have entry piping on each side which would allow me to rotate them from one side of the pasture to the other so they don't eat the vegetation to death. I'd like the rabbits to auto-pilot themselves as much as possible so to speak. I can tap in to a water line with no problem and have water going for them at all times.

How good are rabbits about keeping their dens clean?

Here's a quick visual representation of what I'm talking about that I made up in windows paint:

 

[Secuono]

Man made burrows underground?
Either way, I'm sure they will still dig out on the grass. Mine right now dig just to get to the cold clay, so those little holes are always clean and slowly growing.
Where are you going to keep the pellets?
I'm not that familiar with the warrens or man made row of dirt they burrow in. Can hardly find any info on it, seems like near no one does it because it would cost too much and be a lot of labor.

 

[OneAcreFarm]

Check out www.velacreations.com or the Backyard Meat Rabbits group on Facebook. There is an ongoing discussion and several members trying various types of set ups like you describe. Good luck!

 

[MaggieJ]

You might find some ideas that you can adapt to your needs here:

http://ressources.ciheam.org/om/pdf/c08/95605275.pdf

Good luck! It sounds like an great project and I'll be following it with interest.

 

[Dean]

@ChickiesnBunnies
By pellets are you talking about fecal matter or feed pellets? If the latter I don't intend to use pellets. I want the primary source of their food to come from grazing. I will supplement as needed.

@OneAcreFarm
Thanks for the link, I'm checking it out now.

@MaggieJ
Awesome pdf, I really like some of the ideas discussed in this pdf. I was also thinking along the lines of using concrete since it's cheap and a good insulator.<br /><br />__________ Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:00 pm __________<br /><br />I found a really cool design here: http://www.raising-rabbits.com/cooling-rabbits.html

I'd slightly modify it for easy access but it looks pretty good. I also found this when searching for pipe, unfortunately it's nowhere near here D: http://reno.craigslist.org/zip/3189752025.html

That would be enough to make quite a few homes.

 

[Secuono]

My rabbits are on grass full time and they still need a fair amount of pellet feed to keep weight and then grow. I don't think you will be able to just supplement pellets until several generations and careful culling off for the best.

My growers tend to eat far more grass than the adults.
Medium areas with several rabbits moved once grass is short will work. Not enough rabbits and it will take them too long to eat the grass and they will dig. Same thing with too much space for to few rabbits.

 

[MaggieJ]

Dean, you will likely need to supplement the pasture quite a bit, but you can do it with alfalfa hay and small amounts of grain rather than with pellets if you prefer. Rabbits on a natural diet need a trace mineral salt block as well. I use the red-brown ones for general livestock.

 

[Dean]

How much space would be adequate to accommodate a doe and her kits? Someone suggested the possibility of using 5 gallon buckets (the taller ones) instead of culvert piping to make the individual dens. I think they're about 1' in diameter.<br /><br />__________ Tue Aug 21, 2012 8:18 pm __________<br /><br />I got hold of a rain barrel today and have more on the way. I cut the bottom out and chopped it in half, leaving me with two open ended halves.

I then cut a piece off of some pvc I had laying around. I'm going to work on a lid tomorrow that will hold between 6 and 8 inches of soil. After that is done I'll plan out den placement and then cover up my first few dens with soil and plant them with grass. I might need to use chicken wire or something to keep the soil in place until the roots establish.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I might need to use chicken wire or something to keep the soil in place until the roots establish.

Burlap sacking works well for that, and it will degrade eventually... or the rabbits will eat it, as mine are doing to the burlap I was using to provide shade for them!

 

[Dean]

I might need to use chicken wire or something to keep the soil in place until the roots establish.

Burlap sacking works well for that, and it will degrade eventually... or the rabbits will eat it, as mine are doing to the burlap I was using to provide shade for them!

Good idea

 

[GBov]

Good idea with the big drum!

I have been trying to figure out what to make my bank out of here and have almost decided to go with a form and poured concrete but that drum could be the inside bit and save much time!

Keep the burrows blocked for a week or so until your rabbits have picked their toilet spot. The burrow should stay much cleaner then but be sure you have easy access to it as you will have to check on kits and remove dead ones and clean out old nests.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I am wondering if using totes with the bottoms cut out and a entry hole in the side would work. Bury the totes 3/4 of the way and lay a sheet of ply wood on top. Should be warm in winter and cool in summer. Then again summers don't get above 85 here that often.The big thing I worry about is rain storms or the spring break up flooding them. May have to use above ground totes in the spring and block off the buried ones to avoid dampness and drownings.

Good call on blocking them off till potty spots are established.

 

[Dean]

Thanks for the advice. I'll give that a shot.
I thought about using totes too but they're not really structurally strong and unless you reinforce them I'd be afraid of them buckling under the weight of the soil, especially if it were to rain.

I'm still kicking around ideas for the tops. I might be able to get some styrofoam or hard foam for free. I'll be looking into it.

edit: oh, and here are some more pics. i set some cinder blocks a few inches below the soil so that the interior of the dens would be well above the surrounding soil to prevent any kind of possible flooding.

 

[MaggieJ]

Interesting ideas, Dean! I need some more nesting areas for my indoor colony. I might just steal your idea of using barrels!

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

Thanks for the ideas on Dean. I didn't think about the weight. Good call.

 

[Dean]

Hey, it's been a while. I've been busy with school but lately I've had enough time to work on fencing in my pasture. Getting close to completion but it's a tedious job to do alone.

The dimensions of the pasture are 31' x 48'. Once the fence is completed I'm going to start construction on the dens and get an estimate of how much room they will each take up and go from there. Look forward to pics in the near future.

 

[Swamp Raised]

I'd like to get into raising my own meat rabbits. I've got chickens that are completely free range and I would like to do something similar with rabbits.

Does anyone here have experience with warrens? I was thinking of making a row of earth berm dens (almost the entire thing would be covered except for an insulated door to give me access to each individual den. I could have entry piping on each side which would allow me to rotate them from one side of the pasture to the other so they don't eat the vegetation to death. I'd like the rabbits to auto-pilot themselves as much as possible so to speak. I can tap in to a water line with no problem and have water going for them at all times.

How good are rabbits about keeping their dens clean?

Here's a quick visual representation of what I'm talking about that I made up in windows paint:

 

[Swamp Raised]

This was posted in 2012 , curious to here how it went or is going .

 

[MaggieJ]

This was posted in 2012 , curious to here how it went or is going .

Unfortunately, Dean posted only the messages in this thread. He hasn't been logged in since 2017, and we never heard any more about his colony.

 

[Maple Buns Rabbitry]

That's too bad! Also, when you have a colony, do you keep the bucks in the same area as the does? Cause if u did then wouldnt a just kindled have a new litter too soon?