Rabbits or not
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Rabbits by Accident
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Ha ha
Ha ha look what I just brought home!Since we're 'sharing' - my story is that my husband and I sold our 3,000 square foot house with pool and moved into a TINY 19' travel trailer to travel. Then the insanity hit, and my husband has had unrelated health problems and we parked in my sister's 3 acre yard and haven't moved in 2 years - so I got chickens. Then I got rabbits for food security. When I was a young married teen, I lived like this - in a small trailer, in a field, with chickens, rabbits and a small herd of milk goats. I loved it. At 66 I seem to be aiming right back at that simple, pleasant life. I take care of the animals all myself, and my husband watches me out the window from his 'office' in the small cabin next to the trailer. Whether my husband is as content I don't know LOL but he's still here. By the way, I'm looking for a couple milk goats, know any for sale???
(my husband did say he would learn to butcher the rabbits so I didn't have to do it - also he is a great gardener, but not able right now)
We had Nigerian dwarf goats for a spell. Supposed to keep the horse company but horse just beat him up. So beautiful wife n kids got more goats to keep the goat company.
Actually I'd say they were some of the best pets we've ever owned. Really friendly, clean. Ours never ate anything bad as per reputation. Actually fussy eaters. Each evening I would clap my hands n say go home boys, withers, n they would run to the barn. They were like having puppies
Rabbits by Accident
Well-known member
These are Nigerian dwarfs! So you recognized them ... cool!
I just banded my first buck ... I think it is more traumatic for me than him. I hope I did it right.... I wanted to keep him, but don't want a buck. I plan to milk them eventually. Goats are great
There's a guy on youtube that has "Pack Goats" - I think that would be a neat idea to try. Not that I do any real actual hiking anymore LOL I could have 'Walk Goats' LOLAbout the only maintenance on the goats is the outer edge of the hoofs grows long n needs to be trimmed. We found a strong rose trimmer works well. We also put shingles on the boards we used for their jungle gym. We made from wire spools n old planks. They like to climb.
Your little wither will be fine in a couple days. And make a nice pet
Your little wither will be fine in a couple days. And make a nice pet
Rabbits by Accident
Well-known member
@Olbunny sorry to hijack your thread. I'd be glad to take it off to another post. Thanks for the encouragement on the buckling (I don't remember 'buckling' and 'doeling' being a thing the last time I had goats LOL)
Ages ago, a friend banded my bucks and their balls were really small. This guy looks like a bull and he's only 12 weeks old (upper end of time limit for banding, but we just got him) I think it's because he's a Nigerian Goat..? He's doing okay, it just seemed that the ring wasn't quite tight enough. After looking at other photos, it seems similar and he's eating/drinking & not having any visible issues. I really do appreciate the hand-holding, I don't know anyone that has goats - going to have to make new friends, I guess. Rats! I like my hermitness.
Ages ago, a friend banded my bucks and their balls were really small. This guy looks like a bull and he's only 12 weeks old (upper end of time limit for banding, but we just got him) I think it's because he's a Nigerian Goat..? He's doing okay, it just seemed that the ring wasn't quite tight enough. After looking at other photos, it seems similar and he's eating/drinking & not having any visible issues. I really do appreciate the hand-holding, I don't know anyone that has goats - going to have to make new friends, I guess. Rats! I like my hermitness.
No problems here, always share. Although if you start a new thread it can help keep your records. I put my production numbers or individual questions on this site and reread often.
On the goats, having 3 may cause controversy. 1 will become the runt and can get picked on. Spreading out feed n such helps eliminate competition for food. Ours were great fun for our kids n me. Following around like a puppy, crawling under the truck I'm working on. They never touched my beautiful wifes flowers or our berry bushes. We have a big yard so lots of grass and surrounding willow n birch trees.
I was selling them and all their tack n supplies, insulated house, round bale of hay for something like 2-300 bucks. A mom n 10 year old son show up. They only have working pets at their place and no play, family pets. Little man feel in love and they agreed to buy. Later that day when they were supposed to come get them, mom calls n says they can't afford to buy them. The price instantly dropped to free if they came n got them now as planned.
Made for a happy ending
:rolls eyes just because he was baited:
Great attitude. I treat my meats as pets. Love and respect doesn't mean I can't eat them too.I don't think anyone rolls their eyes at "pet" rabbits
My folks came up in the depression. I grew up with frugality being, after God, the soul of the family. I've had little time in my life when I did not have a garden. I raised chickens as a youth and had a spat with rabbits. At 60 I have landed on 1/3 of an acre in suburbia. Everything about it is centered around self-suficiency. Rain catchment, hugelculture, plantings with uses, etc. The jurisdiction in which I live would allow chickens, but I would have to get permission of all 20 neighbors. I naturally turned to rabbits. I learned by degrees how much better they fit my philosophy. @Olbunny I feel kindred to you at least in how we approach life.
KelleyBee
Well-known member
I love on all of my meat buns, too. i try to save the life of the littests of each litter, kiss their heads, hug them, talk baby talk, etc., to everyone. The goal even for rabbits destined for the table is to give them a quality, happy and healthy life before dispatching.
There is a unfair perception out there, probably generated by visions of feed lots at slaughterhouses, that meat production is always uncaring and cold. For the small farm and homestead this has never been true. My 1st cousin was a dairy farmer. He had a herd of 200, each had a name. When they eventually went to slaughter we knew we were eating a certain cow or bull. We didn't offer some high falutin' fakey "thanks" to make our daily life more acceptable. Loud prayers on the street corner have never been our style. But giving the animals quality food, a comfortable place to live, medical care, and kindness were everyday ideals. Hey that sounds like what I did for my children!
Rabbits by Accident
Well-known member
If you're going to milk the goats, you'll need a buck in there somewhere. The nannies won't be in milk until after they've kidded and you need at least one buck for that to happen. Unless, you have a friend with a buck, then you can "pass the buck" around.These are Nigerian dwarfs! So you recognized them ... cool!
I just banded my first buck ... I think it is more traumatic for me than him. I hope I did it right.... I wanted to keep him, but don't want a buck. I plan to milk them eventually. Goats are great
I don't know what Nigerian goat milk tastes like, is that a goat for milk or cheese? Nigerian goats (the bigger ones with floppy ears) have milk that is almost a dead ringer for homogenized cow's milk. FWIW, raw cow's milk isn't much like the milk you're used to at the grocery store so raw Nigerian goat milk is way more like cow's milk than raw cow's milk is.
Not to be a Nervous Nellie, but definitely keep the rabbits. A massive amount of the fresh veggies sold in the U.S. are from California (all the other states combined don't produce even half of what California does) and the reservoirs that supply California are about dry. I think there's supposed to be a 40% - 60% less water supply for them in 2023. So there will be a lot less fresh produce next year and the prices will double or triple, if it's available at all.
At the beginning of the pandemic, a lot of seed suppliers were out of seeds. So, buy some open pollinated (heirloom) seeds NOW while they are still available and store them in the refrigerator for next year. Use bunny manure to fertilize your gardens and save the best seeds for the next crop. If you save hybrid seeds, no telling what you will get when they are planted out, so just start with heirloom seeds. I get seeds from Baker Creek, they're a bit more expensive than other places but the germination rate is close to 100%.
For beans, save the seeds from the first and best beans produced. For lettuce, save seeds from the last ones to bolt. Carrots and beets need two years to produce seeds, so get lots of those seeds if you're not able to keep the plants for two years to go to seed. There's a variety of seed saver tips online.
We don't have cold winters here so a small continuous garden next to the bunnies is pretty much always making veggies for us as well as the bunnies. Do whatever works for you, but figure that veggie prices (if they're available at all) are gonna be astronomical next year.
Also, look around your yard and see what sort of edible landscaping can be put in place. We have a lot of ornamental edibles as well as fruit trees. They're just as pretty as trees which don't produce food.
At the beginning of the pandemic, a lot of seed suppliers were out of seeds. So, buy some open pollinated (heirloom) seeds NOW while they are still available and store them in the refrigerator for next year. Use bunny manure to fertilize your gardens and save the best seeds for the next crop. If you save hybrid seeds, no telling what you will get when they are planted out, so just start with heirloom seeds. I get seeds from Baker Creek, they're a bit more expensive than other places but the germination rate is close to 100%.
For beans, save the seeds from the first and best beans produced. For lettuce, save seeds from the last ones to bolt. Carrots and beets need two years to produce seeds, so get lots of those seeds if you're not able to keep the plants for two years to go to seed. There's a variety of seed saver tips online.
We don't have cold winters here so a small continuous garden next to the bunnies is pretty much always making veggies for us as well as the bunnies. Do whatever works for you, but figure that veggie prices (if they're available at all) are gonna be astronomical next year.
Also, look around your yard and see what sort of edible landscaping can be put in place. We have a lot of ornamental edibles as well as fruit trees. They're just as pretty as trees which don't produce food.
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So we thought we didn't like goat milk. I have a mid size Jersey heifer who will be back to her home farm in a month or so to be bred. Then one of my rabbit friends here gave me a quart of her Nigerian dwarf goat milk. IT WAS SO GOOD. Kicking myself because I won't even admit what I paid for that heifer in my totally non dairy cow area. We are still 10 months or so away from our own milk. Oh well.
Oooo! Such a chubby face! You are the sweetest! I could eat you up!
Rabbits by Accident
Well-known member
I agree! I had goats years ago, and at best, the milk was 'meh' ... then they got into some plant that made the milk noxious LOL - but we still drank it because it was all we had LOL... so I was not eager to taste this new milk - it is FANTASTIC! Better than cow's milk. Unfortunately, her teats are so small, my arthritic fingers can't really manage. I bought a milker which worked fantastic, then the pump got weird, maybe water got into it. In any case, she's just about dry now, but I'm excited about next freshening! Unfortunately, they don't give much milk ... but I have 2 does, so maybe enough.
Rabbits by Accident
Well-known member
When I had goats years ago, we just brought the doe out to a friend who had a buck. Turns out that people don't do that much in Texas, but I have a friend with a buck, so we're good. As long as I can afford to drive 45 minutes away to do it LOL.
