Which breed is good???

[preciousgurl63]

Ok I know NZ and Cali's are good meat rabbit including mixing them. I'm curious beside those what is a good meat breed to get into raising? I plan on using some for the family, maybe try doing stuff with its pelt and also might sell a few if I have a big litter.

 

[3mina]

My personal preference is Rex. My litters average 9-11 and I butcher at about 4 lbs/8-9 weeks. Depending on where you get your stock from growth rates will vary greatly since many people don't select for them unless they're raising for meat

 

[The_Dutchess]

I have Silver Fox. Nice but IMO its rough showing them. For meat they are good but a little hard to condition than NZ/Cali's. I just acquired two silver martens and they look promising. Really solid and easy to feed nod condition compared to silver fox I can tell so far. And I love their size! Not huge, a good meat size though at 6-7 lbs.

 

[preciousgurl63]

Well my sister n law will be raising silver foxes once she gets her 2 doe's this weekend. I've been wanting rex rabbits which is why I got my MR's but before them I was really interested in getting them but couldn't find any around me.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

I have Silver Fox. Nice but IMO its rough showing them. For meat they are good but a little hard to condition than NZ/Cali's. I just acquired two silver martens and they look promising. Really solid and easy to feed nod condition compared to silver fox I can tell so far. And I love their size! Not huge, a good meat size though at 6-7 lbs.

Just curious,but why do you think it's hard showing them?

 

[Silver Cloud]

Florida Whites are good small meat rabbits, Have a great personality, Good for show, Eat a lot less food than the bigger rabbits, Great temperament, Pelts are really good, only one color down side for those who prefer colors, also make great pets very lovable and easy going. Take up a lot less space. My 2 cents.

 

[ottersatin]

You might want to try Satins!
They are very prolific, make great Show Rabbits and
are available in a vast variety of colors.
OhI may be just a bit biased in their favor.
Ottersatin. ldtimer:

 

[Zass]

I hated my Silverfox. From the looks of what I'm seeing on facebook, I'm not the only one!!! Some lines (with international distribution) seem to have the most neurotic temperaments, ever!

I'm just starting into harlequins. No idea how they are going to preform yet.

 

[Celice]

rexs are always a good rabbits to get into. the pelts are more expensive than normal furred rabbits too.

I also hear that Palominos are good meat and well tempered rabbits. My Himalayas are the best for personality in my opinion.

 

[Anemone]

I am getting started with American Chinchilla and I love them! They are known for their mellow temperament, excellent mothering skills, and large litters. They are great for meat and fur, and as a bonus they are the only critically threatened rabbit breed so you would be helping to save a heritage breed! They may be hard to find, but might be worth it. They also work great to cross with another purebred. Mine are averaging a litter size of 10+ right now, and they get to 5 lb quickly.

 

[The_Dutchess]

I'm getting out of showing AND raising silver fox because of:
- Crazy, neurotic does
- crazy genetics (white spots, lilac coloring out of a black x blue breeding)
- I had trouble getting mine to eat pellets
- Hard to keep them in condition
So I'm switching to Silver Martens. I know there are better SF lines that don't have these problems, but I cant drive 2 hours away to get to them.

 

[wamplercathy]

Every one has there favorites in the bunny world. I have decided to start with NZWs going to get a trio from grumpy in April. Some of the things I thought about while choosing was dress out percentage, local breeder, and feed to meat ratio. I wanted a local breeder so that the buns would be use to this area's climate, and wouldn't have to be shipped. An hour car ride beats a 12 flight. NZWs and Cal both have good %s and feed conversion. Given that the breeder knows what their doing. :x I love the look of the Cal and still might get a buck and doe but not in till next spring. :lol:
I don't have a problem. Really.

 

[NHowell]

I love my SF and Giant Chins

 

[PSFAngoras]

I do like my champagnes as far as grow out rates, but I do believe that is what the breeder was focusing on. The pure champ kits I had were five pounds at nine weeks, and the crosses with angora were 4.5 pounds at eight weeks. Beautiful coats on those too. Temperament is shy, but not to the point of being crazy. They more or less just don't enjoy the lap dog level of attention my angoras demand, though they do like the occasional head scratch.

Thant being said, my line line has a hard time in keeping from becoming too fat, and have to be strictly rationed. Due to overweight issues, I've had a heck of a time getting my older to breed, and when she does, she's lost kits to being oversized and getting stuck. I just about put her in the freezer this last weekend, but she palpitated positive from a single cover, so hopefully now that her weight is back under control, she'll have everything go smoothly.

Her daughter is a bit chubby, but a willing doe if there ever was one, so she'll be expecting her first litter the same day as mom.

The weight thing may vary by lines, but I feel like it's also mostly my fault with my rabbits since I didn't ration feed at first and I don't have as strict of a breed back plan as most due to limited cage space.

 

[ilovehome]

My favorite meat breed is Giant Chins. I've tried others, but these are my favorite. giantchinchillarabbit.com

 

[Frankallen]

I am just getting back to raising Rabbits! This is my either 3rd or 4th time raising them only for Meat! A while back (maybe 10 or 12 years ago) my best cross was Champagne de Argent X Palomino...They had beautiful "meat type" rabbits! Now it's hard to find a Palomino Breed. I am going to try and find this combo, it's Outstanding! The loins were so wide!

Frank from Alabama