Raising Rabbits for Meat

Callene Rapp, Eric Rapp

Description

• Co-op available
• Features in Hobby Farms and Mother Earth News
• Excerpts offered to Saveur, Bon Appetit, Harrowsmith, and Permaculture North America
• E-mail promotion to Homesteader Bloggers Network
• Publicity and promotion in conjunction with the author's speaking engagements
• Simultaneous ebook release and promotion
• Promotion on New Society Publishers social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, our blog, Pinterest, Instagram, and Youtube

• Rabbits are one of the most sustainable, nutritious meat sources available
• This book provides the basic information to begin a home rabbitry, whether as a source of food for the family or a market product
• Raising Rabbits for Meat contains information on the history of the domestic rabbit, breeding, housing, and harvesting, and provides the tools to help you succeed
• Rabbits are quiet, thus able to be raised in a variety of locations, and with proper management, can succeed in a variety of climates
• Rabbits require less space and infrastructure than many other species of livestock, and can provide a steady source of meat for a family
• Callene is the Senior Zookeeper, Children's Farms, Sedgwick County Zoo and writes for Grit Magazine
• Eric is the owner/operator of the Rare Hare Barn, the largest heritage- breed meat rabbit enterprise in the country
• Eric and Callene won the 2011 Bixby-Sponenberg Conservation Award for their work with heritage rabbits and both are involved in The Livestock Conservancy
• Intended audience: People wanting to start a small rabbitry for home use; people wanting to market a few fryers to supplement income, homesteaders, DIYers

How to raise rabbits for a steady source of meat and income

Rabbits are one of the most sustainable, nutritious, and economic meat sources available. They can easily be raised in a variety of locations and climates, and require less space and infrastructure than many other species of livestock.

Raising Rabbits for Meat is the how-to guide to help you succeed in starting and running a home rabbitry for a steady source of meat or income. Coverage includes:

• The history of the domestic rabbit
• Information on breeding, housing, and harvesting
• Tools to help you succeed with your program
• An emphasis on heritage breeds.

Raising Rabbits for Meat provides a solid foundation for success in raising rabbits and is ideal for anyone interested in starting a small rabbitry for home use or to market rabbit meat as a business opportunity.

Acknowledgments

1. The History of Rabbit Keeping
2. What's Your Plan?
3. Rabbit Biology
4. Rare Breeds and Conservation Breeding
5. Selecting and Handling Rabbits
6. Housing and Environment
7. Basic Rabbitry Equipment
8. Diet and Nutrition
9. Hands-On Evaluation of the Rabbit
10. Breeding and Reproduction
11. Kindling
12. Milestones and Management — Birth to Harvest
13. Processing, Storage and Distribution
14. Cooking with Rabbit Meat
15. Rabbit Ailments and Health Problems

Appendix: Rabbit Breeds
Endnotes
Index
About the Authors
About New Society Publishers

Sujets

• Agronomie
• Agronomy for Sustainable Development
• Agriculture
• Engineering
• Technology
• Sustainable agriculture
• Animal husbandry
• Sciences et techniques
• Home-Based Businesses

Informations

• Publié par: New Society Publishers
• Date de parution: 13 novembre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781771422789
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Praise for Raising Rabbits for Meat
As our culture moves toward more honest sources of meat, the rabbit continues to be one of the most efficient and nutritious options. Eric and Callene Rapp have a wealth of experience which they share in this detailed and personable guide. The Rapp s dedication to breed integrity and to rabbit health are exceptional, and this book will be essential for anyone interested in raising rabbits - from the homesteader to the commercial farmer.
- Meredith Leigh, author, The Ethical Meat Handbook and Pure Charcuterie
So you think you want to raise rabbits?!? Everything you need to know to do it successfully and enjoyably is contained in Raising Rabbits for Meat , co-authored by the most comprehensive rabbit-rearing couple of our time, Eric and Callene Rapp. Readers will not only receive information gleaned from decades of experience but they will become engrossed in the Rapps engaging delivery. Raising Rabbits is destined to become the single authority on all aspects of creating and maintaining a successful meat rabbit business and should be on the bookshelf of every livestock farmer out there and those who aspire to raise rabbits, poultry, or other stock as a business.
- Hank Will, Editorial Director, Ogden Publications
You may have noticed that I ve never written about raising rabbits. That s because it was a complete disaster when we tried - with three different breeds! If only I d had this book back then, we might have been enjoying homegrown rabbit all these years. The Rapps tell you everything you need to know, from setting up your rabbitry to buying your first rabbits, and from breeding and kindling to harvesting.
- Deborah Niemann, ThriftyHomesteader.com , author, Homegrown and Handmade , Ecothrifty , and Raising Goats Naturally
Kudos for Raising Rabbits for Meat . It is a useful tool that is fully loaded with the knowledge that newcomers will need for success in building a rabbitry from the ground up. The common-sense practical advice coupled with the Rapp s notorious wit make the book a delightful read.
- Jeannette Beranger, Senior Program Manager, The Livestock Conservancy
Raising Rabbits for Meat is very well written and covers everything from having a plan when you start out; to housing, cages, feeding and watering; selecting breeding stock; kindling and processing, etc. Even after raising heritage breed rabbits for years there are still many ideas in the book that I can use to improve my management practices. I m looking forward to adding it to my reference library.
- Donald Richey, DVM, Columbia City, IN
Rabbits have been considered pets by many over the last several decades, but their original purpose for human domestication was to provide a healthy meat source for a family in a minimal space. Since 2003 when they started The Rare Hare Barn rabbitry, Master Breeders Eric and Callene Rapp have collected vast amounts of knowledge about rabbit breeding and care. They have now created a go-to book of raising rabbits for meat: including the history, nutrition, care, harvest, and consumption. This is a comprehensive guide that is perfect for the beginner, but still useful for the experienced breeder.
- Alicia Boor, Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Agent, Cottonwood District, K-State Research and Extension
Well-organized and detailed, Raising Rabbits for Meat is an excellent resource for anyone considering meat rabbits as a family food source or farm enterprise. It will help you decide if raising meat rabbits is right for you, and how to manage every aspect of husbandry involved, including feeding, breeding, health, processing, and selling. Beginners and experienced rabbit-keepers will find plenty to learn and benefit from in Raising Rabbits for Meat .
- Victoria Redhed Miller, author, Craft Distilling, From No-Knead to Sourdough, and Pure Poultry

Copyright 2018 by Eric Rapp and Callene Rapp. All rights reserved.
Cover design by Diane McIntosh.
Cover images: top and bottom rabbit photos: Callene Rapp; background texture:
iStock 517263067; rabbit illustration: iStock 494058002.
All photos figures Eric and Callene Rapp unless otherwise noted.
Interior images: p. 1, 5, 13, 19, 31, 41, 61, 79, 127, 141, 149 doublebubble_rus 5282;
p. 87 jenesesimre; p. 95, 119 unorobus; p. 107 morningglory1285 / Adobe Stock.
Printed in Canada. First printing September 2018.
This book is intended to be educational and informative.
It is not intended to serve as a guide. The author and publisher disclaim all responsibility for any liability, loss or risk that may be associated with the application of any of the contents of this book.
Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part of Raising Rabbits for Meat should be addressed to New Society Publishers at the address below.
To order directly from the publishers, please call toll-free (North America) 1-800-567-6772, or order online at www.newsociety.com
Any other inquiries can be directed by mail to:
New Society Publishers
P.O. Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC V0R 1X0, Canada
[phone]
L IBRARY AND A RCHIVES C ANADA C ATALOGUING IN P UBLICATION
Rapp, Eric, 1959-, author
Raising rabbits for meat / Eric Rapp Callene Rapp.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
ISBN 978-0-86571-889-0 (softcover). - ISBN 978-1-55092-682-8 (PdF). - ISBN 978-1-77142-278-9 (ePub)
1. Rabbits. 2. Meat animals. I. Rapp, Callene, 1965-, author II. Title.
SF 453. R 37 2018
636.932 2
C 2018-904554-X
C 2018-904555-8

New Society Publishers mission is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible impact on the environment, in a manner that models this vision.
This book is dedicated to all the rabbits who have nourished us, challenged us, and taught us, and all the master breeders who passed down their knowledge. We are all better for having known you.
Contents
Acknowledgments
1. The History of Rabbit Keeping
2. What s Your Plan?
3. Rabbit Biology
4. Rare Breeds and Conservation Breeding
5. Selecting and Handling Rabbits
6. Housing and Environment
7. Basic Rabbitry Equipment
8. Diet and Nutrition
9. Hands-On Evaluation of the Rabbit
10. Breeding and Reproduction
11. Kindling
12. Milestones and Management - Birth to Harvest
13. Processing, Storage and Distribution
14. Cooking with Rabbit Meat
15. Rabbit Ailments and Health Problems
Appendix: Rabbit Breeds
Endnotes
Index
About the Authors
About New Society Publishers
Acknowledgments
While it s true that the act of writing is a solitary endeavor, no book ever sees the light of day without a host of other people involved in the effort.
Eric is the one who, day in and day out for the last 15 years, has cared for our rabbits with meticulous attention to detail. I am merely the scribe who attempted to put all that experience down on paper.
To the chefs who have been our partners throughout this little adventure - we can t thank you enough.
Thanks to my friend, Danielle, who helped transcribe citations when I was too bleary-eyed to focus, and thanks to everyone who read any part of this manuscript to answer the question, Does this make sense?
Thank you to Jordan for her beautiful artwork, and thanks to the Graphics staff at SCZ for helping me scan them into a format that would actually work in the book.
Thanks to Ingrid from New Society Publishers for believing in this book, and for dealing with the shenanigans and the cluelessness of a first-time author.
And special thanks to New Society Publishers copy editor Betsy Nuse. The fact that you are actually holding a physical copy of a book in your hands is in no small part due to her efforts in shepherding, guiding and helping organize what at many points in the process could only be described as a hot mess. She assured me it was not, but I think that was just that innate Canadian politeness talking.
- Callene
CHAPTER 1
The History of Rabbit Keeping
Among the major species of domesticated animals, rabbits were rather late to the party.
The fossil record of rabbits and their ancestors is a bit of an anomaly. There are more distinct species in the fossil record than exist in the living world today. New techniques in recovering fossils have no doubt contributed to scientist s ability to recover the delicate bones and teeth that identify the ancestors of our modern rabbits. 1
But it is without a doubt that one of the most widespread species of rabbit in the world is the European wild rabbit, also known as Oryctolagus cuniculus , the ancestor of our modern domestic rabbit.
In Europe, rabbits were first described by Phoenician sailors about 1000 BCE . The sailors were amazed by the tiny animal s extensive burrowing ability, and they brought tales about them back to their home ports. They called the land where they had discovered rabbits I-Saphan-Im , which translated into High Latin as Hispania , and later became the Spanish word Espa a .
Thus, the very name of Spain is linked to rabbits. Spanish coins in Roman times even featured rabbits on them. Romans then seem to have spread rabbits extensively throughout their Empire, mostly as a game animal. 2

The first writings mentioning rabbits as something other than wild animals are found in the work of the Roman historian Marcus Terentius Varro (116-27 BCE ). Varro advocated putting rabbits in walled leporaria (rabbit gardens) to facilitate hunting. These weren t gardens as we commonly think of them, but large parks ran