raising rabbits - the importance of petting

Donna, our New Zealand / Californian doe

Storm, the new buck, adjusting quite nicely to his new home on the farm

We raise rabbits for the purpose of meat; they are not pets. We don't baby them, they live outdoors year round, sometimes in cages, sometimes on grass. Since tending to the new buck Storm after he escaped and lived in the woods for five days, I have been thinking about the importance of petting when raising rabbits. We don't get out each rabbit every day and coddle it, however each morning when I'm giving them food, water and hay I do rub the rabbits down the back a few times. This is important to help monitor the health of the rabbits, you can tell a lot by running your hand over their spines, if they are too skinny or too fat, or if they have any sensitive areas. This isn't really petting, in most people's sense of the word, a few quick strokes down the back, but it makes a difference. In addition to monitoring the health of the rabbit, it also helps keep them social, friendly, and handle-able, so when the time comes to hold them for whatever reason (breeding, cleaning, vet procedures, etc) they don't kick and scratch because they've never been held before. Rabbits have surprisingly sharp claws, and they are not afraid to use them.

Storm has been gaining wait, his coat growing and shiny, and adjusting to our daily time together.

I think soon he will get to meet one of the girls, and become a real part of our colony.

Storm and Donna, our new leading couple I think.

Until next time,

Angela Kelly

Comments

a tribute to Zaphod

It has been nearly a month since the untimely death of our dearest kitty. It is late tonight, I cannot sleep and my mind is filled with grief and sorrow still. I have heard it said that loving animals is only setting oneself up for pain in the end. I may have believed it, but until now I have never felt it. Not to say that I have not lost a pet in the past, in fact several, but fortunately they had all lived long and happy lives before old age and illness took them away. This cannot be said for Zaphod. His life only lasted two short years, and it is the knowing he was meant to spend another decade with us that pains me the most. We adopted Zaphod when he was only five weeks old, a tiny grey fuzz ball too small to eat. He refused a bottle or wet food, and we honestly worried he was not going to survive those first few days. After several trips to the vet for IV fluids and two weeks of force feeding, he accept a bowl of dry food for his first real meal, despite my

a new chapter

Things are changing around here. I haven't even finished my cob series, but life just keeps getting in the way. Jonathan and I are currently looking for a new place to call home. Sometimes you have to accept that things aren't working, and do something different. Unfortunately we are going to have to quit our farmers market. We are looking for homes for our animals, and selling off what we can. We will miss everyone so much, but his is a new chapter in our lives. We are excited about finding a place closer to our friends and family, where we can visit and hang out more often. We can't wait to have a house to call our own again, or an apartment, or whatever it may end up being. We haven't had a place all our own since we lived in the studio apartment just after getting back together. I think that was in 2010, whew! It hurts to have to start over, but we are trying not to be discouraged. We have confidence in ourselves and each other, and we're gonna be just fine

the point is

DISCLAIMER: This post contains material that may be considered graphic or inappropriate to some individuals. Continue at your own risk. You have been warned. Ok.Thanks.Carry on. My aunt, my dad's sister, came to stay last night. She has never stayed the night before, in fact we haven't ever seen her too much, holidays and whatnot. Several times a year. She is a nice lady, but she has some issues, we'll leave it at that. My problem is this: as soon as we arrived home last night, around 9:30 at night, after being gone since 9 that morning, the moment we see each other, the first words out of her mouth are, "you're poor bunny rabbits are freezing to death out there!" Imagine my long exasperated sigh here. Having farm animals isn't the same as having pets. I think Jon Katz said it best in a post last week, "I can give them shelter, warm water, good hay, I cannot make them comfortable or keep them warm, they accept their lives." We raise rabbits

luna acres

Search This Blog