I wanted to make a moment to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and great New Year. May you rest in the graces of The Father Above, and know his mercies full well. :) Merry Christmas! :) I made this picture using PicMonkey. You can try it out for free. :) Check it out.
So I tend to sell most of my rabbits through Kijiji. Here's a listing of my current ads. Three times in a row now... around major holidays, Kijiji stops letting me post pictures with my ads. The response I get when I complain is the following
Then immediately following the holiday (or on the holiday itself), mysteriously my photos start to be able to uploaded again.
This is feeling too much like coincidence to me. Rather frustrating that's all I can say, rather frustrating. Remember that Marie had those awful big kits and had lost a lot of blood? She is not doing well. Her kits have been removed to another doe (Biscuit is raising the holland lop kits and Logos is raising Biscuits remaining four).
Things aren't looking good. This makes me sad...she's been a good solid doe for me. One of the people on Rabbittalk does this amazing art. Check it out!
As far as I can tell this individual also make business cards and what not. Check out this site as well. I've asked if there is an official website as well and if so will link to that when I get it. :) NOTE: the image is copyrighted and all that so don't be stealing it or messing with it. Thanks. Had a conversation a while back with a fellow rabbit breeder. She mentioned that she started out with another breed, discovered they weren't showable, took them back to the breeder she got them from and got her money back. I was surprised at this, and the lady's comment was "well, she's a good breeder, of course she'd give me my money back!". Since then I've gotten to thinking. What makes a good breeder? What makes a bad breeder? Is a breeder bad if they sell you a rabbit and then don't take them back and don't give you your money back? OR take them back but don't refund you your money? If the breeder is upfront with you and says I show in XYZ organization and I can show them there, but I don't show in ABC organization so I don't know their standards.. are they a bad breeder if they sell you rabbits THEY can show, but in the other organization you can't? Is a good breeder only one that refunds your dollars and promises that your rabbits will do what perhaps they should do? Exactly what makes a good breeder? I have to say I have my thoughts as to what makes a good breeder (and I"ll share those with you), but I am positive you have your ideas about what makes a good breeder as well (and they will quite likely be different than mine). A good breeder
1. Doesn't guarantee anything in regards to showing. I can tell you that in my opinion this is a good rabbit, worthy of showing, but that doesn't mean the judges will agree with me. It doesn't mean that you'll keep this rabbit in prime condition for showing. Doesn't mean that you'll always have your timing down or that the rabbit even has the temperament for showing. 2. Tells you what they think of the rabbit. Whether it's brood or show quality. What health issues it had as a kit. Whether or not (if adult) if it is proven. Doesn't have to be all the good and bad points, but an overall generalization works for me. 3. Has policies in place that are reasonable and not overwhelming. for instance... 24 hour health guarantee. rabbit care sheet. Suggestions for care. Permanent return policy. None of this: require you to take the rabbit to a vet within 24 hours, no breeding or we'll take the rabbit back, must get rabbit neutered, etc. 4. does their best to make the transaction with a live animal go smoothly...for both the buyer, the seller AND the rabbit. 5. gives their honest opinion about how big the rabbit should get, what it's temperament will be like and as much information that seems reasonable. That to me is what makes for a good breeder. Called Promote the Rabbit. Have to say, I want to use some of the author's ideas. :) use cute pictures, add some words and voila.. promote the rabbit! :)
Originally I published this post on my rabbittalk blog. I found it two much work to maintain two separate rabbit blogs so figured I'd start moving things over here. Any changes I make will be in a different colour. I decided about two years ago that I was tired of lots of babies being born with nestbox eye and thought to do some research into the matter.
I was having entire litters getting it, to one or two kits in a litter getting to having occasional litters not having it. Most litters having at least one or two kits with it. My policy with nestbox eye. If clears up within five days, all is good. If goes beyond five days kit is culled. I do not medicate, I will use the teabag treatment if the eye seems bad. Any kit with a white pussy eye gets culled immediately and the rest of the litter will be sold as pets regardless of their quality. The research I did said that it was caused by bacteria in the nestbox and that to get rid of it one merely needed to keep the nestbox very clean. So I stepped up my cleaning regime. It reduced the incidence, but not significantly. Incidence went down to occasional litters not having it and rare litters with everyone having a problem, but still with plenty of issues. Way more than what I thought was okay. I disliked it intensely. Since I care for all my rabbits the same this didn’t explain why some does didn’t get nestbox eye in their kits and others invariably did. So I thought, okay, let’s do an experiment. Let’s transfer kits from one doe to another…one “nestbox eye” prone litter for a litter not prone to get nestbox eye. I found it absolutely fascinating to learn that the prone to nestbox eye litter still got nestbox eye while the other did not irregardless of which doe was providing the care for them. This led me to wonder if there was a genetic component. Ergo, I do not keep as breeders any kit that gets nestbox eye. This dropped the number of kits getting it dramatically. BUT didn’t eradicate nestbox eye in my herd. Most litters being clean, with a few litters getting at least one, but in my poorer does, generally about half the litter can be involved depending on the time of year. I would like to reduce this even further. So this got me thinking over this past year that I wonder if there is a seasonal component with this. So I went back through my records and discovered hmm… whenever I have seasonal changes I get problems with nestbox eye…granted… more frequently with certain lines, as some does never seem to have an issue, whereas others are more apt to have at least one with a problem (though not always). Most predominately in the spring, less frequently in the fall, never in the summer and very occasionally in the cold of winter. I find that quite intriguing. I suppose this means that it will take me a few more years to winnow down the culprits. Makes me wonder what else I need to consider and what else I need to do. I LIKE that 90% of my litters have kits with clean eyes, but would like to get that up to 95% by the end of the year if possible. If there is bacterial component…
If there is a genetic component…
What other factors do I need to consider?
some sources of information This Word File. The nature trail. plus information on various rabbit boards that I belong to. I originally published this in the spring of 2012. Since then I have had about 8 out of a whole lot of litters with kits with nestbox eye and of those kits 2 were severe enough to warrant being culled. A huge improvement over the past years. I'm pleased with the progress that I have made. Have I eradicated it? No. do I wish I could? yes. But I am delighted with where I am right now. I am firmly convinced that the genetic component plays a huge factor as does seasonal timing. Cleanliness of the nestbox I find irrelevant. Granted, once the kits eyes open I tip the box or provide a 3/4 box for the kits to huddle in. Once the nestbox is gone, the kits health (if weaker) improved tremendously...but best guess is due to better airflow and the kits are much more active. Here's to the continued battle for overall good health in my rabbits! :) One of my beefs with rabbit people is the calling of various behaviours as being aggressive. In this day of political correctness and needing to be accurate with language this one bothers me… much as culling can mean a WHOLE host of things some with negative overtones. Is the bunny aggressive OR is there other terminology that we can use? An aggressive rabbit is not a pleasant rabbit to work with. It is a rabbit that when allowed to roam around chases its’ people, turns around and tries to bite them, when being handled flails madly even when held securely (though that also just might be a very frightened rabbit), bites with no apparent provocation, and such like. This type of rabbit will bite when you feed it, pet it, etc. Train these rabbits if you can. This article may be of assistance. Also knowing more about the language of langomorphs may prove helpful. Now… A normally pleasant rabbit that chooses to bite you might be responding to something in the environment…aka your perfume, deodorant etc. Now.. lets say you have a rabbit, particularly female, that does not like you coming into HER space. Is this rabbit aggressive? OR is this rabbit reacting in a way that nature tells her that she should? Does that mean that she is being aggressive OR does it mean that she is being space protective? In the wild rabbits are known to defend their turf. They can act in an aggressive manner to do so, but the reasoning behind it is defensive not offensive. This rabbit wants to defend her area..it’s how she keeps her babies safe! Cage protective rabbits tend to be female though I’ve met the odd male that is like this as well. Those bucks don’t tend to stay around here long. Now in reality in life… whether a rabbit is acting defensively or offensively doesn’t matter in the end result…no one wants to get bitten or scratched. BUT as a breeder my response is different. You are being cage protective… I can live with that. I will teach you that I am good, that I am not going to hurt you or your littles, that I will give you treats, and pets and backrubs and be alert and give you time to adjust to me. I will breed those cage protective young does to give them something to do with those crazy hormones. My expectation is that you won’t hurt me and you will NOT hurt your littles. I won’t rush you, I will give you time to adjust. I find that over time you know what happens??? These cage protective does tend to be make excellent mothers and they settle down once they realize that nothing bad happens. Their kits come back, they look and smell the same, and OH>>> I got a treat!!!! You are being aggressive little rabbit??? Well… different attitude requires a different approach. I very strongly dislike aggressive, acting always on the offensive rabbits. You are fine in your space but not out of it? You want to bite and scratch and carry on as if the world is ending? ACH! Not good. These rabbits get more handling not less. They are towel wrapped and carried. They are trained. Rewarded for being nice using food and nose/back rubs. I work hard with them for three weeks and if there is no improvement over three weeks… then they get a death sentence if I can’t locate an appropriate home. Though the odd aggressive rabbit to knowledgeable owners and sometimes… get this…sometimes they do better in a new home! It’s happened at least three times that I know that a crazy attitude rabbit here goes to a new home and becomes miss or mister sweetness personified. Go figure. Sometimes I do not understand rabbits as much as I love ‘em. BUT there are way too many good nice rabbits in the world to fight with a nasty tempered rabbit for an extended period of time. Every rabbit can be useful in the world either as a companion animal, breed animal, fur animal, or food animal. All types of value are equal in my opinion. and not every rabbit can fill every role… so they fit the role they are best suited for. Did you know that many rabbits respond really well to having pressure applied to their forehead? Works marvelously with many rabbits.. not all.. some simply can’t settle down for anything.. they have it so engrained within them to fight fight fight that they just can’t settle. But for those who are aggressive due to fear concerns pressure on the foreheads (which often results in eyes covered and head held down) helps to settle them down. Rather amazing to watch if you can stand back within yourself and observe it. :) Pick your rabbit if you can, from a person who breeds for temperament as one of their main concerns. There is no sense purchasing a rabbit that by the time it is six months old is trying to chase you out of the house or won’t let you do anything with her/him at all. The rabbit above is Biscuit. Miss Biscuit is a rabbit that I thoroughly enjoy. She is a very PROTECTIVE rabbit. She is not aggressive (as in being mean and targetting the people around her). But she is highly protective of her space and her youngsters. Do you see how carefully she is watching me? She is waiting to see if I am going to mess with her kits.
I put her kits in a large rubbermaid container that it light enough for me to lift out easily and quickly. Then I can check on her kits and put them back again without risking the wrath of a watchful parent. This girlie will accept pets from strangers as she has learned they come bearing treats, when she is unhappy with you her body language is clear.. she'll start to waggle her tail and her ears will lay flat against her back. She will growl and box at you with her feet. Biting is ALWAYS her last step. With an aggressive rabbit...biting is usually one of the first things that comes. When Miss Biscuit was in a smaller cage surrounded by rabbits she was not happy. Being on her own, in a huge cage has made for a very contented girlie that I can let out to run and she'll come back when I call her. :) She is a space protective rabbit, NOT an aggressive one. So do be clear... is your rabbit aggressive or space protective? Then handle it in a way that respects the rabbit that you have. :) There are a lot of misconceptions and ill-truths floating around the world about newborn bunnies and how to or how not to handle them. Why? Probably because ONE person had a bad experience and said this is the way it is, OR they extrapolated from one animal species and put it on a different one (ie. guinea pigs hips fusing ergo rabbits hips will fuse - something I don't believe but that would be a different post) or simply an old wives tale. We can't always figure why those 'facts" are given as truisms but the world being it what it is they are out there. Don't touch newborns or their mom will eat themFact: some mom rabbits WILL eat their young if you mess with them. Fact: in almost nine years of breeding LOTS of different rabbits from various genetic backgrounds and handling styles I have yet to run into a doe who will eat her kits after I handle them. Not even once. I've had does that will eat their kits after the kits die (that's just being a clean up crew)...but I"ve not had one that will deliberately start eating their kits while they are alive. Fact: I have met does that don't much like their kits after they are out of the nestbox and one who would MAIM her offspring so she went to the sales barn with the kits weaned early and sold to pet homes only when well old enough. But that's not a handling of babies issue.. that's a genetic flaw in the brain of the doe issue. Check on the kits first thing in the morningThe reason to do this is to make sure mom is caring for them. But only checking on them in the morning is insufficient. Some does nurse twice a day, others once... either in the morning, afternoon or evening. My does TEND to nurse twice a day but Marie nurses once a day... in the afternoon. So if you only checked them in the morning you would think she wasn't caring for them. And it's actually good to check them twice a day. You want to make sure all the kits are alive and none are dead. For large litters this means taking all the kits out and physically counting them. Checking that none are being missed by mom or have run into any sort of problem or are even dead. Dead kits.. in the winter they freeze and chill the other kits, in the summer they rot and attract flies. Neither is a particularly good scene for surviving kits. Fostering Kits is difficultFostering... the ease or difficulty of it depends on the herd manager and the rabbits involved. I foster any age, any kit to most any of my does. Some will ONLY take wee kits up to about 10 days old, others will take any age they don't care. Some will gladly accept newborns in place of their three weeks olds, other won't. It's a matter of watching and learning. What you DON'T need to do is put vanilla on their noses. You really don't need to. For difficult does you merely remove the nestbox. Plunk the kits in you want to foster and an hour later put them back in with momma, watch her reaction and leave 'em be. MOST does will simply go oh.. they are back.. check on them and go about their daily routine. The odd doe will note the strangers and separate the kits out. Most does aren't that discerning.. they just feed the kits when there is need and cause no fuss. General rule of thumb. foster according to size. Foster smalls with small and bigs with bigs. OR ONE big with several smalls. DO NOT put a small with several bigs as it will get knocked around too much. Remove larger kits before you remove smaller kits. I've had some litters when one doe was an excellent milker and I just fostered small kits from various litters to her for a good month. I just kept mixing and matching sizes and kept her feeding the wee ones that needed more help. Right now I'm fostering a weak kit from Marie to Logos. I prefer not to foster kits to Logos as she's a quirky bossy lass and tends to raise her kits to be the same (so her kits get weaned early and then run with a quieter doe), but my goal is to get the kit strong and return her to her mother. That should happen in the next four-five days as the Lord wills.
Raising buns is fun... but has a learning curve...mostly with the handler learning what their rabbits are like and adjusting to their needs as they help their rabbits adjust to them. :) |
AuthorI have been breeding rabbits for a quite a few years. I thoroughly enjoy them as animals and think they make great pets. I also like to take some of them to rabbit shows to see how they measure up to the standards. For the BEST rabbit forum I've ever found. Go to Rabbittalk.com. Good for the pet rabbit owner as well as the breeder for meat or show.
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