The Poultry Keeper

Tony Sirett · Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2008 10:21 am Post subject: rabbits?

any one ever kept rabbits for the table? any advice please as i am thinking about it.

many spanx Tony x

Itsybitsy · Joined: 11 Feb 2006 Posts: 1443 Location: Leicestershire

I used to keep New Zealand whites, I had 1 buck and 2 does, they were pretty easy to keep, they had their own compatment/hutch each and just put the buck in with the doe whenever, the act of mating brings the doe into season, can't remember how long they are pregnant for or how long it takes for the offspring to get to eatable size as it was quite a few years ago, in the '80's, NZ whites are pretty big rabbits and I soon got up to eating rabbit more than once a week (I was me & hubby and 2 growing boys then). Rabbits are pretty easy to skin and gut, far less messy than plucking and drawing a chicken and they don't need too much space, so as long as you don't mind killing and eating your own stuff (which I know you don't) it's an easily raised meat to go for.

I have to just say though that I sickened myself of eating rabbit and have never had any since.

Itsybitsy

Tony Sirett · Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2008 12:55 pm Post subject:

thanks itsy, will give it a go i think Wink

milkmaid · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 7366 Location: isle of lewis

we used to keep old english rabbits ,when i was a child
cute enough to sell as pets any not sold ,was put into the freezer
same as itsy Wink

R-B-N · Joined: 12 Jul 2008 Posts: 4 Location: East Yorkshire

When I grew up my Dad used to have about a thousand on at a time, I've heard that if you keep a buck and three does you can eat a rabbit every third day, I've never tested this theory as I would expect that you would soon get sick of it. Shocked

GTB · Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 30 Location: Heart of Wiltshire

With the amount of wild rabbits about it is much cheaper and tastier to eat these instead. I have never eaten a tasty farmed rabbit yet much the same bland flavour like farmed chicken.

There is also the ethical question of intensively reared rabbit which is how the vast majority of these animals are reared. There is no question about freerange when talking about a wild rabbit.

Tony Sirett · Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:53 pm Post subject:

free range is fine but i refuse to pay for it!! the local farmer keeps ripping up my snares and because if the area i live in i am not alowed a gun.

Gilly C · Joined: 22 Jun 2006 Posts: 2620 Location: South Cumbria

Have you thought about a ferret ? or 3

GTB · Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 30 Location: Heart of Wiltshire

Auntie Noo · Joined: 30 Jan 2007 Posts: 615 Location: Guildford

I agree with GTB really Tony, in fact MrNoo and I had to do some vermin control in my mum's huge garden on Friday (she backs on to farmland) - MrNoo has a shotgun license but we used an air rifle. - 5 rabbits now in freezer and there will be plenty more in the coming weeks. You must have permission of the land-owner but many farmers are desperate for vermin control at the mo as it's a really bad year for both rabbits and pigeons.

GTB · Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 30 Location: Heart of Wiltshire

You have certainly got to ask permission from a land owner before walking onto their ground if you are using either a shotgun or even an airgun because you will be guilty of armed trespass which can carry a custodial sentence.

I know we may have digressed on the subject slightly but you cannot beat the taste of wild rabbit compared to the blandness of farmed rabbit and when all is said and done it is just not worth spending the money on any sort of set up. Here in Wiltshire if you said you wanted a couple of rabbits you will most probably find half a dozen hanging by your back door later that night because local farmers are over run with the things and can't wait to get rid of them. One farmer friend reckoned that 7 rabbits will eat the same amount of grass in a day as a sheep. He has over 1000 of the furry little critters scattered amongst his fields and I am doing my utmost to control them! Laughing

My weapon of choice is the .22 Rimfire rifle which can safely and humanely dispatch a rabbit at just over 100 yards.

Kitsune · Joined: 13 Mar 2008 Posts: 1406 Location: Manchester

The only problem with that is that most farmers are loath to let an unknown person onto their property to shoot rabbits even if you are a BASC member, insured and have references... too many kids spoiled it for everyone else.

Woodburner · Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 1:50 pm Post subject:

Aren't snares illegal?
As previously pointed out, you don't need a license for a low power air rifle. I think you still need the landowners permission though, and as there are also things like, you must be at least n metres from boundaries and public footpaths, which the landowner has no control over, it is easy to understand why he won't give permission.
There are also crossbows and bows and arrows but I have no idea what the law has to say relating to their use, they are just as dangerous as guns though, so I'd expect it to be much the same as for guns.