I finally found some daylight time to build some of the rabbit pen. It's not going to be too big, just 4ft X 20ft and a little more than 2ft tall, eventually I would like to have 7 does and 2 bucks.But to start off (if I can ever find the breed I'm looking for) I will probably get 3 does and 1 buck of either New Zealand or Californian breeds.
So the rabbits won't tunnel in the dirt to nest I had to dig out 6inches deep & place 1inch chicken wire on the floor and than I'll fill it back in later...after all that earth moving low and behold my back didn't go out, I'm going to have to give thanks to my dad for that, he let me borrow a work out book by Matt Furey which has seemingly given me super human strength...or a stronger core if you will. Oh, I still have your book Pa, it's here if you want it.
Any who...back on track, so I dug the hole, cut some 2X4's and borrowed the neighbors cordless drill than screwed the main frame together. I found a dark green can and red can of old paint mixed em' together and ended up with a brown rabbit pen so the bare wood has a little more protection against the elements.
So I waited 3 minutes for the paint to dry cause I'm so verrrrrry patient and got started on stapling some 1/2 inch hardware cloth to the front and back (my favorite part, it's like framing a painting that took you 1year to finish and all you really wanted to do was frame the stupid thing). So far so good, no fingers cut off, just some paint in the hair, it was a good day. These are the beginning photos...
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Q: What Is the Nutritional Value of Rabbit Meat?
A:
1) CHOLESTERAL level in rabbit meat is much lower than chicken, turkey, beef, pork. Rabbit 164mg, Chicken 220mg, Beef 230 mg, Pork 230 mg, Lamb 250mg. (Alabama A & M University 1989)
2) Rabbit is lower in % of FAT than chicken, turkey, beef,and pork.(U S D A)
3) UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS is 63% of total fatty acids. ( Dr Reo)
4)Rabbit is highest in PROTEIN%(U S D A)
5) The office of home economics, state relations of the U S Department of Agriculture has made extensive tests and have stated that domestic rabbit meat is the most nutritious meat known to man.
6) Rabbit has been used and is suitable for special DIETS, such as those for heart disease patients, diets for the aged, low sodium diets, weight reduction diets, ect. ( Rabbit production Cheek Patton Templeton)
7) Rabbit has 795 CALORIES per pound. Chicken 810, Veal 840, Turkey 1190, Lamb 1420, Beef 1440, Pork 2050. ( U S D A)
8) Rabbit meat is all white meat.
1) CHOLESTERAL level in rabbit meat is much lower than chicken, turkey, beef, pork. Rabbit 164mg, Chicken 220mg, Beef 230 mg, Pork 230 mg, Lamb 250mg. (Alabama A & M University 1989)
2) Rabbit is lower in % of FAT than chicken, turkey, beef,and pork.(U S D A)
3) UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS is 63% of total fatty acids. ( Dr Reo)
4)Rabbit is highest in PROTEIN%(U S D A)
5) The office of home economics, state relations of the U S Department of Agriculture has made extensive tests and have stated that domestic rabbit meat is the most nutritious meat known to man.
6) Rabbit has been used and is suitable for special DIETS, such as those for heart disease patients, diets for the aged, low sodium diets, weight reduction diets, ect. ( Rabbit production Cheek Patton Templeton)
7) Rabbit has 795 CALORIES per pound. Chicken 810, Veal 840, Turkey 1190, Lamb 1420, Beef 1440, Pork 2050. ( U S D A)
8) Rabbit meat is all white meat.
Q: Why Rabbits?
A: The most common backyard meat production choices are chickens, sheep, goats, pigs and rabbits. Why I chose to go with the rabbits…
1) They give an excellent return for the amount of feed and labor invested. The litters from just one doe(female rabbit) weighing 10 lbs can yield up to 320 pounds of meat a year in colony style breeding. This is more than a cow and it takes 2 acres of land to raise a cow.
2) The rate of a kits(baby rabbits) growth is very fast, after 8 weeks they’re ready to hit the frying pan.
3) They don’t need a lot of space.
4) Nutritional Value (see the Nutritional Info posted)
5) They are considered pets so you won’t need a permit and if you’re in the city the neighbors won’t be upset about the little farm you have accumulating.
6) Rabbit meat is seasonal any month of the year.
7) They are quite.
8) Don’t forget about the cuteness and how soft they are.
1) They give an excellent return for the amount of feed and labor invested. The litters from just one doe(female rabbit) weighing 10 lbs can yield up to 320 pounds of meat a year in colony style breeding. This is more than a cow and it takes 2 acres of land to raise a cow.
2) The rate of a kits(baby rabbits) growth is very fast, after 8 weeks they’re ready to hit the frying pan.
3) They don’t need a lot of space.
4) Nutritional Value (see the Nutritional Info posted)
5) They are considered pets so you won’t need a permit and if you’re in the city the neighbors won’t be upset about the little farm you have accumulating.
6) Rabbit meat is seasonal any month of the year.
7) They are quite.
8) Don’t forget about the cuteness and how soft they are.
Rabbit Meat Pen
The thought of being able to go out in your own backyard (or side yard in this case) and a few minutes latter come back in the house with a nice cut of fresh meat for dinner sounds really...well... to be honest it really sounds like you just went and chopped up some neighbors poor cat for some good eaten. I was thinking more on the lines of rabbit meat but whatever floats your boat.
This didn't sound too difficult or too far fetched to try and raise rabbits to feed my husband and myself all year round. But I needed to find a way to start this off reasonably cheap and afterwards being able to maintain the Rabbit Meat Pen with little or no cost per month.
I'll try to remember all the questions I've had along the way and the best answers I could find. And if you have any questions or better answers I have yet to come up with please feel free to ask and tell.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Time to Hit the Hay Sack!
Well I thought it would be nice to keep record of all the small things I've been putting together around this little yellow house of ours, and some bits of information I've been learning as I try to figure out the best ways to go about building & running a mini self-sufficient "Square Foot Farm".
So hopefully I'll remember to take pictures & post what little goes on around here, but I'm not starting tonight...I am flippin tired and am getting a little grumpy so it's time to hit the hay sack already!
So hopefully I'll remember to take pictures & post what little goes on around here, but I'm not starting tonight...I am flippin tired and am getting a little grumpy so it's time to hit the hay sack already!
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