I think the best way to dispatch rabbits is to use a club about as long as your forearm - fingers outstretched. Make it out of heavy timber. Size four by three is about right. The three side should be the impact side. Also chisel out a handle.

Hold the rabbit by the lower back legs in one hand - most will drop down with their heads tilted slightly back - if they don't drop down straight away they will after a short time. Deliver a firm accurate blow to the base of the head and the animal will die instantly.

The first one you kill will be hardest. After that you get used to it.

Never name any of your rabbits.

If you have children and they absolutely must have one of the rabbits as a pet, then choose a good natured buck you have bred yourself (you'll know his history then). Note that a good buck pays his way for longer than a doe.

I am trying to make a start in rabbit raising. I've got all the stuff, cages, etc. Now I just need some damn rabbits! People have rabbits. People are willing to sell me rabbits. However, everyone is so busy with their summer plans that no-one can seem to make the time to give me information about pricing, when I could pick them up, or even whether they still have what their website lists.

Oh I'm sure I could find someplace on the other side of the country, but even then I 'd have to wait for weather to be cool enough for shipping, arrgh! Besides which, I would never buy an animal that I couldn't see the environment where it came from.

Hopefully someone calls me by Monday.

Oh, and the first breeder I called, his wife said that he paid $135 each for his breeding stock of Florida Whites! I am not going to pay anywhere near that much! Those rabbits better be laying golden eggs!

Anyway, enough of my rant. Can't harrass the breeders too much or they'll start thinking I'm a psycho stalker...sigh.

In a few weeks the 4 H and county fairs will be beginning. That would be a great oportunity to connect with some people who raise rabbits but do not advertise. I got my first rabbits from an old guy who lives in the hills of Southern Illinois, $10 a piece I believe. Since then I have bought bucks from some people who raised rabbits for show and one from a commercial meat facility but those rabbits have done me well. If your looking for meat I'd say look to someone small time.

If your ever in Wisconsin I'd probably give you a triad just for the cost of a bale of hay if you tell me how you found out about Peak Oil. I'm going to have another year of more than I know what to do with... Growing up in S. Il you could always find someone to buy them. Here in Wi tastes are a little different I guess.

[quote="wisconsin_cur"]
If your ever in Wisconsin I'd probably give you a triad just for the cost of a bale of hay quote]

Sigh...therein lies the problem. I can find reasonably priced rabbits far away, but by the time I paid for GAS, I might as well have bought top show stock.

I have tried to get info about upcoming rabbit shows, same amount of luck. The exact location can be gotten from the contact person...you can guess how many of them have gotten back to me, 0.

So far I have contacted five breeders, no responses. I'll give it a few more days before I start calling again.

UPDATE: I was able to get ahold of a rabbit club lady here in Omaha, who gave me the name of a breeder in Iowa. This breeder not only has rabbits ready, but he is currently over-run and is willing to sell them to me for less than $10 a piece. I am positively manic about this!!! Don't worry, I'll come back down to depressed pretty soon, LOL.

You face these mental "delemas" because we are in good times...If you or your wife or your child were starving to death...you would have absolutely NO problem with rabbit stew!

If your family was truely HUNGRY and you had a "pet" turkey...how long do you think that turkey would last?

I'd be looking for the mashed potatoes & gravey ~

So here is a question about cages. Pet oriented places recommend ridiculously large cages, like 3 ft by 6 ft for a medium rabbit. On the other end, I've seen some meat producers who recommend only 18" by 20" for the same size rabbit.

What do you do? I can't/won't keep my rabbits in a colony style arrangement.

Right now my cages are 24" by 24" and I 'm thinking of getting a few bigger ones for nursing does and their littters.

Very happy b/c I get my rabbits on Sunday!

Each of my does have a cage that is about 24" by 36" with an enclosed "den" in the back of an additional 12" X 36". The den allows them to get out of the wind in the winter and gives them a place to give birth and raisel their young. My buck's accomidations are smaller (24" x 24") and also has a "den."

My motivation was to make sure I could get thre cages on a frame using 2x4x10's so I have three cages per pair of 2x4's.

For my "fattening pen" I took a set of 2x4x12's and made it into one large cage. I did not put any dens in there since I do not keep any over the winter. They are also less fastidious in their housekeeping than adult rabbits and (as I had found out in the past) when you give them dens they tend to poop in them (my dens do not have wire floors since this would defeat the purpose).

My cages are indoors so getting out of the weather is not a concern. I just want to make sure that my adult rabbits are not too crowded. It does sound like I will need to get some bigger cages for my does. Thanks for the perspective.

you can build them pretty cheaply using .5 x 1" welded wire and J clips which should be available at your local farm supply store. It is a whole lot cheaper than buying and once you make the first one the rest are pretty quick to do.

We've got 8 cages in a 12x12 stall.we added on a "room"and added 9 more cages.Some are for putting weaned/sale/slaughter bunnies in.those you can put a couple rabbits in at a time.We give all our preganant brood does a box a week or two before they're due.We have New Zealands and Californias for meat.Jersey Woolsies and Lionheads for sale.Never name 'em.Any of 'em. Ever. You get a good solid pipe,whack 'em just behind the ear usually they die after one good smackMy husband likes to whack 'em first then hang them by their hind legs and shoot them with a small .22 pistol just behind the ear for good measure.You slaughter a few at a time and chuck 'em in the freezer for awhile.Easier than killing one at a time.We keep a couple young chickens in the stall to pick around that are too little to be out and about by themselves.We have No flies in the stall and I believe they help alot in that respect.Just a suggestion.Parasite control.About once a month we strip the stall under the cages and compost the nitrogen rich manure for the garden.Rabbits are really good livestock.Almost on par with chickens in care intensiveness.Feed and water once a day.Check and see if any does are pulling hair from their tummies and go feed the larger more fragile livestock.We buy and sell at a local auction or through the local market bulletin.Fill the freezer when the time is right.I wish my horses were this easy and fast to care for!!Go bunny power!

Brought the rabbits home yesterday. They are doing everything you expect from a healthy bunny.

Just a thought about those of you raising bunnies outdoors. It's all good and well when you live in the country, but for those of us in the city, don't you think it carries a lot of risk? Heat, parasites, stupid people, etc. Especially the stupid people!

My own decision to house my rabbits indoors was initially motivated by the idiot boys next door. After seeing them kill a bird, I don't even want them to know I have rabbits.

I don't think it will take starvation circumstances for people to steal/kill your rabbits. All it takes is some idiots with too much time on their hands.

Of course I do have the advantage of a properly ventilated basement. It never gets too hot down there, and parasites are a non-issue. I suppose for many people it is outside or nowhere.

BTW horsestoaster...what kind of a pipe are you referring to. I don't think I'll have a problem dispatching them, but I am afraid of botching the job. It would be terrible to maim instead of kill, ugh!

I keep mine outside and have given some thought re when tshtf.

I have a cur hound that will live outside as things get worse. He will have access to the area around the fenced area that keeps the goats, chickens and rabbits.

I hope to hatch out some guinea hens this month. they will make a racket when they see someone or thing they do not recognize... Enough of a racket to make ppl afraid that I am about to pepper them with quail load.

I have picked up a few (need more) leg traps. I could put them down on the approaches to the coop and rabbits of an evening and pick them up at night. just enough to make someone scream and maybe break their foot.

Once thieves find themselves surprised by the unexpected they tend to go looking for easier pickins.

For the record I also intend to have enough hens to give two to each neighbor for about 1/2 a mile in the case of a sudden collapse (I will sell them to them during a slow collapse) and rabbits too for that matter. This would both engender some good will and give folks something closer to steal. I'm not too worried about their becoming theives though it is a possibility. I think it would only take one or two thwarted attempts before the risk went down.

Just a good solid1- 2" iron pipe works ok.I studied anatomy so I kinda know where to bonk most beasties.Hubby not so much.In lot of ways his is best and surest in the dispatching dept.Depends if the neighbors twitch an ear at gun fire,Where we live,it is pretty common to here various firearms day or night(can u say "spotlight?")I worry about the basement setup because of the lack of ventilation issues.Rabbits can produce alot of urine(they drink alot and need alot of water in comparison to their size), and therefore, ammonia.Toxic levels can be reached pretty easily without some sort of ventilation.Add some chlorine from the laundry room in same said basement and wow!If you can manage some sort of ventilation fan and also some uv rays now and again,your bunnies are gonna thank ya.I've even seen some solar powered,interesting setups for cars.Maybe some of these may be adaptable for your needs?Maybe throw some kitty litter under their pens?Sand?Something compostable maybe?Don't know how many ya got.but in an enclosed space,ventilation.no matter how cool the area,would definitely be something I would consider.As for dogs to protect livestock- I really like dawgs myself but they are only a short term alarm until the bullet/arrow gets 'em.I've had to dispatch lots of beasties-dawgs in my way in search of a meal-well-a crossbow bolt is pretty damned quiet and fair accurate.A gun is literally a no brainer. Sad but true.Not trying to shock,but one does what one has to do.Hope some of this is of use.

I agree completely especially in regard to a basement set up for rabbits. I hadn't thought about it too much but I think your right.

I do have to comment about my great dog. We were out of town this week so I hired a neighbor boy to come feed and water the animals 2x a day. When we got back he said she would see him coming, bark and then hide either in the forest next to the chicken pen or in the pines north of the pen. He said he would see her when he first pulled in and then he would just hear her. A person could still shoot her with a gun but it would be a lot harder, esp at night (when things get stolen around here) and that would cause the person to loose stealth and they a) would probably take off as a result or b) have to deal with me and my propensity to scatter bird shot all over the property just too see who shows up with some unexplained "sores" the next day.

I currently run a small dehumidifier next to the cages. That helps hold down dampness and odor. They get daylight from a small window, and I turn on full-spectrum light about 16 hours a day.

As for bedding, I put old cloth baby-diapers under each cage. It absorbs the urine while keeping the poop separate. I like that because rabbit turds are good for my garden while rabbit pee is not so good for my garden.

Every couple of days I shake off the turds and wash the diapers with baking soda. I can't see buying pine-shavings or cat litter. Besides which, if I used cat litter it would be impossible to use make use of the free rabbit-fertilizer.