GENERAL ANIMAL HUSBANDRY (ANP 306)

RABBIT PRODUCTION
CONTENT
1. Introduction (Importance of rabbit farming)
2. Rabbit breeds
3. Production cycle
4. Nutrition
5. Important management operations
6. Common diseases of rabbit
7. Setting up a rabbit farm
1. Introduction (Importance of rabbit farming)
1. The meat is palatable and of high protein quality similar to chicken meat.
2. There are few religious prohibitions or cultural taboos on rabbit meat.
3. Initial capital investment is minimal.
4. The quantity of meat provided by a rabbit is big enough for a small party or a family dish
(comparable to the size of a chicken).On the other hand a rabbit, a rabbit is small enough to be
consumed at once without the need for refrigeration or other conservation method.
5. Feeding rabbit can be very cheap. Though supplementation with concentrate or gain is
necessary and will increase growth rates but forages can provide the main feed at almost no cost.
6. Rabbit production is not labour specific or intensive (rabbit can be tended by women, children
or men and unlike bigger animals need no force to be restrained)
7. The skin is valuable. It has an international market worth of millions of dollars though it is not
yet popular in Nigeria.
2. Rabbit breeds
a. Light (1-3kg)
b. Medium (3-5kg)
c. Heavy (>5kg)
Rabbit can be raised for its meat, fur and skin. It can also be raised as a pet. Below are some
breeds of rabbits;

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Breed Origin Size (Kg) Colour
New Zealand USA and Czech Republic 4.5 - 5.5 White (USA) and and
red(Czech Republic)
Californian USA 4.1 - 4.5
Chinchilla France (standard) and USA
2.3 - 3.2 (S) Chinchilla (S)
(American) 4.1 - 5.4(A) Blue, white (A)
Flemish giant Belgium 6.4 - 11.3 White, black, steel, etc.
Baladi Egypt 2.7 Black, red, white
Guzeli cameli Turkey 2.3 - 3.6 White + chocolate markings
Lilac England 2.3 - 3.2 Lavender (purple)
Himalayan Asia 2.7 - 3.6 White + black, blue, lilac &
chocolate spots
Liptov Slovakia 3.6 - 4.1 Black
baldspotted
Tadla Morocco 1.8 - 2.3 Agouti

3. Production cycle
Production cycle consists of mating, pregnancy, weaning and maturity.
Mating: It is the introduction of a sexually matured male rabbit (buck) to a sexually matured
female rabbit (doe) for the purpose of copulation so that the doe will get pregnant to produce
young rabbits (kits). Rabbits become sexually matured at about 4 months but they should be breed
at 6 months of age. The farmer determines the rate of reproduction because the rabbit is an
induced ovulator. Reproduction rate may vary from as few as 3 litters per year to as many as 10
litters depending on the production system.
Animals to be mated should healthy, in good physical condition and of appropriate weight.
Mating should be carried out at the cool hours of the day
Pregnancy: The gestation length in the rabbit is between 28 and 33 days. Pregnant does should be
well fed and closely monitored to ensure they carry the pregnancy to term and kindle successfully.
Weaning: It is the separation of the young rabbits from the mother to permanently stop breast
feeding. The age range of the kits is between 1 month and 2 months and depends on production
system and the intended market live weight.

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Maturity: Usually, after weaning, rabbits are fed for a determined number of weeks to achieve a
specific matured weight before they are sold for meat. This is referred to as a fattening period. The
mature weight (weight at maturity) is mainly determined by genetics and nutrition.
4. Nutrition
Proper nutrition has great effect on rabbit growth, reproduction and health. Ordinarily, more than
75% of the investment on rabbit farm is spent on nutrition alone. Common food sources in rabbit
nutrition are fodder plants which are mainly fibre sources and ultimately provide energy. Other
sources of energy are fruits, tuber crops, grains, etc. Sources of proteins are leguminous forages,
seed meals and processed grains (BDG). Minerals are supplied by the supplied fodder plants and
salts and vitamin premixes in formulated feeds. Formulated feed commonly called concentrates
are diets formulated to supply the rabbit with a balanced ration. They are made up of grains, seed
meals, oil and premixes. Concentrates are mainly utilised in commercial rabbit farms but are also
used for fattening in extensive farms.
Recommendation for concentrates feeding is shown in the table below:
Gram/day

Breeding buck 100 - 120

Empty Doe 80 - 100

Pregnant doe 100 - 150

Lactating doe 120 - 180

1st week post weaning 30

2nd week post weaning 40

3rd week post weaning 50

4th week post weaning 60

5th week post weaning 70

6th week post weaning 80

The rabbit itself contribute to its nutrition by ingesting caecal (soft) faeces. This is referred to as
caecotrophy and because of this the rabbit is called hindgut - fermentor. The cellulose that cannot
be digested in the stomach of the rabbit is lodged in the caecum where a population of
microorganism majorly bacteria broke it down.

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It is this broken down - bacteria mix that is passed out as 'soft' faeces and ingested immediately
again. The 'soft' faeces is a source of protein and minerals.
5. Important management operations
1. Feeding: This is the provision of feed adequate in nutrients for the animals. It comprises of
fodder plants and concentrates or concentrates alone depending on the production system. It is
recommended that the animals be fed twice in the day, in the morning and the late afternoon.
2. Mating: Mating should be carried out in a conducive environment. The animals should be
healthy and in good physical condition. When mating, the doe should be carried to the buck's cage
to avoid territorial aggression from the doe. A doe in oestrus will mate readily so it is good to
recognise the signs of oestrus which are pink vulva and lordosis. To guaranty conception, a doe
should be mated to a buck twice or two different bucks at different times. In commercial rabbit
farms, hundreds of does are mated at the same time to achieve uniformity in activities. This is
achieved by synchronising the does either by using hormones or biostimulation. The goal of
synchronisation is to bring does to oestrus at the same time so that they can be naturally mated or
artificially inseminated simultaneously.
3. Pregnancy management: Pregnant is mostly detected through palpation of the abdomen within
10 - 14 days of mating. Palpation after 14 days may lead to abortion if the doe is pregnant and it is
not effective if performed earlier. Empty does should be mated or inseminated immediately after
confirmation. Pregnant should be well feed with adequate nutrition and closely monitored
throughout the period of gestation.
4. Kindling supervision: The normal gestation length in the rabbit is between 28 to 33 days the
average being 30 days. Pregnant does would normally pull hairs from its abdomen 14 days to
kindling to make a nest for her kits. Hence, a doe should be provided with a kindling box where it
would make a nest 7 - 5 days before kindling. Kindling is usually a easy operation and does not
require the presence of the farmer. If the doe does not kindle inside the box, the kits could be
moved into the nest as soon as possible. Dead kits and focal sac that are not eaten by the animals
should be removed from the cage or nest.
5. Fostering: This is when kits of a doe are given to another to nurse (breast feed). It becomes
necessary when a doe is unable to nurse or dies during parturition. It is also carried out when a
doe has very large litter. Fostering should take place within 3 days of kindling and the age of the
fostered litter and their siblings should not be more than 48 hours.

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6. Weaning: This when kits are separated from their mother and give up milk as a source of
nutrition. Depending on production system, it usually takes place within a month or two after
kindling when the kit should normally weigh more than 500grams. It is advisable to remove the
doe from the young weaners to reduce post - weaning stress.
7. Sexing: This is done to determine the gender of the young rabbits. It could be done as early as a
week after kindling or at weaning. It is important when stocking.
8. Stocking density: This is keeping the appropriate number of rabbits in the required space. Size,
welfare, breed, and nutrition are important factors to consider in doing this. 10 - 15 animals / m 2 is
the common requirement though 12 animals/m 2 is possible.
9. Weighing: This is an important management practice to track the growth of the animals and
efficient utilisation of feed. Calibrated scales are the tool of choice.
10. Culling: It is the removal of sick, deformed or underperforming animals from the stock.
11. Spraying/dipping: They are done to control infestation of ecto-parasites. Common ecto -
parasites are mites, lice, bugs and flies. Avermectin (Ivomec) injection is a common treatment for
ecto - parasite infestation.
12. De - worming: It is the application of insecticide to control internal parasite in the animal.
Internal parasites compete with the animal on the available nutrients derived from the feed
supplied to the animals and cause malnourishment and loss of form. Piperazine and
sulfaquinoxaline are examples of a drugs used to treat endoparasites.
13. Vaccination: It is the introduction of a killed or weakened disease causing organism into the
body of the animal to engender immunity against the disease caused by the organism. It is
important to vaccinate against diseases in endemic areas.
13. Fattening: It is done to make rabbit gain the requisite weight by feeding appropriate amount of
feed starting from weaning to slaughter. If balanced concentrates are used, 100 - 130grams of
feed/day should be adequate for a medium sized animal.

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 6. Common diseases of rabbit
Disease Cause/Causal Symptom Control/treatment
organism
Coccidiosis Protozoa Lack of appetite, bloody faeces, etc Good hygiene, antibiotics.
(Eimera spp.)
Pneumonia Bacteria, Difficult breathing, coughing, Antibiotics, Protection from
mycoplasma nasal discharge cold and wind.
Mange Mite Itching, skin lesions, alopecia Insecticide,
avoidance of overcrowding
Fur block Lack of sufficient Loss of appetite and weight, rough Feed dry forage, supply more fibre
fibre fur
Pasteurellosis Bacteria Nasal discharge, inflammation of Good hygiene and antibiotics
the air passage
Metritis Bacteria White sticky discharge from Cull infected animals and disinfect
the vulva cages
Worm Tapeworm, Worm in faeces, loss of weight, etc. Insecticide
infestation pinworm, etc,
Buck teeth Continiously
growing incissors

7. SETTING UP A RABBIT FARM

The following are factors to be considered in establishing a rabbit farm:
1. Site selection
An appropriate site should be chosen for the location of the farm. Legislation, accessibility,
proximity to the market, security and availability of adequate water source and space are
important factors to consider in doing this.
2. System of Production
There are 3 main systems of production that can be adopted in raising rabbits. This is determined
by available resources such as capital, labour, space and personal preferences. They are
I) Extensive system: Rabbits number is few (< 20) and fed mainly on forage and left over food.
II) Semi - intensive: The number of raised animals is greater than 50 and can be up to 100. They
are fed forages with concentrates.

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III) Intensive: Under this system large number of rabbits are raised (>200) and feed mostly
concentrates. If Feeding and serving of water are not automated, it is labour intensive.
3. Foundation stock: Animals with good characteristics depending on the purpose of the farm
must be chosen to establish the farm. The following characteristics should be considered
i. Animals that have large litters and good mothering abilities, e.g. New Zealand White and the
Californian.
ii. Animals that adapt easily to the environment, e.g. NZW. Offspring from a composite
population of rabbit are also recommended.
iii. Animals with rapid growth especially during the first 3 months of life (crosses of NZW and
Californian can grow from a 45gram day old kit to 1.6kg 3 months later ).
iv. Healthy physically fit animals.
v. Animals from a known pedigree.
4. Housing
Good housing is central to rabbit welfare and productivity. The housing of the rabbit should
provide adequate protection from theft, predators and adverse weather conditions. It should be
comfortable for the animals, the handlers and easy to clean and maintain. Some features of rabbit
housing are:
i. Adequate ventilation
ii. Adequate natural illumination.
iii. Rain and wind proof
iv. Durable and weather resistant
v. Self cleaning
vi. Availability of quarantine and storage area.
Cages
Cages are important part of rabbit housing. They can be kept outside a building as it obtains in
most backyard system or within the rabbit pen in most commercial production. Sometimes rabbits
are kept in a deep litter system without cages. Cages can be made of concrete, wood, metal wire
and bamboo. When constructing cages for rabbits, accessibility, comfort for the animal and easy
waste removal must be considered. The general dimensions of cage for rabbits are given below;

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 Length (cm) Width (cm) Height (cm)

Buck 40 -46 50 - 61 30 - 44

Doe (with inner nest box) 65 - 70 50 - 61 30 - 44

Doe (with outer box) 50 - 6o 50 30

Fattening 76 - 76.5 60 - 61 43 - 44

Important equipment in the rabbit house

1. Bucket 2. Shovel 3. Table 4. Chair 5. Bench 6. Knife 7. Medical equipments 8. Lamp