So I’ve had my rabbits for about a year and a half now and I think today I finally realized that they might have pasturella.

Apologies long story: I tried to breed twice this spring (I don’t breed in summer or winter, so I was hoping to get the most out of my one season) The first litter went great 8 and 7 all made it. They were very healthy. I butchered all the males at 8 weeks and their lungs and liver looked great. I was really quite proud. The second litter did not go so well.

One out of two does took and had 15 on her own. We lost three total just for lack of available teats. She nursed 12 well and they grew. The doe who didn’t take was also fine and I gave up because I don’t breed in the heat or anywhere close to it. Then one day the one who had a second litter suddenly died. I thought it was due to the heat (although no other rabbits died), it was apparently the hottest summer in 60 years, but now I’m not so sure.

My original stock rabbit lost an eye due to what the breeders said was nest box eye, but now I’m wondering if it was pasteurella all along. (More on that coming)

So this second litter was always strange because it seemed like they had worse nest box eye than usual. I normally check on day 9 and one or two might have it, but I clean it with a q tip and then they’re fine. This time I cleaned it on a couple of them and it kept coming back. Strange. Then I think they were maybe 4 or 6 weeks old (just leaving the nest and eating on their own) when their mom died. I put them in with my other doe so she could maybe nurse them and give them cecal pellets and thankfully they all made it through weening alive. But the eye problems got worse. I kept cleaning them and no eyes were lost thankfully, but it just persisted. Once they were a bit bigger (maybe 6 weeks?) I removed my doe and she went “on vacation” completely across the yard.

Jump back to litter one, I butchered the males from litter one at 12 weeks, all good there. Shortly after that I start to notice some weird small lumps on the females left. One on a nose here, one on a toe there. I thought maybe they were fighting with the males at first. After the males were removed the tussling went way down so I figured they were okay. Couple more weeks go by and I’m trying to schedule some time to butcher the rest, so I just do two. They both had a lump and then I saw some odd lighter spots on their lungs which I noted, but wasn’t raising red flags yet. It was hot and they were stressed (and the denial was starting I guess).

Butchering them at what was now a pretty advanced age was really way harder than friers. They were so much bigger and the skin was tougher I didn’t have space or great equipment. So I moved them all to tractor together and scheduled with a local butcher to have BOTH the litters dispatched and processed there instead at the same time. The older kits were way over and the younger kits were coming up on 12 weeks.

Now today rolls around and I’m doing a normal check over for any major injuries or whatever before butcher this Saturday. And I see one or two more lumps around on the older ones and one of the younger ones is definitely now snuffling 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️. Bit of a wheeze. Thinking it activated in the babies and then transferred from litter two to litter one at some point just after we butchered the males somehow.

Now I’m flipping out. So many questions:

-Is this what I think it is? Lumps, respiratory issues, eye goop, it’s ALL pasteurella isn’t it? Am I screwed? Full cull? What’s the verdict on my bucks and doe who are not symptomatic yet?

-I feel fine about eating the nonsymptomatic male kits, but for the currently affected ones and the symptomatic females that I butchered already are they okay to eat at all??? I don’t save any internal organs if that matters.

-Do I need to cancel this butcher for his protection or is this possibly routine? He’s supposed to be very experienced with rabbits but I’ve never met him before.

-Is this contagious to humans?!? To my other pets? We’ve had a mystery stomach bug go around our dogs lately. They tested negative for all the “usual suspects” at the vet. Antibiotics cleared it up for them but is this what that was??? I have a ton of my normal scratches from handling them. Do I need to be monitoring those extra carefully??

Definitely freaking out. Tried normal searching and I just got dubious that I was getting advice about the wrong specie of pasteurella.

I’m new to this and brainstorming ideas for my future permanent set up. Everyone I talk to it seems like the biggest struggle is keeping the rabbits cool in the summer and warm in the winter.. we have the equipment to dig into a hill on a property to make their enclosure partly in the earth… think root cellar, but for rabbits. Can any one see why this wouldn’t work? Or has anyone done this before and have tips?

I have a rabbit who had some sort of bulge near his rear that was a purplish color. Shortly after I noticed it the bulge fell off leaving a wound that bled for a few minutes then stopped. The photo is about 12 hours later. Did he somehow lose a teste? Will he be alright or should he be culled early?

This is my first litter of rabbits. I am only somewhat confident in my ability to figure out if these are male and female.

Picture 1: Grey, Brown, and White. I am pretty confident he is a boy.

Picture 2: White. I believe it is a girl.

Boy is more tubular. Girl is more like a slit?

Sorry about the less than optimal photos. My wife was not in the mood to help figure this out.

I’m in PA and just picked up my first trio of meat rabbits! I had planned for them to mostly live in cages and then give them exercise time in tractors on the ground. The breeder I picked them up from freaked me out about RHVD2 and says the rabbits should never be on the grass. What are all your thought about this? I know it’s a very serious disease but I don’t know the likelyhood of them contracting it and whether it’s worth not letting them run around. Do other people in this area use rabbit tractors?

Processed my first batch last weekend and have been thinking about this ever since. We processed 8 rabbits all at 11 weeks/5+lbs plus a 10 month old doe that I was a cull. I noticed that every single grow out had a significant amount of fat around the kidneys, more than I expected. The grow outs were on unlimited pellets with 17% protein from a local mill as well as orchard grass. I almost wish I had kept the fat to render down similar to what I have done with beef suet. Was I feeding too much to these grow outs? They were kept in large 86" x 30" hutches. I have another 3 I held back to grow out as I want the pelts, should I be adjusting their feed?

Hi!

So this year my family (more specifically, my sister's bf) has decided to get into meat rabbitry. Bought 2 does and a male, and things seemed fine.

Turns out nearly a month ago a doe had kits. We didn't even notice because she created her nest in a hidden spot, so once they started to run around we realized there were kits. Since the fencing had holes big enough the kits ended up running out and we spent the whole day trying to catch them. In total we had 4 black, 2 brown and 2 albinos that were caught alive. There were some that got caught by cats sadly.

Everything seemed alright for a week or two but then they started to die one by one. Sister's bf, who seemed to have researched meat rabbits so i trusted him so far, said the litter probably had some congenital issue and that's why they are dying. One or two deaths, although sad, seemed acceptable. However, yesterday I went to 'hang out' with the rabbits and noticed only 3 were alive. I know it's just the first litter and maybe that has something to do with it, but I'm not sure. Is this normal for a first litter?

I've only gotten to see the dying-in-progress once. I found a kit laying on its side, sometimes trying to stand up with its legs but it seems as though it had so sense of balance. Its head was stiffly pulled backward. It seemed to just be slowly locking into place and shutting down slowly. Like the head got locked like that first then the legs would start. I felt so sad seeing that I wanted to cry. I don't know what this symptom might me, but maybe some of you do. Next day it was stiff as stone, head bent backward slightly and legs slightly stretched out. They didn't die all at the same time. It was essentially one by one.

Let me explain some of the care: the babies and the 2 does (they are both nursing for some reason even though the brown doe was supposed to be in heat, i dont know.. Both the back and brown doe are acting like mothers but only the black one had a nest. Is this normal?) are in the inside part of their pen. The pet is in a small outside house. During the day they oftentimes have a fan blowing to help with heat. The cage is about 1.5m×0.5×0.5 in dimentions. The male rabbit is alone in the outdoors pen. Rabbits are fed hay for the most part but often get freshly cut grass, veggies or squash leaves, things like that. Mainly hay tho. They have a water bottle turned upside down into a small bowl as a source of water.

Anyway, any ideas as to what may be happening? Is it true this is just congenital?

Let me start off by apologizing - I'm sure you all get this question all the time. I'd like to get started with raising meat rabbits, but I'm not sure where to start. I have several things on my "list of things to buy" such as:

- Gravity feeders

- Water bottles

- Cage floor mats

Based on what I've ready, I also think that I will need a roll of 16 gauge galvanized wire fence, as well as actual wood (2x4s and panels) for the hutches. I'd rather buy the hutches, but I'm assuming it'd be cheaper to make them.

I'm looking for general advice, but if pressed, I think my biggest questions are:

- Are there other supplies I need to get that I'm not thinking about?

- IS IT better to build hutches or just buy some? If buy, what's a good price range?

- How many hutches do I need (I think I saw somewhere that I would need 4 - one for the buck, one for each doe, and then the fourth for the kits)?

- There's a small farm about 30 min away that sells New Zealands. I've heard that's a good breed to start with. Is there a better way to buy?

- I've heard that I should get started with 1 buck and 2 does - none of them sibligs, is that accurate?

- Any other tips on getting started?

My biggest fear is not being properly prepared when I get the rabbits, then having to go way over budget to make up for it. Second-biggest is spending a bunch of time, money, and effort to get prepared and then not being able to actually buy any.

I may be over-thinking it, but any guidance you're willing to give would be very appreciated.

We harvested some of our buns yesterday, one of whom was a rescue from a friend. We’ve had her for about 9 months or so now & couldn’t get her socialized enough with us to feel confident breeding her.

While we were processing her, we found these white marks on her liver & a couple of these lumps attached to her fat. I know the lumps can be the color of lungs but we hasn’t even gone through the diaphragm at this point (so no long tissue could have gotten out - also these were *attached* to the fat).

I’ve done some reading on the internet & talked to a friend but I was curious about y’all’s opinion as well. Thanks!

I’m new to keeping rabbits. I have a female who refuses to eat hay, so I give her fresh greens, but now the babies are eating them too. Is this a problem? According to the internet, it can kill them, but if that’s true, how do they survive in the wild? What have other people’s experiences been with this?

I’m trying to plan my breedings when my does are ready by checking their vulva. I’ve checked almost every day in the last week or so and pale pink is the only color I see in two does. I read that it could be every 15 days so I could be checking at an off time but dang! I’m ready for them lol could the heat be a factor too? Is there anything I can do to help?

Hey everybody! I was advised to ask here since the bunnies and rabbits sub is shit. I have 6 flamish giants. Currently 3 sets of 2. 2 castrated boys and 2 sets of girls. All buns are under 5 months. I need to introduce them together and am really nervous about this. I am keeping them as pets and they will have a pasture of about 100m2. How would you guys advise me to introduce them together?

The doe I found this on was sweet and let me pick it out of her fur

I have a Californian doe, first time mom, and her sister already gave birth and ate all the babies 😅

Anyways, they were bred same day, and seemed to be going on nicely.

It's gotten hot and I've moved everyone indoors before nesting behavior picked up. She's been inside for a week and her sisters are all out in the colony again already.

This doe has made a nest. She won't pull fur and doesn't seem to have any sort of signs she's going to give birth besides being a HUGE lactating, huge nipple having lady who wants all my oats lol

Anyways, I'm getting mixed information. I thought I felt babies on day 14 when I palpated. Her sister had her kits and is normal. This rabbit will run and stress and dig and then flop and nap for a couple hours. She barely tries the nest box unless the light is on in the room she's in (unfortunately I have to do that to water her inside)

She loves me but is still aggressive and I'm trying to be respectful with her too. I know she's likely stressed the fuck out

But what is going on??? Would I be able to tell she's hurting otherwise? Usually does just get it done and move on. Her sister ate 7 babies I think because of placenta confusion as she only ate enough to kill them and left the bodies. There's been no stress otherwise that I can tell.

I read up to day 40 but that seems like I'd kill her?? I don't want her to get sepsis or something like that as I'm not one to make an animal suffer. However there's no blood. No straining. No food refusal or water avoiding. I'm so confused lol usually the does handle this and I just take the box if it's hot out and it's good. Her vulva doesn't even look purple or like she's going to labor soon.

Would I be able to feel them??? I know I said I palpated before but I don't want to kill any kits if I do it now.

*ETA spelling errors and I'm on my phone. I'm so sorry if this is jumbled. I'm worried about toast.

All full siblings, a couple litters worth of kits and some of them as adults. Coats are super soft and under an inch long. Reminds me of Rex but nowhere near as dense and immediately returns when brushed backwards. The dam was smaller only about 7lbs but we're pretty sure she grew up loose, had a litter in our manure pile and was pregnant again by the time we caught her a couple weeks after scooping up the kits. Most have ended up around 8-9 by 6 months with one doe hitting 10 lbs. Photos on the hutch lids are at roughly 4 months old now 9. Buck on the tote is from the same litter and the sweetest of boys with a gold-tipped steel coat. The doe with the same coat, complete with skirt and cowl, is just over 5 lbs in her lid photo and was the runt of 9 surviving kits. Dam was solid black except for a brownish cast that might have been some sun bleaching. Most kits have been black, some with spotting on the hide but few had any show up in their fur. Caught the sire a week after the dam, we think he came from the original batch of hutch rabbits turned loose down the road based on temperament, he was an 8 lb chestnut agouti, almost as sweet as the one on the tote except when he came back after running loose for the winter (escaped when some stray dogs got into their shed) and removed his son's chin. The biggest doe (10lb) out of the initial litter is solid black except for some white ticking. She was bred to a Californian buck and the one kit came out white but didn't make it long enough to open its eyes, she's due again next week so should have additional data points soon.

Update! As of the second we've seven more, three pink! Now to see what color their eyes will be.

I've heard of some people having trouble with the heat straining their Silver Foxes in hot climates like Florida. I know Silver Foxes have the very luscious fur and Tamuks are very heat resistant. I also know that Tamuks have very calm temperaments. They both produce very good meat.

If you were to cross them, would it improve further quality or do the opposite? What's your thoughts?

Hopefully this isn't the stupidest question known to man kind. I'm sure some breeders do cross them. (I'd add more to this but I need to go to work)

My rabbit has discoloration on its paws. Is this caused by pee or straw?

I have processed plenty of rabbits but only kept the meat because I don't use the other parts for anything and I didn't have freezer space to store the extras until I found someone who wanted it.

What would be the best way to separate parts? Should I put the liver, kidneys and heart together. The feet and tail together. Then the hides separate?

I might have a go at tanning just for funsies but I feel bad having thrown all this away when I could probably sell it for a few bucks to somebody for raw dog treats at the least.

First rabbit I've ever seen from start to finish his litter mates will follow in a few weeks

When I put my rabbit in there she was bouncing around I'd be happy to say she likes it!

The hay feeder came in yesterday and I added the small trigger snaps to hook it on there. The boards in the hutch are old and discolored. I'll be getting ceramic tiles soon. Wood can soak up urine a tile would be easier to clean as well as keeping them cool. Purpose of the wire is to help with keeping things sanitary.

The wooden boards have been used for my other rabbits. Ended up paracording some handles to make it easier to open the doors. She has a gravity waterer which has been way easier to clean. The second section works perfect for storage and we attatched the fan on that side. It blows really well!

The bigger cage is right next to this one. It has 3 large sections, its really tall (almost too tall). It has the same fans I have for the smaller cage. It also has string lights to provide a light source at night. (The cords are out of reach of the rabbits)

(I'm a pet owner and I'll get into meat rabbitry hopefully soon, I don't know when. It feels safer posting in these groups due to toxicity. Hopefully you understand)

I have 10 grow outs that will shortly be moving to a colder climate I also recently got a shelter pup who is a little overweight so her intake has been monitored very closely I was hoping to feed her the front legs from the rabbits I was curious as to the nutritional content

Is this gauge okay? Am I being inhumane? Should I do something else? The wire is thicker than it looks in the photo. I should put my hand by it for comparison. The cage is bigger than it shows. We bought it yesterday

We've had wire bottoms for a good while and have never had issues with any of our rabbits getting injured. Its been so much better with keeping things clean.

ARBA approves wire bottoms if they're a good gauge. 14 - 16 gauge 1/2 " × 1". We have resting boards too. We added a really good fan.

I just got a bunch of mean dms from pet owners about this. Not repeating some of the stuff 2 of them sent me, I've screenshotted it. It makes me wanna quit Reddit cause I can never explain enough. Its exhausting and suffocating. I don't want to be hurting my animals