One of the most rewarding aspects of the homesteading lifestyle is the ability to produce your own food. Today we will explore why rabbits are a valuable addition to your homestead.
Why Rabbits.
- Companionship: Rabbits are social animals that can form strong bonds with their caregivers. When taking the food or water to the new rabbits the would stomp in an attempt to intimidate us. As they became more accustomed to being on the homestead they would let us hold them and would come to us. Fluffy balls of joy.
- High-Quality Meat: It is weird to break from companionship to meat. Our way of handling this potentially difficult situation is selecting different breeds to fulfill different roles and making the uses known from the start. Rabbit meat is a lean, high protein, and has a mild flavor. And a group of rabbits ability to convert feed to meat is very good in a small space. The by products of butchering can be used as compost dog treats and pelts for various uses. We have not yet gone down this path but it is our intention to in the future we will keep you posted.
- Manure: The use of rabbits will have a different level of importance and enjoyability. While some may think the companionship is best the gardeners love the manure. Rabbit manure is a rich source of nutrients. You can directly apply it to your garden without composting when handling small amounts on a daily or weekly basis there is no smell. The benefit of improving soil fertility and boosting productivity of your garden by using animals that eat the scraps from the plants they provide fertilizer for is amazing.
- Breeding: Breeding rabbits should be a relatively straightforward and quick prospect. Our rabbits Tamuks and Rex should produce several litters of kits through the year. These kits can be sold as pets, used as food, used for pelts.
Stick with us and share in our journey with the rabbits.
