ULTIMATE GUIDE TO RABBIT FARMING IN NIGERIA MANUAL 4
ULTIMATE: The only manual needed for success in rabbit farming within Nigeria.
Ultimate guide to
rabbit farming in Nigeria manual is the right material, if not the best for
anyone who wants to start rabbit farming in Nigeria and does not know how, or
needs materials and start-up stock for rabbit farming.
Episode IV of the manual. If you have not read episode I, II & III of this manual please do so
now.
Continuation: Breeding Rabbits
When buying rabbits find out how old they are. The minimum age for breeding
depends upon type: heavy types take 9-12 months before they are old enough to
breed; New Zealand Whites are ready to breed at 6-9 months of age.
Do not breed females until they are old enough to handle the strain of nursing. One male, or buck, can service as many as ten females but he should not be used more than two or three times a week. A maximum use for short periods would be five times weekly.
Do not breed females until they are old enough to handle the strain of nursing. One male, or buck, can service as many as ten females but he should not be used more than two or three times a week. A maximum use for short periods would be five times weekly.
How to Mate Rabbits
The female, or doe, will probably object to having the buck placed in her cage
and might attack or injure him. Therefore always place the doe in the buck's
cage for mating. Do not disturb the animals and make sure people and dogs are
not around. People and dogs can frighten the rabbits and they will not mate.
When
the doe is placed in the buck's cage, he will probably mount her quickly. If
after a few seconds the buck falls over on his side or suddenly falls
backwards, mating has taken place. Often when the buck falls, he will look as
if his whole body has suddenly tightened. Allow only one or two falls. Then
remove the doe and place her back in her own cage.
DO NOT LET THE DOE STAY WITH THE BUCK ALL DAY LONG. If mating has not occurred within the first few minutes, remove the doe and try again after a few hours.
As soon as the doe has been mated and returned to her cage, WRITE DOWN THE DATE OF MATING on a small card attached high in the inside of the hutch. If you fail to write down the date you will not know when to feel for the young within the doe at 14 days or put a nest box in her cage before she gives birth.
DO NOT LET THE DOE STAY WITH THE BUCK ALL DAY LONG. If mating has not occurred within the first few minutes, remove the doe and try again after a few hours.
As soon as the doe has been mated and returned to her cage, WRITE DOWN THE DATE OF MATING on a small card attached high in the inside of the hutch. If you fail to write down the date you will not know when to feel for the young within the doe at 14 days or put a nest box in her cage before she gives birth.
Holding the Doe for Mating
Sometimes a doe will hide in the corner of the buck's cage, and he will not be
able to mount her. If this happens, help the buck by holding the doe for
mating. This is very easy to do.
Use either hand to hold
the ears and a fold of skin over the doe's shoulders. Place your other hand under
her body and between her hind legs. Place one of your fingers on each side of
the tail and push gently backwards. This action will throw the doe's tail up
over her back, so that the buck can quickly mount and mate her. If the doe's tail
is down, the buck will not be able to mate her.
Feeling for Young Rabbits
It is possible to feel the small, round babies inside the doe two weeks after
breeding has taken place. Keep the doe in her cage. Hold her ears and a fold of
skin over the shoulders as though holding the doe for mating. Slide the other
hand under her stomach with your thumb on one side of the stomach and your
fingers on the other. Gently press in on the stomach wall with your thumb and
fingers and slide your hand backward and forward. If the doe is pregnant, you
will be able to feel small, hard, marble shaped lumps as you slide your fingers
back and forth with the stomach gently squeezed between them. This
"test" is a good one, but must be practiced often to be successful.
Kindling
Kindling is the act of giving birth. The doe will kindle 31-32 days after
mating. A doe will probably eat less food two or three days before kindling. Five
to seven days before the kindling date, put a small box, called a nest box,
inside the doe's cage. She will give birth in this box. It is usually possible
to find boxes which work very well, but if you must build a box it should be lightweight
and measure about 30cm deep x 35cm wide x 20-30cm high (12" x 14" x
8-12").
Place nothing in the nest box or the hutch if the weather is warm. The doe will pull fur from her stomach to make the box comfortable. If the weather is cold, place dry grass or straw in the hutch three days before kindling, and the doe will prepare her own nest.
Does usually kindle at night. As each baby is born, the doe will lick it and give it milk. Does usually give birth to 4 or 6 babies the first time. After that a doe usually produces 6-8 babies at each kindling.
One or two days after the rabbits are born, carefully look inside the box for any dead babies. Move the fur to one side with a small stick or pencil. Remove any that you find.
When the doe is with her babies, it is important to keep children and dogs from bothering her. If the doe becomes frightened she might injure her young by jumping into the box quickly and crushing them. Or, frightened does eat their babies. Does also will eat their young if they do not have enough protein food. If a doe continues to do this after a second or third time, however, she should be replaced.
Following are some examples of nest boxes you can make.
Place nothing in the nest box or the hutch if the weather is warm. The doe will pull fur from her stomach to make the box comfortable. If the weather is cold, place dry grass or straw in the hutch three days before kindling, and the doe will prepare her own nest.
Does usually kindle at night. As each baby is born, the doe will lick it and give it milk. Does usually give birth to 4 or 6 babies the first time. After that a doe usually produces 6-8 babies at each kindling.
One or two days after the rabbits are born, carefully look inside the box for any dead babies. Move the fur to one side with a small stick or pencil. Remove any that you find.
When the doe is with her babies, it is important to keep children and dogs from bothering her. If the doe becomes frightened she might injure her young by jumping into the box quickly and crushing them. Or, frightened does eat their babies. Does also will eat their young if they do not have enough protein food. If a doe continues to do this after a second or third time, however, she should be replaced.
Following are some examples of nest boxes you can make.
The
maternity hutch is just an ordinary cage as described above. You could make it
a bit bigger so that you can place a nest box in it. The nest box can be placed
in the back of the maternity cage. You can also attach the nest box to the
outside of the maternity cage, which makes for easier control of the newly
born, but also needs a somewhat more complicated design (figure 20).
Figure
20: Nest box outside the maternity cage
There are
many designs available for nest boxes. Its main function seems to be to give
the doe a specific place to make a nest. The drawings in figure 21 and figure
22 show there are open types and closed types.
The
advantages of open types are:
Easy
checking of the litter and cheap and easy construction; the main disadvantage
is the fact that they are so exposed (figure 21).
The
advantages of closed types are that they are not exposed and the doe has room
to sit on top in a small hutch. The disadvantages are the complicated design
which also makes it more difficult to check the litter (figure 22).
Ultimate guide to rabbit farming in Nigeria manual presents
an overview of the entire process of raising rabbits in Nigeria-from selecting
healthy animals to preparing proper foods to treating disease. A separate
section of the manual includes step-by-step procedures for the construction of
a hutch unit to house two does and one buck.
