RABBITS FOR SELF- SUFFICIENCY
Rabbits are quiet, grow fast, have large litters and can be fed on produce from the garden, or by foraging safe weeds and other safe food sources, or just good quality hay (They will grow faster on pellets or a balanced natural diet)
Rabbits a great high protein, low-fat, white meat, that is great tasting, easy to slaughter and no freezing needed. Just keep them in the cages until ready to put on the plate.
Rabbits have awesome pelts to make blankets, or clothing, or a great barter item.
Rabbits also produce one of the best manures for the organic garden.
During the growing season from half to three-quarters or maybe even more of a rabbits diet could be grown by the homesteader(depending on how much work you want to do). Also by feeding garden wastes, weeds, leaves, berries etc, you could provide all the food needed for a small-scale homestead meat supply.
Composting takes from 6 to 12 weeks to make your garden waste usable as a soil amendment, Rabbits and Worms can do a far better job and making a better product in ten days or less! So garden waste becomes rabbit food, which them becomes an equal weight of worm food in a day or two, which then becomes worms and their castings in over 90 days. The worms increase to become a source of highly nutritional poultry, waterfowl, and fish food in about 3 months. Leaving behind a mass of plant food (worm castings) that becomes more plants, more saleable product, and more rabbit food. All in the same time it takes a compost pile to become a lower quality of soil amendment without the added poultry, and fish food benefits. Now that’s Self Sufficiency!
I will be writing about all this information in future posts! This is the basis of my book that I have been working on for some time. This website I plan to load with all the information need to grow, breed, and butcher rabbits on your self sufficient homestead!
If you have any questions or ideas please let me know email me or add in the comment section
RAISING MEAT RABBITS TO SAVE THE WORLD!
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Posted on July 16, 2011, in Uncategorized and tagged barter, bunny berries, chicken feed, compost, feed, fish feed, food, fruit, grass, healthy meat, herbs, high protein, homestead, manure, natural, natural food for rabbits, nature, pelt, plant food, red worms, safe, self sufficiency, self sustaining, tree, twigs, vegetables. Bookmark the permalink. 3 Comments.
Rise and Shine Rabbitry 
Hi Rick,
I just read your posts on The Backyard Pioneer. I’ve been wanting rabbits for manure, but one concern of mine is what to do when I go on vacation? Can I leave a bunch of feed? We don’t have extra money to have someone come in everyday to feed and clean the cages. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks.
I would try and bribe someone with rabbit meat or some of your prized bunny berries or barter with plants or veggies, if you want to grow them for the manure you must have a green thumb! you really need to care for rabbits every day or at least every other day, with extra feed and water they will most likely overeat if you fill the feeder, and the water should be changed every day thanks for reading! rick
I have gone for 3 days with no problems, when free-feeding my colony of (mostly Satin) rabbits. I find they do not overeat nearly as much when they have the social interaction of colony life. 🙂 I do prefer to be around to feed them daily fresh greens in season, or root veggies or fodder in the winter, but an occasional weekend away is very doable with a colony set-up.