Free Feed Everywhere

Our semi-arid environment limits the crops that can be grown without irrigation. Human populations in semi-arid areas have been historically limited due to crops needing to be grown near rivers or other bodies of water. Most indigenous people were pastoral; raising their own cattle or were hunter gatherers. They relied on animals digesting plant material that is mostly inedible to humans and turning it into meat.

Most of us now grow up relying on the grocery store for all our food. Whatever doomsday scenario that were to come to fruition would render the general population desperate. We are dependent and at the mercy of the technology that drives our society. What would you do if there was no food in the grocery store?

I'd be trimming trees, gathering weeds and make sure I had a good water supply. I'd just keep growing meat from plant materials most people consider worthless or even despise as being foreign invasive species.

We get a bonus with rabbits. The amount of meat you produce is about double what you'd get feeding a calf on the same feed and they reproduce 50 times faster and take up a fraction of the space, especially if you have stackable cages.

Here's some ideas on where to find free feed:

• Industrial areas
• Vacant lots
• Canal banks
• Transportation right of ways
• Lawn & Garden
• Cracks in the sidewalk
• Fence lines
• Roadside
• Frontage road
• Abandoned Property
• Public Buildings
• Your neighbor's garbage

Surviving Heat

Rabbits prefer cold to hot weather. I've lived in Arizona where temperatures got over 120F and was able to avoid losing rabbits to the heat but you have to make accommodations to help them stay cool.

Heat is especially hard on newborn babies up to about two weeks when they can finally leave the nest. The fattest fastest growing babies in the litter will look fine then be dead and hour later. Some get stuck under the bedding under a pile of siblings and become over heated. Heat also can make a buck, especially older ones, temporarily sterile. All rabbits look miserable in the heat of the day and appetite drops off. When a doe isn't taking in as much feed, she can't produce as much milk or maintain her weight. So, she can't raise as many in a litter or they'll grow slower and you'll have to wait longer to rebreed. If rabbits get too hot they die, whereas adult rabbits can handle extreme cold as long as they are kept dry.

Keeping rabbits cool

Provide shade

I keep my rabbits under my apple trees. Anywhere sun can shine I have attached white feed bags to reflect the sun and keep them shaded.

Evaporative cooling

Works well in dry climates. This will not work well in humid conditions. In Arizona I used a mist system surrounding my rabbit hutches. I'd also hang heavy cloth or burlap drapes around the exterior and spray them with water. Spraying water around and under the pens also helps create an evaporative cooling effect. Ears function for your rabbit like the radiator in a car. My rabbits enjoy me wipping water over their ears and fur.

Conduction

A ceramic tile to lay on will help draw away body heat from the rabbit. Ice bottles to lay next to can help them get through an especially hot day.

Take kits inside

Bring the nestbox inside during the hottest part of the day, then return after the sun goes down. This method has virtually eliminated losses due to kits getting overheated. My mothers don't mind their babies being handled. I've only needed to do this until they start leaving the nest at about 2 weeks.

Keep indoors

Some rabbit breeders will have a climate controlled shed. In dry climates a swamp cooler makes a big difference. Air conditioning is expensive. Rabbits can be kept in stackable cages in a basement. You'll just need to have that room well ventilated and clean daily.

Underground burrow

Rabbits like to dig. Going underground is the natural way a rabbit would keep comfortable and keep their young safe from the elements. The downside is they can dig under fencing and escape or a burrow can collapse or fill with water. I have successfully raised many litters underground in both extreme heat and cold.

Heat can be a great filter for deciding which rabbits to keep or determine those that need to be replaced. I keep an eye out for my does that do best in the heat. If they can raise large litters during the summer and maintain their weight, I target their young for replacement stock.

Field Bindweed

Convolvulus arvensis L.

Bindweed aka morning glory is one of the most invasive and hard to control weeds in the world. Most of the literature indicates that it is mildly toxic to livestock but then others list that sheep and hogs have been used to control it. Most of the feed lists for rabbits list it as toxic. However, studies have shown that deer and other wildlife use bindweed as a significant part of their diet. So, I smell bias.

My rabbits enjoy bindweed and I've been feeding it for years with no problems. Bindweed has deep roots that store protein and carbs which allow it to regrow quickly. I feed it fresh or dried.

Be warned that if it's in flower, you most likely will be spreading seed as the dry ones drop under the rabbit pen and mix with the manure or the seed goes right through your rabbit and stays viable. Unless you can get your compost very hot, there is a good chance some will survive to grow more rabbit feed when you spread it in your garden. That's true of many of the invasive plants I feed my rabbits. I've started using wood chips, leaves and grass clippings to heavily mulch my garden, so the problem is minimal. 

When I was a boy we called it morning glory. What a lovely name for a plant most gardeners loathe. I see a patch, smile then fill my bucket. More free greens to turn into meat that feeds my family.

References:
http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/vine/conarv/all.html

Winter Squash & Pumpkins

Winter squash and pumpkins are a great source of high energy carbohydrates to help keep weight on your rabbits through the winter. In a cool dry place, they store well into Spring when other feeds start to grow

The first part of last October I put a bunch of spaghetti squash and pumpkins on shelves in my basement. We ended up only eating a few ourselves. It's almost June and these winter squash are in great condition. I just throw a few in the oven whole and cook them until they are soft. Some of my rabbits snub them but others love cooked squash and pumpkin. I've given fresh squash and they eat a bit but my rabbits definitely prefer cooked. As always don't just feed one thing for a meal, give variety. 

Winter squash still good in May

To help all your rabbits develop a taste for squash, give it to them when they are still with their mother. At four weeks my does are already weaning their babies and they are ravenous. That's a good time to give variety so you have rabbits that enjoy a great variety of forage.

Some claim giving cooked squash or pumpkin and seeds are a good rabbit wormer or at least prevents infestations. I've never seen worms in my rabbits so I can't verify that from experience.

After Halloween pumpkins are cheap. I plant them in my garden between rows of corn to save space. The corn stalks themselves get fed either when I thin the corn or after I harvest the ears.

I've noticed rabbits are a lot like people. Most only want to eat what they ate growing up. We've been doing foster care for a few years now and some of the pickiest eaters I've seen were teenage refugees from totalitarian dictatorships who grew up often not having enough food to eat. You would think if someone were hungry they'd learn to eat anything, not true. I'm convinced many have died throughout history because they snubbed food that was strange that would have helped keep them alive. 

Part of the reason I raise rabbits is to accustom my family to eating a large variety of food. It's a skill that must be learned, it doesn't come naturally unless started when the child first starts eating solid food. I've seen older children raised in homes where from weening they were only given processed junk food. When they were given real food cooked from scratch with fresh ingredients, they have a difficult time eating it. They get a gag reflex that makes it physically difficult to swallow. This condition can take years to overcome.

Mallow - Malva parviflora

When I was a boy my friends and I would often pick the immature fruit off the cheeseweed and eat them raw. We'd collect hand fulls of them, peel off the outer covering and pop them into our mouth. The flavor was a bit sweet like carrot but no after taste.  Some cultures make a green sauce out of the mallow leaves and they can be boiled like spinach. I'll have to do more experimenting.

Mallow grows in soil that has been disturbed. It has a deep tap root and in our area over winters and is one of the first greens that emerge in the spring. If you pull them from the top, the branches typically break off and it keeps coming back. That's fine if you want a steady supply of greens for your rabbits but I use a grub hoe to dig deep and get the root. Rabbits can eat all parts of the plant. Most of my rabbits will eat at least some mallow but some of them obviously like it better than others. I never only feed mallow, as always, give variety.

I've read that mallow is poisonous for some livestock such as sheep and horses but sounds like it depends on the nitrogen levels. I've never had any problem feeding mallow to rabbits but if I feed more than they can eat, it gets left in the cage. I just throw any left over in the compost.

You can dry the entire plant and store it for winter hay. Fresh or dry be sure to mix with several other plants. When feeding without pellets, I always offer at least five different plants at one time to my rabbits. Keeps them healthy and happy.

Malva parviflora

Has large tap root

Bunnies by the Dozen

12 healthy kits. 3/4 New Zealand 1/4 Flemish Giant

Nine days ago Tawney had a litter of 14 kits. Two were runts and didn't make it. If I'd of supplemented the two they'd probably of been fine but were just too much smaller to compete. The other twelve are growing fast and should have their eyes open in the next day or two. Tawney must really be a good milk producer. Eight teats and no problem with raising twelve. Her daughter Amber has been a great mother too. Best producers I've ever had. I'll never go back to purebreds.

Super Mother, New Zealand X Flemish Giant

Here's some of the previous litter 2 months older

Here's part of a previous litter in a grow out pen. Notice they have feed in three dimensions. The manger to the right holds garden weeds, grass from below and tree branches above. They actually prefer the branches and food from the manger, something about stepped on food must not be as appetizing.

Never hide - Recruit, Educate and Mentor

I'm hearing more and more of people who raise meat rabbits who will either not sell to strangers or will only meet people in a public location. They spend time to teach someone about raising rabbits and then end up being reported to the local authorities for animal abuse or for breaking an ordinance. Most of the general public is too disconnected from where food comes from. They are immersed in fantasy and are very susceptible to anthropomorphize and make animals human.  They will eat their chicken nuggets and be horrified if their neighbor butchers a chicken in their own backyard. I understand the fear and have seen the arbitrary punitive laws that many municipalities have adopted.

Hiding only makes it worse. It's time to stand up and be proud that you raise your own meat and don't rely on the factory farms for your family's protein.  We need to network with like minded people and stand up against the tyranny of the majority. We need to recruit and mentor others to be self sufficient.  Growing your own food on your own property is as natural of a right as breathing. Is it moral to pass a law that you are not allowed to breath? Then how is it moral to make law restricting growing food? Is it okay to fine someone, threaten to take their home and even put them in a cage for growing a crop in their front yard, and yet require growing a useless lawn with chemicals and huge volumes of water that all end up in the landfill? It is disturbing that anyone can give validity to such "law". We need to start standing up for each other and repudiate and ridicule these laws and anyone who would support, enforce or create them. If there is no damage to your neighbor, then it's not their business. 

Raising rabbits can be tricky for someone new to it. I've seen many people try fail, get discouraged and give up. It's a great sideline that meshes with gardening and even chickens. A little mentoring can go a long way to helping someone learn a new skill that can help keep their family healthy and prepared if times get hard. I've heard many people comment how their family survived the war because they raised rabbits. Even in the US, during World War II, there was meat rationing, so rabbit raising was popular. 

There has been a trend of people starting to demand zoning changes, so they can raise chickens. More people are interested in gardening and being independent and self-sufficient. Fear of GMO foods, herbicides, insecticides, industrialized food production, food additives and preservatives, are pushing more people to eat naturally. Interest in healthy eating is increasing.

Let's encourage this trend. Tell people you raise your own food. Share your rabbit sandwich. Bring your favorite rabbit dish to the company potluck. Grow more rabbits than you need and sell the excess for meat and breeding stock. Keep in touch with your customers and encourage them to call you when they have questions. Show people your rabbitry and what has worked for you. Encourage others to be open and share their rabbit raising skills.

Hiding only serves yourself in the short run and ultimately makes the situation worse. Take a risk and share, then stand up for each other.