Review: Rabbit Raising

Lately, I have been pursuing archive.org. I find the collection of early 1900s chicken magazines fascinating but recently found a few interesting rabbit resources as well. 'Rabbit Raising' by George S. Templeton, Frank G Ashbrook, and Charles E. Kellogg was published in 1942 by the U.S. Department of the Interior and originally cost 10 cents! (Direct link here)

While it is important to be critical of any publication I do think that vintage publications should be approached with an extra critical eye simple due to the drastic changes in scientific knowledge that have occurred since 1942. With that said, here are some of the interesting information I gleaned from reading 'Rabbit Raising'.

- Rabbits waste a considerable quantity of hay as they pull a stem of hay from the manager, eat part of it and drop the rest. This wastage can be reduced by cutting the hay into 3 or 4 inch lengths.

- It is recommended to leave kits with the doe for a full 8 weeks because the mother's milk supply will gradually decrease over this time frame and the kits will become accustomed to consuming more solid foods as this decrease occurs. Natural weaning in this way results in less of a shock to the kit and the weight loss that occurs with sudden weaning will be avoided.

- When fed a mixed feed, rabbits will scratch out the most palatable kinds of feed resulting in considerable food waste. This can be resolved by placing the different grains and supplements in separate compartments so that rabbits have free access to any kind of feed they want. This means that the rabbit can consume the particular type of feed they desire without waste.