Self-sufficiency, low-cost and affordability even for beginners - these are the main reasons why breeding rabbits at home is gaining popularity from year to year. These cute eared animals are satisfied with any food, grow quickly and gain weight, multiply rapidly, thus contributing to the continuous rejuvenation of livestock. In addition, due to their high quality, their dietary meat and beautiful wool got their place in the modern market. Next, we will talk about the features of this promising activity on the scale of a private residence.
What breed to choose
Before you start rabbits, you need to know everything about them: from birth to slaughter. Only then you can competently organize the care and maintenance of mammals, and as a result get a good income. 
Did you know? Rabbits for Australians are the number one enemies. Local authorities even banned their breeding, imposing a thirty thousand fine (in US dollars) on every disobedient citizen. And all because these animals annually destroy agricultural crops and dig holes in the fields. According to experts, if the situation is left without intervention, then very soon the plowed lands are threatened with erosion and degradation, and some species of fauna may disappear altogether from the face of the earth. Last year eared damage amounted to $ 600 million.
To start answer your question: "For what purpose do you plan to do rabbit breeding?". If you are more interested in meat, then you should stop your choice on meat species. If all interest is in the skin, then it will be necessary to choose from fur-down species. Well, if you want to crown your works and those, and others, then look for a pet among the meat and animal category.
Rabbits can be kept as pets. In this case, you need to pay attention to the decorative breeds of Ushastik.
Novice breeders should not chase the rarest of exotic breeds. It is not economically feasible, since common domestic species are cheaper, they are easier to update, exchange breeding stock, and moreover, consultations of experienced specialists are more accessible. 
Also, when test breeding of these animals is not recommended to engage in crossing different species. Leave it to the professionals. In the meantime, work on the recoupment of resources spent.
We recommend to get acquainted with various breeds of rabbits: giants (white giant, gray giant), Californian, Angora, black-brown, butterfly, rizen, flandr, Soviet chinchilla.
What to look for when buying
For further breeding, only healthy and strong young animals are needed. Your result will depend on its potential. Therefore, take baby rabbits very seriously.
Experts advise buy small broods. They should have clean eyes and ears, a thick and shiny edge, a strong build and moderate fatness. Avoid disheveled, sedentary and intimidated eared with a weak dull pile, swollen belly, dirty cesspool and inflamed ears. These are obvious signs of disease and improper keeping of rabbits. When buying, carefully inspect the animal you like, make sure that it contains all the signs of the breed: the appropriate weight, color of fur, length and body structure. Deformities consider twisted paws, too elongated head, sagging tips of the ears, abdomen or back, protruding thighs.
Healthy rabbit is very curious and friendly. He is not frightened by sounds, does not sneeze, does not get into a corner, behaves actively in a cage and shows interest in everything new.
Important! The female and the male must be bought from different nests in order to prevent incest. The same applies to several females.
Home improvement for rabbits
Experienced owners build individual rabbitries for eared, street enclosures, cages, or equip ordinary pits. As it is more convenient and safer to keep rabbits at home, let's look further.
Many rabbit breeders appreciated the advantage of keeping pets. Learn what shed is and how to create it yourself.
No matter where the animal lived, it should not be crowded, cold and damp. Experts believe that in the winter it is advisable to grow pets in a closed and well-ventilated room, and during the warm season street equipment is quite suitable for this. 
If we are talking about a cage, then it must clearly correspond to the existing parameters of the rabbit breeding: be bright, clean, dry and spacious. The height of such a house should allow the animal to easily climb on its hind legs.
And it is necessary to plan construction in such a way as to avoid drafts, since rabbits react to them very painfully. But at the same time, it is not necessary to put everything tightly with plywood or boards - leave one of the walls for a metal grid or grid. Such a solution will allow the home to be aired.
Did you know? An adult rabbit drinks as much water as a dog. In this case, the weight category of these animals is measured at a ratio of 2:10 kg.
The next point that you need to pay attention when arranging the rabbit, is the floor and pan under it. Many craftsmen prefer to do the flooring of wooden slats, leaving between them 1 cm distance. Below fix plastic or metal tray. It is desirable to cover it with some moisture-permeable material. It may be sawdust or cat litter. This solution helps to keep animals clean. 
Also take care that in the home of a pet, drinking bowls and feeders are available to him. In addition, you need to build a small shelter for solitude. In the house where you plan to settle the female, it is important to equip the mother liquor. It will spend the first 3-4 weeks of rabbits.
On the street, cells should be placed in a shade, away from direct sunlight and drafts.
Important! In cages with a metal floor, rabbits are more likely to get sick with paws.
What do home rabbits eat
Productive rabbit breeding at home is only possible with a balanced daily diet. When preparing feed it is important to consider age of animals.
For example, young animals need high-protein food. These are fish, meat, dairy products, flour and protein supplements. And also a separate role should be given to vital vitamins and microelements, which omnivorous rabbits receive with green mass and root crops. 
In spring and summer, caring owners, in order to diversify the eared food, alternately offer them dandelions, clover, sainfoin, plantain, tansy, burdocks.
In addition, in the daily diet, both young and mature individuals, must be present roots, feed and young branches. Especially loved by rabbits aspen, maple, clear, linden.
In winter, green grasses are replaced with silage and hay, and the amount of essential nutrients in the body of animals is supported by corn, oats, bran, barley, carrots, zucchini, pumpkins, cabbage. 
Of the delicacies, fluffy prefer parsley and bananas, but their number should be limited, because otherwise the animal will get diarrhea and allergies.
Important! The nutrition of the animal can be judged by the state of its fur, the behavior and the smell of feces. Eared do not like smoked meats, chips and chocolate bars. This food is destructive for them, as well as an abrupt change in the usual diet.
Ensure that the water in the drinking bowl is constantly fresh water, and in the nursery - hay or grass. Without drinking a rabbit can not live more than 3 days. In winter, the water must be heated, and in the summer it should be doubled. Be prepared for the fact that drunk will be much more than eaten - such specificity kutsehvostyh.
To feed the babies, who have stopped feeding on their mother's milk for a month, you need 5 times a day, and older animals - 3 times. 
Do not forget about vaccination
Regardless of the size and breeding conditions of rabbits, their vaccination is very important. The fact is that animals of all species and breeds are exposed to infections with myxomatosis and viral hemorrhagic disease (VGZ).
Veterinarians are terrified by the statistics: about 10% of these mammals get to the slaughter through the disease and another 20% are rejected. Moreover, mortality in both cases covers about 90% of the herd.
The risk of contracting myxomatosis increases during the demi-season period. The carriers of the infection are mosquitoes and other sucking insects, from which the animal can only be protected with a vaccine. Recognizing the ailment is not difficult by tearing, difficulty breathing, weak activity, leaking from the nose, drooping ears, and redness around the eyes. The sick animal is clogged up in a corner and hardly touches food. Unfortunately, he has no chance to recover.
3 days after infection, lethal outcome occurs in the case of viral hemorrhagic disease, which is transmitted by airborne droplets. That's just to understand about the impending threat to the entire population can not always. The fact is that the infection is characterized by hidden symptoms.
In veterinary medicine, such drugs as Tromexin, Enrofloxacin, Enroxil, Nitox 200, Loseval, Baytril, Biovit-80 are used to treat rabbits.
Occasionally, in complicated cases, there is fever, difficulty breathing, spasms and bleeding from the mouth. If a similar attack happened in your rabbitry, burn the dead animals and scrupulously disinfect the room, inventory. 
To save pets, vets advise implant baby rabbitsstarting at the age of one and a half months. The first vaccine is made before weaning babies from the uterus. The second - after 3 months, and in the future, the procedure is repeated every six months.
In the case of defeat of rabbits with coccidiosis, the drugs Solicox and Baycox are used.
Preparations for vaccination can be found separately from each disease or complex. Injections are made only to healthy individuals. Youngsters from one cage can be injected with the same syringe, and adults - with an individual syringe.
Did you know? Rabbits and hares can simultaneously observe what is happening in front and behind. This is possible due to the unique structure of their eyes.
We breed
In some early breeds, puberty begins at the age of five months. The fact that the animal is in a hunt becomes clear from its restless behavior and poor appetite. 
Before mating, the male and female must be examined. To continue the race unsuitable copies with a shortage or excess weight, as well as having recovered from mastitis or born from such parents. The mating process takes no more than half a minute. Male can cover 4 females per day.
Did you know? If people did not impede the free reproduction of rabbits, then in a century, their number would be compared with the number of square meters on the globe.
Check the mating arrange in 7 days. In the case of fertilization, the rabbit shows aggression. Now it needs to be transplanted into a separate enclosure with a queen cell.
The most important time comes with the advent of rabbits. To ensure a long lactation period, the rabbit breeders carefully monitor the feed and drink of the mother. Decreased milkiness occurs within 40-45 days after caustic. During this period, babies are taken from the mother into separate cells, from the calculation of 6-7 individuals each. After some time, the female and male individuals are separated, planting 2 same-sex animals in one dwelling.
Did you know? In captivity, eared can live up to the age of twelve, and, unfortunately, their life, unfortunately, ends at 1-2 years.
Gradually, young animals are taught to feed new, adding them in small portions to the traditional diet. At first, the greens limit. Grass small rabbit can only be given from three weeks of age. In winter, it will replace hay. 
Also in the cold season in the daily diet of animals should be oats, cereals and carrots. Do not forget to monitor the condition of the drinkers and the water in them.
Did you know? Hares, compared with rabbits, run much faster. If the former can reach a speed of 72 km / h, then the latter can be only 56 km / h.
Useful tips for breeders
For the breeding of rabbits to become profitable, it is important to provide fluffy pets appropriate care:
- Every week, examine the eyes and ears of animals. They must be clean, without any discharge and signs of inflammatory processes.
- Regular examination of the skin is important. On the epidermis there should be no redness, acne, scratching, scabs and other damage. If you notice any of the above, review the diet and conditions of the animals. The presence of such wounds indicates liver dysfunction, hormonal failure, and severe stress.
- Weekly, trim the rabbit's claws and remove the mats. If possible, brush the animal with a natural bristle brush.
- Every day, clean the cages and drinkers, and before each feeding, clean the feeders.
- Once a decade, disinfect the equipment and all equipment in the rabbit.
- More often air the abode of animals.
Important! For high-quality meat, 4-5-month-old rabbits are slaughtered, but with the purpose of fur they wait until the end of the molt, which occurs at 7-8 months of life.
Now breeding rabbits, including raising young stock, feeding and vaccination, is easy for you. Following our recommendations, you will be able to competently organize cost-effective rabbit breeding at home.
