Category Archives: Record Keeping

Using Essential Oils with your Rabbit

Record Keeping August 18, 2020 Leave a comment

Over the years I have become more and more impressed with the ways you can use essential oils for all of the things in life. With my kids – “Got an owie? No problem! Put some lavender and tea tree oil on it!” “Have a stomachache? Peppermint oil for the win!” I can tell you that Young Living’s blend Stress Away has gotten me through more than one super stressful presentation or situation and the BeeYOUtiful ProMiSe oil blend is one we use on a very regular basis.

Some of you may be absolute pros at essential oils, others may not be familiar with the term at all, so here’s a quick definition: Essential oils are the oils that are extracted from plants using pressing or distilling. These oils, or magical plant juices, can be used to treat a wide variety of ailments and concerns from the common to the bizarre. They should not replace the role of an expert medical practitioner or prescriptions when need be.

I have gone from thinking essential oils are a snake oil scam to recognizing that these oils can be used for much good – like the time my husband upset a nest of wasps while weed-eating and received a half-dozen stings as they swarmed around him. I used an essential oil sting blend (10 drops lavender, 20 drops thyme, 5 drops eucalyptus, 5 drops oregano); almost immediately the pain disappeared and there was no swelling an hour later!

As much as essential oils have become my go-to for human needs, I have been far less experimental about using essential oils on the animals because those little plant juices are potent and powerful! Basically, we’ve used lavender in a carrier oil on rabbit ear mites and added orange oil to our stain remover to improve the scent. But mostly… we’ve played it very safe.

However, recently I have added two resources to our animal wellness toolkit that give me more confidence in using essential oils with our livestock: The Essential Oils Desk Reference for Animals (published by Life Science Publishing & Products) and Essential Oils for Animals: A Complete Guide to Animal Wellness using Essential Oils, Hydrosols, and Herbal Oils by Nayana Morag.

I’ve learned that they are not planning to reprint this resource, so when it’s gone, it’s gone. It might be worth adding this to your reference library sooner rather than later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There hasn’t been a ton of research done on using essential oils for animals, nor have there been a lot of breeders using them consistently to treat the animals, so I am appreciative of these resources! These, combined with exhaustive internet searching, are ways that we will test ideas before we start using oils with our animals.

A few things I’ve learned as I research:

Always start with the oil diluted. Animal skin reacts to things differently than human skin, so using the oil within a carrier oil is very important.

Keep oils out of the nostrils and eyes. Basically, if it would give you grief as a human, avoid placing it in that location for an animal.

Generally, the following oils are considered safe for rabbits: lavender, lemon, orange, fennel, peppermint, eucalyptus.

And these oils are generally NOT safe for rabbits: anise, clove, oregano, tea tree, wintergreen.

Another oil that is the number one I’d have in my animal toolkit? MANUKA. This is a powerful healer for all sorts of cuts and scrapes.

People are always asking about which brands of essential oils to use. I have been one who tries a lot of different brands (I’ve been known to buy the same oil of three brands and then sniff and try them to compare and contrast. I’m that person.) As I’ve explored over the years I find that I favor Young Living oils the most, followed by BeeYOUtiful. Both companies offer excellent quality oils and have proprietary blends that we use on a daily basis.

I’m a big believer in using referrals to help others if you can when you shop, so I’m going to provide the referral links I have just in case you have a similar philosophy to me! If you’re not already affiliated with a team, I’d invite you to join the team I’m on – the focus is high on education and I’ve learned an amazing amount within this team. My Young Living referral link is: My Young Living Referral Link.

As we continue to work through the things that come up and use essential oils, I’ll keep sharing!

When the Show Must Go On… (Or, how do you take care of the animals when you’re sick yourself?!)

Dairy Goats, Health, homesteading, Meat Rabbits, Pet Rabbits, Record Keeping, Show Rabbits April 25, 2019 1 Comment

 

Taking Care of Animals When You're Sick Too

What do you do when you’re sick but the animals still need daily care?

One of the worst things about raising animals is how they are so darn needy on a daily basis. Seriously – they want food. They want water. They need milking. They need grooming. It’s just so… regular.

 

I’ve been thinking about this a lot this week because our family has been hit hard by some type of sickness that’s going around. It’s been about a two week period and it’s cycled through all six of us. Assuming it doesn’t offer the pleasure of a repeat round I think we’re about three days from being totally done of it…

And all during this time we’ve still had to feed and water the rabbits. Milk the goats. Collect the eggs.

Animals don’t care a whit if you have a 103* temperature and chills.

Fortunately in our case the sickness we’ve had has been staggered so there’s always been someone healthy enough to do the chores, but it reminds me of the stories of early pioneers who were found dead in their tracks on the way to the barn while the rest of their family is dead in the bed. The last one standing in that situation was obviously overcome with the immensity of it all.

Morbid, I know. Sorry.

My goal in sharing this was actually not to be depressing and speak of death, doom, and destruction, but to point out the need for a plan when things go bad.

We know that life is always going to through curve balls at us – so when it comes to our animals, how are we prepared? Who is your back up to call and take care of the fur babies if you’re suddenly ill? On vacation?

This has been the greatest discussion in our family when our daughter first brought up wanting dairy goats. We know that with a milking animal our schedule will be much more limited and our travel adventures will slow down. However, we’re moving into a season of our family where that fits… so we can make a sacrifice of time and effort for this season.

How are you prepared for an emergency?

 

 

 

In response to our growing microfarm adventures, I’m taking another look at our emergency plan (initially created after I wrote this post a few years ago) and making sure it’s up to date. My plan is to turn it into a fillable .pdf and make it available to all of YOU so your leg work in creating your own plan is a little less stressful. Hopefully it will be out by the end of next week!

In the meantime, may your animal adventures be calm and that Murphy’s Law thing stay far away from you!

I’d love to hear from you about how you handle emergencies and travel plans! I feel like we should create some sort of a web-based service (like the Babysitters Club) where people could schedule others to come and cover chores!

Our Rabbit Tattooing Essentials

Health, Record Keeping, Show Rabbits November 26, 2018 Leave a comment

Every year around the time of the fair, I have an opportunity to help 4H students with their rabbits. One task in particular is in high demand… tattoos!

 

Since ARBA requires that rabbits at a show be marked with a permanent, legible ear tattoo. This is so helpful in many ways, the main one being that rabbits tend to look a lot like one another! (I have sworn I could pick out our rabbit for specific characteristics, and then gotten the rabbit on the table and realized that I have no idea which is ours!) Permanent tattoo markings are a safety net to the original breeder (no one wants to think of it, but a distinctive tattoo keeps rabbit breeders honest when they might be tempted to buy a new rabbit and fudge a little, calling it one of their own breeding), to a buyer (I’ve had people contact me with a rabbit they bought from someone else and been able to track down a pedigree years later based on our distinctive tattoos), and it isn’t harmful to the rabbit.

 

However, actually tattooing a rabbit can be a concern to many people. What equipment do I use? How do I do it? How do I make sure it’s legible? These are common questions! There is a lot of diversity within preferences, but I’m happy to share the things we’ve found to be really useful for our own rabbitry.

 

The Bunny Burrito. Obviously, this isn’t an official name, but I use what I call a bunny burrito to hold the rabbits in place while I tattoo. I started out using a towel wrapped tightly and it worked… but then a friend got out of rabbits and I inherited the burrito. This wrap is made of fabric and has three hook and loop fasteners to hold the rabbit in place. IT IS AMAZING.

Because I inherited this lovely piece of equipment, I had no idea where it was purchased. Then, randomly, I saw a post on facebook the other day and found the original source! It’s a Wrap-n-Tat! I promptly ordered new Wrap-n-Tats in a smaller size (since our original was made for big meaty buns and now we have some super teeny little ones) and I am so charmed by the fabric and the durability of the workmanship!

Obviously, one of these has been used A LOT and two are brand new… but don’t worry – I’ll be breaking them in shortly!

 

KB Tattoo Pen. There are a lot of choices when it comes to tattoo pens (or clamps) but we chose to go with the KB Tattoo. I’ve tried others over the years and have never found one I like better. For the price and the quality it can’t be beaten. I’ve replaced the batteries twice and needles once in six years. That’s not a bad deal! I’d also recommend getting the ink that they sell with the pen – I’ve tried other inks and the tattoos have faded quickly or never even seemed to really stick.

Healing Ointment. After every tattoo I blot the ink off of the tattoo and then dab a little ointment on it. Sometimes I use Aquaphor and other times Bag Balm… I imagine Vaseline or almost any healing ointment would work just as well. I just think it helps the tattoo heal better.

 

A few more tips for the beginning tattooer:

 

Banana. I have recommended that before tattooing for the first time, tattoo a banana. The flesh of the banana helps give you an idea of how hard you’ll need to press down to get a clear tattoo.

Be Bold. When you decide to tattoo, fully commit. Do it quickly and firmly. If you are tentative the rabbit will likely give you grief whereas if you tattoo confidently you will be done with the tattoo in a jiffy.

Tattoo System. Choose a tattoo system that is identifiable to you and your rabbitry. For us, our breeders always start with a letter “H”. (If you’d like to know about our tattoo system this blog post goes into it in more detail, The Quirky Art of Tattooing

On our New Pricing…

Blanc de Hotot, Champagne d'Argent, Meat Rabbits, Pet Rabbits, Record Keeping, Satin Angora, Show Rabbits, silver fox March 18, 2018 Leave a comment

Can I just tell you my least favorite part of raising rabbits? Selling rabbits.

 

I know this may sound silly, but selling rabbits ranks right around cleaning out the waste pile for me in terms of favorite activities. Partially because there is no right or wrong rule with setting prices, and there is a lot of back and forth variety in what breeders do in specific areas. Add in flaky buyers who fall through at the last minute and, in general, it’s a challenge!

 

We’ve just upped our prices a tad – it’s the first time in three years we’ve done so. It’s always hard to consider raising prices, and I want you to know we are doing so intentionally, not because we suddenly want more bang for our sales.

 

Since we breed rare breeds almost entirely, we keep availability in mind. Yes, it’s extremely difficult to find some of these breeds – and truthfully we have paid a top dollar for most all of our foundation animals. However, we would love these rare breeds to gain in popularity, which means that if you price them too high you run some serious, great breeders out of the game with a high price.

 

We’ve also become pretty choosy with our keeper/sellers and in the past two years we’ve culled hard, which has improved the quality of our herd overall. When I think back to the rabbits we had several years ago, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made with the breeds, and there is a dedication to care and analytical breeding that has been proven in the test of time. Are we perfect, not at all! But do we have better judgement than we did when we were starting out? Absolutely. Are we producing higher quality animals? Yes, we are. People who buy a Mad Hatter Rabbit now receive the benefit of the education we’ve gained over the years – and there’s value to that.

 

I believe you’ll still find us on the “reasonable” spectrum of the prices for our breeds, as our goal is still to provide a quality rabbit at a decent price to encourage other folks to raise these heritage and rare breeds. We thank you for your patience and look forward to working with you!

We Don’t Keep a Sales Waiting List

Meat Rabbits, Pet Rabbits, Record Keeping, Show Rabbits October 3, 2017 Comments: 2
wait List

We no longer keep a waiting list for sales, despite many requests.

Over the years we have been contacted by many people regarding purchasing rabbits, which is always such an honor! When we have rabbits available for sale, we are happy to hash out the details of the purchase, transport, etc. But other times we don’t have exactly what the buyer is looking for and so aren’t able to help immediately. Almost invariably the buyer will ask to be put on the waiting list for their specific rabbit.

 

And I, in a dose of pure Scrooge-like meanness, tell them, “No.”

 

Why on Earth would we say no to a waiting list? Don’t we want to sell our rabbits?! Well, in a nutshell, yes. It does seem counter-intuitive that we wouldn’t keep a waiting list. But let me take you on a walk down memory lane…

 

In the early days of Mad Hatter Rabbits, when every cage was shiny and the food crocks still had the stink of the factory on them, we kept a waiting list. It was a lovely excel spreadsheet with the contact information of every person who contacted us, the date of communications, the exact request they had for their rabbits. It was a thing of beauty and organizational structure and it gave great joy to it’s maker, ME.

 

But then, the dark shadows of reality began to intrude. I would contact people on the waiting list to tell them their rabbit was available and they’d tell me they’d changed their minds. Or purchased a rabbit from another breeder. Or moved to Zimbabwe and developed a rash from looking at rabbit pictures… there were any number of reasons they were backing out of the purchase.

 

My excel spreadsheet became a mausoleum of unrealized dreams. It was a sad, sad thing. I grieved.

 

After about two years regularly getting burned by flakey rabbit folks, we made an executive decision. What stock is available will be posted on our rabbitry facebook page, and if people contact us directly and we can help them, we will. First come, first served at that particular moment. If the buyer is consistent in pursuing us, we can pretty much guarantee we’ll get a rabbit to them as quickly as possible, but the responsibility now lands on the buyer, rather than us as the seller, to follow through on the effort of a stock purchase.

 

I still miss that excel spreadsheet, but it was time to build a bridge and get over it.

 

Do you maintain a waiting list?

Checklist for Starting a Rabbit Project

Meat Rabbits, Pet Rabbits, Record Keeping, Show Rabbits September 9, 2017 Leave a comment
Screen Shot 2017-09-09 at 9.50.42 AM

What do you need to start a 4H rabbit project?

We have just finished the county fair around here and are proud to announce that one of the kid’s mini satins was awarded Reserve in Show and our oldest was given the Champion rabbit showmanship award for her division. Good times!

 

 

Of course, being around all of those awesome 4H kids and their different projects, plus learning more about the livestock auction and its ins an outs has encouraged our kids to start working toward starting a goat (!) project! Eek! Our first step has been to start the research and as we’ve tried to gather information about goats, I’ve realized that other people might feel the same about how to start a rabbit project, so a post on how to get into rabbits might be helpful to you all!

 

So, here are a few things you might want to consider if you’re beginning a rabbit project:

 

  1. Finances. One thing I really appreciate about the 4H member record is that it forces the child to lay out a budget for their project. Things you should consider as you’re starting a rabbit project are: Stock, Food, Housing, and Tools.
  2. Purpose. What type of project do you want to purse? A market/meat project? Doe and litter? Showmanship? Each of these categories might require a different set up so begin with the end in mind for your success.

Here are our thoughts and best practices regarding these items:

Stock: The initial investment of stock is a big deal and many parents don’t have a clue as to where to begin to help their children! Consider the purpose of the project – if you want to do a meat pen, take a look at the breeds of commercial typed rabbits and then ask your fair what breeds of rabbit have been recognized for excellence in your area previously. If you want a doe and litter, look to a breed known for their mothering abilities. If you want a showmanship rabbit, look for breeds with a reputation for being easy to handle. Make sure that you have a copy of the American Rabbit Breeder’s Association Standard of Perfection, which is the book with the identifying characteristics of each breed. This $20 investment will save you hundreds if you allow it to teach what you’re looking for in choosing your animals and how to steer clear of disqualifications.

After identifying your purpose, start looking for places to acquire the animal(s). My recommendation is to start with the ARBA website breeder listing. This is broken down by breed and location. Ask for recommendations from those breeders. Take a look at the ARBA National Convention results. Check out the breed webpage for their top breeders. Look in the Domestic Rabbit to see which breeders have rabbits being given Grand Champion status. These are ways to figure out how you can get good advice and counsel from those who are serious about rabbit raising. (Also realize that those folks who have 30+ years of rabbit raising experience probably don’t have a webpage or Facebook farm page, so go to a rabbit show and ask people who to sit with to learn more – you’ll be shocked at how many people who truly love rabbits are truly looking to pass their knowledge on!)

Food: Each region of the country has different food offerings, so ask around. Your local feed store will be able to tell you what their best selling feed is, and if you do an internet search for food recommendations you’ll get many results. Recognize that people have really passionate about their food and many breeders blame their feed for all of their problems!

Regardless of whether you choose pellets or natural, or one brand over another, just know that your rabbit is going to have to eat! Every feed has pros and cons. Just feed your rabbit. (As an aside – seriously. Feed your rabbit. At our fair I wanted to cry over how many rabbits showed that they hadn’t been fed regularly or enough. FEED YOUR RABBIT EVERY DAY. Period.)

Feed costs will vary over the year based on what breed of rabbit you have and how much the pellets cost (a meat rabbit will eat approximately 200 lbs of pellets in a year if they’re being feed 8 oz./day). You’ll get a better price on a larger bag of feed, but make sure you’re not feeding your rabbit old feed about 3 weeks old is the longest you’ll want to keep feed for your rabbit. Fresh feed = healthy rabbits.

Housing: We follow the guidelines from ARBA and a book, Storey’s Guide to Raising Rabbits by Bob Bennet in our housing choices. We have chosen to purchase our cages from KW Cages and Klubertanz and find both cages to be of excellent quality. Putting your rabbit in a cage with rusted wire or uneven angles will hurt their feet and make their life harder. Food and water can depend on the preference of your rabbit as well as your area. For years we’ve used stainless steel crock water dishes in the winter when it’s freezing and water bottles for the summer time – but there’s not a right or a wrong to this.

Consider what you will do with your rabbit waste. Are your cages going to have pans for the droppings? If so, budget for bedding to cut down on the odors and ammonia from the urine that can hurt your rabbit’s nose. Are your droppings going to go to the ground? If so, do you have access to a shovel and wheelbarrow? Do you have a compost pile? Do you have a garden where you can put the bunny berries?

Are you raising a doe and litter project? If so you’ll need a nestbox. You can use a variety of items for your nestbox – we’ve found we prefer this style ourselves because we can clean them reliably, they are able to withstand consistent use, and they’re secure for the kits.

Tools: Livestock require tools for handling and rabbits are no exception. You’ll want to have access to a tattoo tool, whether a pen or clamp. (We use a KBTatts tattooer and love it. We also have a rabbit wrap that is extremely helpful when tattooing.) For grooming you’ll need to have nail clippers and possibly Kevlar sleeves to protect your arms from scratches. An apron or a pair of overalls can protect your midsection from scratches and your clothes from rabbit toenail snags and rips. If you have a wooled breed of rabbit you need a grooming comb.

When you take your rabbit to a show or fair, you need to have a safe way for them to travel. We use these 3 compartment, 3 lid travel carriers and we love them because they have individual openings for each hole.

Our tool box is very low on the medicines for your rabbit because we have chosen to simply do our best to breed healthy rabbits. We don’t use antibiotics. However, we do have some olive oil for the occasional time a rabbit gets ear mites and Diamataceous Earth to sprinkle over the droppings and in the fur of our rabbits. We keep a bottle of lavendar/tea tree essential oil and tin of Bag Balm around for our own scratches! (We also put bag balm on the rabbits ear after tattooing.)

 

I’ve tried to put together a pretty exhaustive list here, but I’d love to hear in the comments if you’d recommend anything additional. Starting a rabbit project is easy – rabbits are quiet, pretty clean, a lower monetary investment, and pretty cheap to keep. We’d recommend them!

Now… who can help us with the goats?! Ha!

Extended Labor in Rabbits

Meat Rabbits, Record Keeping April 10, 2017 Comments: 6

We blew it. Except we didn’t know we were blowing it.

 

Here’s the story – we put the nestbox in with our doe. We waited. She pulled fur and had one baby. All evidence pointed to the fact that this was a singleton litter and our temperatures are still below freezing many nights, so we fostered the little loner in with another litter to better its odds of survival, then removed the nestbox from mama.

 

And walked out the next morning to six more babies on the wire of mama’s cage, frozen solid.

 

What the….?!

 

All of our rabbit husbandry experience has taught us that rabbits give birth within a span of about 15 minutes. But in this case, I can say absolutely without question, that there was at least a 36 hour break between that first little bunny being born and the other six!

 

I don’t know how often this is, and without having personally experienced it we would have pooh-poohed the possibility of rabbits giving birth at different spaces. However, it does make me wonder about the few times we have counted babies, then a week later discovered our count was wrong and there is another baby in the box. Did the mama have another while we weren’t looking?

 

The only explanation I can figure for this behavior is if both of the uterine horns were impregnated. Since we occasionally leave our rabbits in with the bucks overnight (in the winter they typically don’t want to breed immediately so we’ve found making them roommates for a time works better) perhaps the doe was impregnated in different uterine horns, hours apart, and that caused a different delivery schedule?

 

Who knows, but I was shocked enough I felt it was worth noting on the blog that it can happen.

 

And we’re so bummed about the babies who didn’t make it because we blew it.

Prepping for ARBA Nationals

Record Keeping, Show Rabbits October 8, 2016 Leave a comment

It’s time for the big show! ARBA Nationals 2016 is located in Del Mar, California and we are going!

 

This is only our second national show to attend, so we aren’t truly experts, but here are a few things we have done to prepare:

 

Get Hotel Room. We originally made reservations at a hotel that was several miles from the fairgrounds, but then a few spots opened up at the host hotel so we switched! Hurray!

Purchase Show Catalog and Results book. The show catalog is full of great information about the schedule, extra meetings, rules, judges of the breeds, club information, etc. Also places to eat and stay, extra tours… lots of stuff! We also enjoy getting the Results book because there is no set schedule for breed judging and if you miss your breed you won’t have a clue how everyone placed without the Results book!

Get Car in for Check Up. We are driving to Nationals and I can’t think of anything worse than being broken down on the side of the road with a load of bunnies in the back! So our trusty Suburban went to the shop for a complete check up from tires to wires and got the seal of approval.

Paperwork. Not only do we have the paperwork from our Convention entry, but also the load/unload sheet for our rabbits. We label each hole of the carriers with the rabbit who will occupy it, and then check it off as we load. We’ll do a similar situation with our return animals. At checkin you also need your ARBA membership card.

img_4072

This is our pocket-sized cheat sheet for our breeds and coop numbers.

Labels. Decorations on the coops are discouraged at the Convention, but having something to identify your rabbits is really helpful in the long rows of coops! We used a free download from a teacher for labels this year and included the name of the rabbit and a contact phone number just in case anyone needed to talk to us about the rabbit. And we’ll remove the labels completely when we leave, of course.

img_4200

Our coop labels for Convention this year.

Coop Risers/Cleaning Supplies. The rabbits are cooped on wooden floors with shavings. Obviously these shavings get messy quickly and need frequent cleaning! This year we are trying coop risers for our Blanc de Hotot to help keep them clean.This is the way to go! The rabbits stay sooo much cleaner and happier with the risers!

Water Bucket with Spout. We have found a houseplant watering can with the long spout extremely helpful. We can get the job done with a milk jug but the extra maneuvering provided by a watering can is awesome!

Pedigree Book. You never know what might come up, so I’m bringing hard copies of all of our pedigrees. One thing I’m pretty excited about for our sale rabbits is a newer program called Hutch. It allows you to generate a QR code for pedigrees, so if you print the QR code and put it with the rabbit anyone interested would be able to see the lines behind the rabbit right then. How lovely!

Good Attitude and Comfortable Shoes. I was stunned in Portland at how much my feet hurt! The judging classes are large, so there is a lot of standing around as you’re waiting to hear the results! By the end of the first day my back was tight and my feet were sore. By the end of day two even our 9-year-old was desperate for a place to sit! This year we are bringing our most comfortable shoes and consciously choosing to have a good attitude no matter what our circumstances.

 

That’s our quick an dirty prep list for Nationals. I’m sure we’ll have more in the future, but here are the basics!

Dress Out Rates

Meat Rabbits, Record Keeping September 6, 2016 1 Comment
Keeping track of your live weights, dead weights, and calculating percentages will help you know if you're on the right track for breeding.

Keeping track of your live weights, dead weights, and calculating percentages will help you know if you’re on the right track for breeding.

Caution: be aware this post discusses processing rabbits. If this is disturbing to you, please scroll on by without comment.

 

Our initial purpose for breeding rabbits was to create a sustainable food source for our family. In our state, it is completely legal to raise rabbits for your own consumption, although you may not sell them to others for anything except animal consumption. Our desire to have this all-natural meat option factored into which breeds we selected for our rabbitry, as well as what breedings we pursue as we continue moving forward.

 

As meat breeders, having a strong dress out percentage from our rabbits is incredibly important. This is where we are rewarded for the days we care for animals in harsh weather, the multiple times a day we water every rabbit by hand, etc. If you don’t actually get a return for your investment of time and energy… what is the point?!

 

Our goal for all of our rabbits is a minimum of 50% dress out rate. The dressout percentage is the percent of the live animal that ends up as carcass. Generally, the carcass weight is taken immediately after skinning and evisceration and is commonly known as the hot hanging weight. (Evisceration is the removal of viscera (internal organs, especially those in the abdominal cavity). This can refer to: Disembowelment, removal of the internal organs of an animal.) Other people may refer to this as the bone-in weight.

 

We have some breeds that will just barely clear 50% dress out and others that are closer to 59% Obviously, the higher the dress out percentage the greater return you’ll have on your investment. After that you have to figure in your cost of feed and, if you’re really daring!, the cost of your time management in order to figure out what your actual cost per lbs. of meat is in comparison to what you can get on a little styrofoam platter at the grocery.

 

Here is yet another area where keeping precise records is important! For us this means our records make note of every rabbit ending up in the cull pen is weighed live, weighed dressed out (bone in, kidneys, liver, and heart saved), and the percentage calculation.

 

Now that we’ve been keeping our records for awhile we can start tracking which bucks and does have the strongest results, which breeds are most productive, whether we have higher percentages based on the season, etc. It’s really fascinating if you’re a rabbit nerd (as we are)!

Roundup of Rabbit Pedigree Programs

Meat Rabbits, Record Keeping, Show Rabbits May 5, 2016 1 Comment

One of the basic needs for a rabbit breeder is the ability to track rabbits genealogy over time. This is one of the first tenets of rabbit raising we picked up from Storey’s Guide to Raising Rabbits. KEEP ACCURATE RECORDS.

 

The problem with this, however, is how you plan to do it. If a rabbit is going to have an accurate pedigree, there are a lot of ways to store the information! This post will serve as a compilation of the rabbit pedigree programs that exist to date (as shown by internet searching. Hopefully it’s accurate, don’t shoot the messenger if something is forgotten!)

 

pedigree1

Traditional Pedigrees

The traditional way of pedigree record keeping is a handwritten pedigree. These are available from the ARBA store (https://www.arba.net/store/) and include the required three generations, complete with spaces to fill out weight, color, tattoo number, registration and grand champion numbers.

Another option is to use a pedigree template, like this one from The Nature Trail Custom Rabbit Pedigree Design. They will design a template that can be used repeatedly, each time you can type in the rabbit’s information. Pricing: $30 (as of post publication).

 

Database-based Pedigrees

Over time, smart folks have come up with the idea of creating a database pedigree program. Instead of having to write every bit of information in the pedigree, the rabbit’s information is entered into a database. Then, anytime that particular rabbit is selected in a pedigree it will automatically load and the information will populate!

As long as the original information entered is accurate, you have accurate pedigrees from that point forward, easy-peasey. The following are simply listings. We don’t have personal experience with each one of them! (We have used Kintraks for years because we have Mac computers.)

 

For Windows-based computers (PC):

Evan’s Software. Arguably the most popular pedigree software, particularly designed for those using a PC, Massechusetts-based Evan’s is reported to have excellent customer service; their webpage text exhibits a strong sense of humor on the part of the developers. Evan’s offers a service to import existing pedigree information from other databases. Pricing: $69-$89 (as of post publication).

ZooEasy. Designed for those using Windows-based computers, ZooEasy allows you to report pedigree information, medical data, finances, contacts and serves both ARBA members as well as members of the British Rabbit Council. Pricing: $59 (as of post publication).

Breeder’s Assistant. Designed specifically for dog and cat pedigrees using a Windows platform, Breeder’s Assistant can be used for all sorts of animals, including rabbits. The Breeder’s Assistant also included information stating it can import data from the Church of Latter Day Saint’s genealogical database. They offer several different types of pedigree formats, including a circular pedigree. So unique. Pricing: $99 and up (as of post publication).

Easy Rabbit Pedigree Generator. This CD-based software designed for Windows computers may be what you’re looking for if you can get past the gimmicky sales pitch of their website and want a simple, functional pedigree design. Pricing: $17 (as of post publication).

 

PC or Mac computers:

KinTraks. For many years, KinTraks was the only pedigree program available for Mac users – this is why we originally chose it for our rabbitry. Over the years, though, we have appreciated that it was a one-time purchase, the customer support is quick and personal, and the interface is very easy to use. There are a lot of ways to customize the pedigrees as well. Trial version of 100 records offered for free. Pricing: $18 (as of post publication).

Bunny Trails Software. Bunny Trails can run on Windows, Mac, or Linux systems, and was created by rabbit breeders for rabbit breeders. Includes a free app that will work on the iPhone, iPad, or iTouch and offers support for tracking show points and performances (this could be very handy for recording information during the show). Pricing: $59 – $79 (as of post publication).

Global Pedigree Project. The Global Pedigree Project is cloud-based, meaning that if you have an internet connection you can use it, regardless of whether you’re accessing the internet on a Mac or PC. Once a part of the Global Pedigree Project, users can search any rabbit within the database, whether it is in their barn or not. (I have asked my friend with Global Pedigree to double check factual information on rabbits for me – a really handy feature!) The upside? Lots of shared information and the ability to look at what other breeders have uploaded. The downside? It could be really easy for people to falsify their pedigrees using data from other rabbits. The emailed pedigrees are very well designed. Subscription based service. Pricing: $12.50 – $75 (as of post publication).

 

Do you have any pedigree programs to add to this list? What are your personal experiences using them? Leave your response in the comments!

%d bloggers like this: