RABBITS. 



RABBITS. 





Rabbits belong to the family Leporidce, member 

 of the Rodentia, or Gnawing Order of animals 

 Their form and appearance are too well known to 

 require any special description. In a wild state 

 rabbits live in holes in the earth ; and where thi 

 proprietor permits of their accumulation for spor 

 or for sale, they collect in great numbers, under 

 mining with their burrows whole plains or tracts 

 of land, and forming what are called warrens 

 Their amazing fecundity renders the keeping of a 

 few of them in a tame state an object of some con- 

 sequence in cottage economy. The rabbit litters 

 seven times in the year, and generally produces 

 eight young at a time. At the age of five months 

 the animal begins to breed ; and taking an esti- 

 mate perfectly within bounds, it is supposed that a 

 pair of wild rabbits, which breed no oftener than 

 seven times in a year, would multiply in the 

 course of four years to the amazing amount of a 

 million and a quarter, if the young were preserved. 

 Many of them die, however, being injured by cold 

 and damp, or are devoured by the male or buck. 



Experienced rabbit-keepers conceive too fre- 

 quent breeding to be injurious; but even when 

 proper rules are observed in this respect, three 

 domesticated females (does) and a buck will, it is 

 calculated, give a family a rabbit for dinner almost 

 twice a week. A stock of rabbits is easily set 

 agoing, the price seldom exceeding a shilling each. 

 It is of importance, in making such a purchase, to 



attend to the varieties 

 furnish the best flesh. 



which feed kindly and 



The short-legged stout rabbits are generally 

 supposed to be the most healthy and also the best 

 breeders. The large hare-coloured variety is much 

 esteemed by some people ; but the white, or white 

 mottled with black or yellow, are more delicate in 

 flesh. The gray, and some of the blacks, approach 

 nearer to the flavour of the wild rabbit than any 

 others. With respect to the colours of these 

 animals, gray is considered the worst of all 

 colours ; black is the next in gradation ; fawn, and 

 white, and gray, hold the third place in estima- 

 tion'; pure white, with red eyes, is by some reck- 

 oned equal, and by others superior, to these ; 

 tortoise-shell a rich brown and white, and brown, 

 gray, and white and black and white rank the 

 highest ; a uniform mouse-colour, though little 

 noticed by fanciers in general, is much admired 

 by a few. The most important part of the duty of 

 the rabbit-rearer is to erect his rabbit-house or 

 hutch on proper principles. Two objects are par- 

 ticularly necessary to be attended to the house 

 or rabbitry must be kept always dry and well aired, 

 because the animal, in its natural state, prefers a 

 dry and airy habitation. We give a sketch (fig. 3) 

 illustrative of the accommodation and arrange- 

 ments likely to prove efficient aids in rearing 

 rabbits economically and healthily : aa is the line 

 of wall of house against which the rabbitry is 

 supposed to be erected, or it may be in an 

 isolated position ; b is the principal door by 

 which the rabbitry is entered. The hutches are 

 placed as at / / g, g, with a passage between ; 



being capable of removal ; or small doors may be 

 made through which the young rabbits can pass 

 to the breeding-hutches,^,//; or, if necessary, 

 be isolated therefrom. The floors of all the 

 hutches should slope towards the centre of the 

 passage, so as to lead the liquid manure at once 



Fig- 3- 



to a drain, k, h, which conveys it away to a small 

 manure-tank. The application of this to the 

 rabbits' recreative ground, ee, ee, surrounded by 

 wire-fence, will keep up a fine crop of grass, 

 amongst which they will rejoice. The food is 

 supplied to the hutches through doors opening 

 into the passage. Each hutch should have the 

 front made entirely of wire, to admit plenty of 

 light, which gains admittance through the win- 

 dows, c, c ; d, d are the doors through which the 

 rabbits find entrance to the grass-plot, ee. 



The subject of feeding the tame rabbits cannot 

 receive too much attention. As in the case of 

 most other animals, there is a danger in giving 

 them too much food at a time. Feeding thrice a 

 day is often attended by good results, though 

 many people consider twice a day sufficient. The 

 Boy's Own Book, treating on this subject, says : 

 ' Almost all the vegetables and roots used for the 

 table may be given to rabbits : in preference to all 

 others, we choose celery, parsley, and the roots 

 and tops of carrots ; and in this choice the ani- 

 mals themselves heartily agree with us ; lettuces, 

 the leaves, and, what are much better, the stumps 

 of cabbages and cauliflowers, they eat with avidity, 

 jut these must be given to them with a sparing 

 land ; turnips, parsnips, and even potatoes in a 

 raw state, we occasionally afford our stock, on an 

 emergency, when better roots or good greens are 

 carce. In the spring-time, no soft meat is better 

 or them than tares, so that they be not wet ; in 

 act, no green meat ought to be given to rabbits 

 vhen there is much moisture on its surface. We 

 lave heard of some country persons feeding their 

 abbits on marsh-mallows, but we never did so 

 urselves. Dandelions, milk-thistles, or sow- 

 histles, we know, by long experience, they take in 

 'reference to all other food, except celery, parsley, 

 nd carrots ; and nothing, as green meat, we are 

 onvinced, can be better for them. 



'It must be remembered that a doe will eat 

 icarly twice as much when suckling as at other 

 imes ; and when her litter begin to eat, the allow- 

 nce of food must be gradually increased/ 

 When rabbits are to be used as food, it is com- 

 monly deemed beneficial to feed them for a short 

 ime on hay, and afterwards on shillings and oats, 

 hen the flesh will grow very delicate in flavour. 

 The case of a labouring man in the country 

 may be mentioned, who, in a small wooden house 



,,,,_. , , nclosedbya railing, fed a batch of rabbits, and 



the floor of each hutch must be lined with zinc, or killed annually about twenty dozen, still maintain- 

 made of asphalt or flag, to prevent the animals ing his stock unbroken. What with the skins, 

 burrowing. The hutches for the breeding-does, flesh, and sales of the young, he turned the ani- 

 g, g, / / should be contiguous to those for the ; mals to good account ; yet he scarcely expended 

 young rabbits, g',f ; the partitions between them ' a penny upon their food and attention. 



