1014. 
THEC, RURAL) NiiiW-VOl^.iviii-4. 
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A BELGIAN HARE MAN TALKS. 
We often have questions about, the 
profit in raising Belgian hares, or other 
tame rabbits. There have been many 
conflicting statements about the profit to 
be obtained from this kind of stock. We 
know of many people who started breed¬ 
ing these hares, only to give up the busi¬ 
ness in disgust, after meeting with ser¬ 
ious loss and disappointment. Now and 
then, however, we meet people who come 
with the proof that they are making these 
animals pay. Air. C. E. Hill of Ohio 
is a breeder of these rabbits, and he tells 
us something about the business. 
What is the cost of feed for one good- 
sized doe? 
Such a doe fed up to a system prop¬ 
erly and regularly should have about one- 
half pint oats and bran in the morning. 
We mix 32 pounds of oats with 12 
pounds of bran. The oats cost ns 55 
cents a bushel, and the bran 1*4 cents a 
pound. At night each doe has half a 
pound of hay, or what she will eat up 
clean and not waste. At all times the 
rabbits should have plenty of pure water. 
ITow many litters will a good doe han¬ 
dle in one year? 
Five, and not overwork her. 
How many young will she average? 
There will be an average of seven, and 
with proper care she will raise an aver¬ 
age of six. 
What would be the first cost of a 
good doe? 
All the way from $1.75 to $10, depend¬ 
ing upon color, breeding and similar 
things. The average doe will cost about 
$2.50. 
At what age age do you sell the young 
rabbits for meat? 
At from six to 10 weeks old. We gen¬ 
erally get 50 cents at six weeks, and 70 
cents or a little more at 10 weeks. 
This seems like a big statement to us, 
as such figures would make up a profit 
far in advance of even that claimed by 
the boom henmen or the cow wizards. 
I can prove all my statements, and tell 
you where I sell the rabbits in four dif¬ 
ferent cities. 
Can anybody do it? 
No, it would be nonsense to claim that. 
Can everybody make a fortune or even a 
living out of hens? Plenty of people 
start this rabbit business just as they 
start the chicken business. 
What do you mean by that? 
They buy one incubator, and perhaps 
a dozen eggs. They put the two together, 
and then go to bed, where they dream 
they have made a million dollars. By 
and by they wake up and find that they 
have got to get out into the cold and 
take care of their stock. Then they get 
that tired feeling, sell out for about 10% 
of what they paid, and say there is noth 
ing to it. That’s right, because they 
never put anything except money into 
it, and it takes brains and care to get 
money out. 
You call the rabbit business a hard on * 
then, do you? 
A man must be two-thirds rabbit, and 
he can’t raise hares simply by raising a 
beard. It is a business that takes time 
and care, lots of study, and kindly dis -1 
position, and the strictest attention to 
business. 
Is there a demand in the city market 
for rabbit meat? 
A bigger demand than you think You 
may not know it, but many a time in tin- 
cities when you call for chicken in a 
pie, or similar meat dish, you get rabbit, 
and sometimes a poor quality of rabbit 
at that. A good, tender, quick grown 
Belgian hare is something to make a man 
well satisfied with life, and when you 
learn how to raise and sell them the sat¬ 
isfaction is double 
Goats as Sheep Protectors. 
More than 50 sheep have been killed 
in this vicinity during the past few weeks 
by dogs at night. I have heard that if a 
billygoat was placed in the lot with sheep 
he would defend the flock from the rav¬ 
ages of night-running dogs. Can you tell 
me whether this method of prevention has 
ever been resorted to? c. s. B. 
Niverville, N. Y. 
This plan has been tried, but not with 
full success. Some billygoats will fight 
hard and master a single dog, but these 
curs often run in packs and scatter the 
sheep so that the goat cannot protect 
them. We have one report of a flock of 
Angora goats, noted as good fighters, yet 
the dogs got in and killed many of the 
goats. 
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