We did not weigh our rabbits in the first years. We did not keep records beyond breedings, births, colors, and number in each kindle. We really did not have any need to do much else. Looking back, I am thinking that all that time we could have been working toward improving our lines and dress-out weights or just keeping records to compare now, but I was just happy with the meat in my slow cooker because when we started with rabbits, we were financially struggling, as nearly everyone was then. So, if keeping records of the developing weights or determining the cost of feed vs. the dress out weight is not a big concern, there really is no reason to do it. We knew that natural rabbit meat was going for $9.99 a pound and raising the rabbits cut down our grocery bills and provided raw meat for our dog at a time that we were cutting back on everything.
When we decided to basically restart our rabbitry, the first thing I did was look for a good scale. It seems like it is every meat-rabbit breeder's dream to reach five pounds by eight weeks. Since I had not been weighing our rabbits, I had no idea if that was a reasonable goal or not, but from what I was reading, it seemed to me that most meat rabbits do not get quite that large that fast, especially Silver Foxes.
Some breeders just keep the larger of the kindle trying for a larger, faster growing rabbit. Odds are that eventually the desired genetics will become established so there is more consistency in the resulting kits. However, each kindle seems to have its own baseline and a kind of interdependence that makes it really difficult to compare against another kindle.
- In any kindle there are larger ones and smaller ones and some in the mid range between the two. Usually, the larger the kindle the wider the extremes in the kits' sizes will be.
- The larger and stronger kits will be the ones to get the most milk from the mother and so they will grow faster than the others at least up to the day when their eyes open.
- Once their eyes open and they are getting in an out of the nest, they may or may not even out somewhat in size because the determine ones will go to the mother to feed, instead of waiting on her to come to them.
- When they begin eating on their own, is also when they begin to develop more independently.
While some breeders begin weighing at two weeks and under, others do not bother with it until four to six weeks or older. Some do not weigh at all, but rabbits must be weighed for showing and the senior weight also should be placed on the pedigree. I have chosen to weigh our kits every week from three weeks until sold or culled. If I am keeping one, I will probably drop that to weighing every month after I cease to weigh all the others from the same kindle.
It should also be considered that keeping records on weight and development requires that each rabbit is identifiable, especially if some or all the kits have the same coloring. Some use colored wax on the tip of the ear, which shows up on lighter colored rabbits but not darker, and other creative ways, but I just use xylene-free markers with just a number or the kindle mark and number inside the left ear. Eventually we may tattoo our SF purebreds, but for now we see no need for it.
Also, we are now planning to keep track of live to dress out weights. I looked over several models of scales as well as their reviews and decided on MyWeigh's UltraBaby Scale used for babies and pets up to 55 lbs. that would determine 0.1 ounce up to 2 lbs. and then 0.5 ounces for anything above 2 lbs. Now we can get accurate weighs to compare. I have been pleased with its performance so far.
