Awesome! I will favorite you website since I too am in Ma and may one day want to purchase one our your reds. We're just getting started and could only find white New Zealands.
Reds are very hard to come by! They have been a major long term project for me. You should do fine with whites they are definitely the best (if they come from good stock). Working on getting the reds up there, and you can't beat the color!
Thanks for the great videso! In hybridizing NZ with CA for meat, is there a benefit to doing male CA x female NZ or vice versa, or does it even matter?
I am not an expert on hybridizing but usually it does matter. Typically the strategy with hybridizing is to get the best of both worlds, by perfecting certain traits on each side. For example, your Californians have fantastic shoulders, and NZ have better hindquarters. You maintain both lines and harvest all the offspring.
My thinking when I had rabbits was to buy a superior buck. As the saying goes the buck is half your herd. The Californian - New Zealand cross is an excellent one for meat. If you're going that route I recommend a Californian buck and New Zealand does. I am slightly more in favor of the Californian breed. 🙂
If you go with a pedigree breeding stock, do you have to register litters? If you had two bucks, could you do one pedigree litter followed by a hybrid litter?
Pedigree basically operates on the honor system. I will do a full video explaining how they work, but the breeder records the information. Essentially a pedigree shows the rabbits ancestors for at least three generations. A rabbit is considered "purebred" if all its ancestors for the past three generations are purebred rabbits of the same breed. The only way a rabbit is registered is with the American Rabbit Breeders Association at a show. To register the rabbit, you need a pedigree, and it has to pass a physical inspection, so people usually only do that with important show rabbits.
LOVED this, helped me make some important decisions. But please retitle your video, this doesn't say WHERE to find stock. :) Could you do a video on that? Surely Craigslist is not the only place?
I think I sort of mentioned it in the video, but it will really depend on what you are looking for! For purebreds you can check the American Rabbit Breeders Association breeder directory, or your breeds specialty clubs. I would also look for state clubs, any working meat rabbit farms, and ask if your local feed store knows anyone.
Exactly what I hope to learn, thanks
You're welcome!
Awesome! I will favorite you website since I too am in Ma and may one day want to purchase one our your reds. We're just getting started and could only find white New Zealands.
Reds are very hard to come by! They have been a major long term project for me. You should do fine with whites they are definitely the best (if they come from good stock). Working on getting the reds up there, and you can't beat the color!
Great info as usual
THANKS , YOUR VIDEO'S ARE VERY HELPFUL
You're very welcome!
Where can I buy California whites ? And Nz's
How do you keep the waters from freezing in winter.
I don't! In the winter I use aluminum bowls and thaw them twice a day.
Would you mind sharing the source you used from California for the reds? Thanks.
Manuel Hidaglo, I think he's listed on the ARBA site.
@@westmeadowrabbits thanks!
Thanks for the great videso! In hybridizing NZ with CA for meat, is there a benefit to doing male CA x female NZ or vice versa, or does it even matter?
I am not an expert on hybridizing but usually it does matter. Typically the strategy with hybridizing is to get the best of both worlds, by perfecting certain traits on each side. For example, your Californians have fantastic shoulders, and NZ have better hindquarters. You maintain both lines and harvest all the offspring.
@@westmeadowrabbits Thanks!
My thinking when I had rabbits was to buy a superior buck. As the saying goes the buck is half your herd. The Californian - New Zealand cross is an excellent one for meat. If you're going that route I recommend a Californian buck and New Zealand does. I am slightly more in favor of the Californian breed. 🙂
If you go with a pedigree breeding stock, do you have to register litters? If you had two bucks, could you do one pedigree litter followed by a hybrid litter?
Pedigree basically operates on the honor system. I will do a full video explaining how they work, but the breeder records the information. Essentially a pedigree shows the rabbits ancestors for at least three generations. A rabbit is considered "purebred" if all its ancestors for the past three generations are purebred rabbits of the same breed.
The only way a rabbit is registered is with the American Rabbit Breeders Association at a show. To register the rabbit, you need a pedigree, and it has to pass a physical inspection, so people usually only do that with important show rabbits.
Thank you!!!
LOVED this, helped me make some important decisions. But please retitle your video, this doesn't say WHERE to find stock. :) Could you do a video on that? Surely Craigslist is not the only place?
I think I sort of mentioned it in the video, but it will really depend on what you are looking for! For purebreds you can check the American Rabbit Breeders Association breeder directory, or your breeds specialty clubs. I would also look for state clubs, any working meat rabbit farms, and ask if your local feed store knows anyone.
@@westmeadowrabbits Thanks, this helps!
I have a question not pertaining to this video hope u don’t mind. How rare a tri colored rabbits?
That's no problem! It would really depend on the breed. The most common thing you will see is rabbits with two colors in different patterns.
Where are you located? Do you sell meat rabbits ?