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Post by woodeye on Apr 2, 2023 11:42:35 GMT -6
That sounds great, FrostyTurnip . I have some bus tubs that would work real well for hauling it, I'll bring some along. Thank You!
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Apr 8, 2023 19:44:54 GMT -6
I've been so busy with everything else in my garden lately that I've not had time to spread any bunny berries or chicken litter either one. I'm glad you guys had this discussion, it reminded me that I need to put that chore on my list of priorities.
Doing things like that are so important, and so easy to overlook in all the commotion of Spring. I'm glad I read this. That helped to put that project back on my radar.
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Post by woodeye on Apr 10, 2023 19:09:30 GMT -6
Man you got that right heavyhitterokra, I have had so much extracurricular stuff going on during the last few months that time is not just slipping by, it's racing by. My brother has been in the hospital for 2 weeks, but he's out now. But more doctor appointments, treatments, tests, CT scans, are happening all the time. As of right now, I'll have 2 days this week that are not accounted. I've got to find some time to get more of my garden work done somehow. Barring another emergency, I hope to get some bunny berries this Sunday.🤞🤞🤞
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Apr 11, 2023 22:31:47 GMT -6
Woodeye,
I'm glad to hear Chester is out of the hospital now.
Those bunny berries sound like an up-and-coming tomato project to me!
More power to ya!
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Post by woodeye on Apr 12, 2023 10:55:40 GMT -6
That's exactly my plan, heavyhitterokra . I put my tomato plants out under the carport for their hardening session, They will be inside the Iron Curtain this coming week. 🤞Thank You, yes Chester had more chemo yesterday, his report this morning was that he is feeling okay right now.
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Jun 28, 2023 11:55:44 GMT -6
*hugs* woodeye I came here to post but was saddened. You will be too.
I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong with the hanging rabbit cages. They continued to come off the hooks.
Blackeye had figured out how to teeter and bounce the cage off the hooks. When his falls on top of the next rabbit cage, he starts all over again and works it until that cage comes off the hooks. I am somewhat reluctant to remedy the situation. Perhaps time in the chicken tractor will help.
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Post by macmex on Jun 28, 2023 12:39:46 GMT -6
Maybe change the style of fastener so he can't do that?
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Jun 28, 2023 12:48:10 GMT -6
Yeah. Looking into that. The goal was for ME to easily yank the cages off. Not every bun bun does this. For now, I will sandwich the back side of his wire cage between a block and the wall stud.
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Jul 3, 2023 10:27:34 GMT -6
Frosty,
Could you use an 'L' shaped lag screw or a bent 16 penny nail to turn 180° to the opening of the hooks to sort of form a turnable hook latch?
Kind of like this (L?) if the question mark were a hook, but flip the 'L' upside down. Actually, it might be easier to see if the question mark was flipped upside down.
Sometimes, I really wish we could draw sketches on our computer screens.
I oftentimes make turning hooks or latches by driving a nail about 1/3 of the way in, then bending the shank of the nail with the claw end of my hammer.
Even a straight 16 penny nail driven near the hook opening might work as a hook latch that could be sprung open when needed. Sort of like this, (I?) if the 'I' was a nail and the question mark was a hook.
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Jul 3, 2023 15:11:04 GMT -6
Yer sharp. You got the right idea. I’m using u bolts with some specialized hooks and separate l-shaped hooks. They’re for the u bolts and have a tiny bend in the upper portion to help keep it from slipping from weight.
Bill bought the u bolts and, afterward, handed me a box of spare hooks he had on hand. Some of them are l-shaped with only a slight angle on them and many are of different sizes, gauges and lengths. I used mig pliers to bend them into a sharp angle or a hook to help avoid slippage.
What I really need to do is order some more ‘hooks’ so they’ll all be the exact same dimensions. Then, use a laser level to sight their locations so I don’t need to adjust constantly by hand. Save time. I’ve been tinkering with them for three days. Lemme tell ya, rabbits are not very conversational. Blackeye and Momma Doe are enjoying the constant attention while I play podcasts.
Something had changed since I set about initial install and my time the last few days has revealed what it is. It’s important that I set the unbolt where I want it and gently tug the cable tight before tightening the bolts all the way. This slack in the cable is what created a tolerance causing the cages to teeter as they rocked the cages.
I considered, maybe, switching to chains and hooks in the near future, but the chains would actually have a more difficult tolerance to work with. As it is, the u bolts can be slid into a more exact position.
A wire brush and some machine oil are essential. Silly wabbits.
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Jul 16, 2023 5:00:43 GMT -6
I’m an really stuck. I need to stop production for a while, but finding it hard to do because I have young doe that is more than 15#. She’s the 2nd NZ giant that has been produced from a cross between a regular doe and Blackeye. I can’t cull her, for sure. But I cannot sell her, either. I just cannot let go.
When I had a giant NZ buck from the cross, he was so filthy I had to cull him. He would wiz on his feeder and his snout didn’t fit into the hopper and he was always getting eye infections. I literally didn’t have enough room for him. She’s not quite as big as that buck was. Well maybe she is, she’s a doe, so she’s just cleaner.
I think I just convinced myself to stop breeding for production and just work on some line breeding for traits. See how big they get without introducing more giant genes. Curious stuff.
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Post by macmex on Jul 16, 2023 5:22:04 GMT -6
Blackeye was something like 1/4 or 1/8 Checkered Giant, which is supposedly not a meat breed. However the person I got his daddy from said that the NZ/Checkered Giants made good meat rabbits. Bet you're seeing some recessive traits. My stock, on the other hand, is all NZ size. I've had a smattering of pure blacks in most litters and, by happenstance, I needed breeders on two occasions, when the best available replacement was black. Now, I'm at a point that I could easily end up with solid black and gray stock! I will set aside more spotted stock though. The only outside stock I've obtained since you got Blackeye from me was a pure white Satin buck, which my source person (very knowledgeable) told me would be a good buck. Well, he seemed good but dropped dead unexpectedly. I only had part of a litter from him available, and wouldn't you know, the only buck in it was pure black.
I named him Blackie. He's the most winsome rabbit I've ever had. Interestingly, when bred to a pure white NZ/Satin doe, I got 9 kits on the first litter and they were ALL PURE BLACK! I bred Blackie to an older half sister, named Negra (she's a pure black, but very closely related to Blackeye, with lots of Checkered Giant in her). She's large, gentle and has produced large litters which grow rapidly. Out of that cross I got a litter of solid colored kits, either black or gray.
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Jul 16, 2023 6:18:14 GMT -6
Fascinating stuff. So awesome to hear about the Blackie’s demeanor. Really makes the work so much more fun. I just got in from giving Blackeye a good ‘ol face rub.
So up to this point I’ve had black NZ does, White NZ does and California does. Hands down, the Checkered Giant genes are superior for health, vigor, heat tolerance and abundance. All the others are prone to disease and weaknesses, etc. I cannot compare taste, but for certain: Health and vigor produces more bun buns which means more meat production.
I’ll never do California does again, tho. They eat too much. Get fat. It was funny watching a morbidly obese rabbit hop around. Great dog food tho.
All my blackeye look a likes are bucks. The does are white or black.
This big black doe puts out litters of 9, or tries to. Usually end up with 7.
Fun stuff.
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Oct 28, 2023 11:30:57 GMT -6
For Goober’s sake, at least, I’m going to ramp up bun bun production.
More about feed. Currently, they’re on the 13% all stock from Atwood’s. Probably a different manufacturer than the chicken or dog food, but if the problem is supplies then the quality of the all stock might have been reduced as well.
I’m going to start hitting Stillwater Milling Company and stocking up. For some reason Arhberg’s rabbit feed is way expensive. They don’t make it themselves. Sad, because Arhberg Grain Mill is only 4 blocks away!
I figure Stilly Mill is using scrap or leftover grains to fulfil the rabbit pellets, but it is good quality. They thrive and their coats become shiny, they do not scratch out their feed as much, etc.
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Post by macmex on Oct 29, 2023 5:51:11 GMT -6
I have found that locally, "rabbit feed" is always expensive compared with all stock or most anything else which will work for feed. If I use "rabbit pellets" I feel I can feed just that, but by the time I've raised rabbits from birth to slaughter on it, I might as well have gone out and bought some meat. It's too expensive.
When we first served in Mexico as missionaries we served 100 miles from any place that would carry anything for rabbits, and this was at a time that the government was promoting rabbitry to improve the diet of the country's poor. Editores Mexicanos Unidos, which somehow worked in conjunction with the government, put out a fantastic, albeit not very polished guide for rural folk, explaining how to do everything with local materials. I learned more from that guide than any other resource. They explained that there are two types of diets for raising meat rabbits, intensive and extensive (This is transliterated.) Intensive is to simply use a balanced pellet, and that, exclusively. Extensive is to use a combination of forage and carbohydrate, usually from what's on hand.
Here's a paste of something I wrote someone, once:
----------------------------- I learned of the other “diet” when I was researching on how to help people in areas without access to commercial feed. In Spanish it is called “dieta extensiva” in contrast to “dieta intensiva.” This is simply translated as an “extensive diet” or an “intensive diet.” “Intensive” is what most rabbitries use, these days. The intensive method is not at all difficult. My experience is that it works as well as the intensive. It just takes a little more effort. Essentially, instead of feeding prepared rabbit feed, one feeds them two things. A carbohydrate of some kind and forage. The carbohydrate can be any number of things. I've experimented with old tortillas and bread as well as whole grain corn, barley and oats. They all worked just fine. The main observation which I recall, is that the rabbits will often waste some corn, eating out only the heart of the corn and discarding the harder part. But this only lasts a short while. Soon they become accustomed to the whole corn and eat the entire kernel. If you have a couple of chickens running under the cages, they will clean up the scraps. Forage can also be any number of things. I suspect that variety is good for them. There are all kinds of grasses and weeds which rabbits love. One could purchase a bale of hay and feed a lot of rabbits for quite a while, simply by peeling off a couple handfuls at a time, per rabbit. There are some things which are poisonous. But my experience is that the rabbits are never fooled. They know. If you watch them, they'll teach you what is good and what isn't. Just be sure, when trying something new, that they also have access to something that, for sure, they like. If the new stuff isn't good, they'll avoid it. The only time a rabbit would eat something poisonous is when there is nothing else, and it is desperate.
A couple of examples of acceptable forage: Alfalfa – dry or fresh is SUPERB. Rabbits can be raised on nothing else and if they have all they care to eat, they will produce quite well on alfalfa. A bale of alfalfa can last quite a while. Grass of almost any kind is good. Cornstalks – fresh or dried. Jerusalem Artichoke leaves and stems make good forage. Cattails – (green) probably have little nutrition, in themselves. But rabbits will eat them. Turnips, rutabagas and anything in the cabbage family – are readily eaten Carrots – serve as forage. Carrots are especially good for does during gestation, actually increasing their litter size. But they are “strong.” Start feeding them slowly. Avoid feeding carrots to kits. This can lead to diarrhea. Beets – rabbits eat the leaves alright. They grudgingly eat the roots. This makes beet root to be a good food to use if you are not going to be around and will miss a feeding. The beet root will provide sustenance and enough moisture for the rabbit to make it until you get back. Yet, the rabbit won't just gobble it up all at once. Canna and banana leaves make great forage. Jerreth and I actually grow the Chinese fiber banana (musa basjoo), which is hardy in most states. Currently, our largest plant is at least 15' tall and has a couple hundred pounds of leaf and stem. All of it, even the stems, are relished by rabbits. Lambs Quarters, pigweed, plantain, dandelion, creeping cucumber and curly dock are all common weeds which are relished by rabbits.
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For carbs, I've used whole kernel corn, which works great, though the rabbits have to become accustomed to it and learn to eat the whole kernel. At first they may decide to eat only the heart of each kernel and discard the rest. I've also used barley, oats, wheat, dried tortillas, and old bread.
In a pinch rabbits can be raised on pure forage, but their production and growth rate will be much much lower.
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