I have grown a considerable amount raising rabbits, seriously, when I started I was only about 4'5" now I'm 5'9". All jokes aside raising rabbits have taught me some of the best lessons I have ever learned.

1.) Patience. Waiting for a rabbit to have babies, those babies to grow up, and become prime for show does not happen overnight, and sometimes those babies you've watched closely don't turn out the way you want, which means back to the starting point.

2.) Responsibility. Rabbits are not going to feed and clean themselves, and it is not something you only have to do sometimes, it is an everyday thing.

3.) Independence. Rabbits are my responsibility, I should be paying for them, which means I need a source of income, because they aren't always going to pay for themselves, and I should not expect other people to fund my hobby. I need a job. (And right now, I need a better one).

Through raising rabbits, I have made many wonderful friendships. I've had a few heartbreaks, many more moments of pure joy, and I have learned to appreciate the finer things in life.

Grooming short haired rabbits.

Not many people think to groom a short haired rabbit, and often are told "they don't need it" they don't get matted like wooled rabbits, and they don't get wool block either.Well they do. And it's particularly important to groom when a rabbit is molting, removing the loose dead hairs so the rabbit doesn't ingest them while grooming, which can potentially lead to wool block.

My favourite tools for grooming short hair is a pumice stone, a comb, a spray bottle & water, and my own two hands.

What I do is, I'll comb the coat get the hairs all separated and standing up. Then I'll take the pumice stone and pull it through the coat starting at the base of the neck, and working my way down with slow stokes pulling up a bit at the end of the stroke. Going in the direction of hair growth, this removes any dead fur from the top coat.

Then starting at the tail, I'll use the pumice stone and go against the direction of hair growth in short strokes, to remove the dead for from the under coat

Once that is done, I take the comb through the coat again, then mist my hands with water and drag them through the coat to remove all the loose hairs. Then comb again.

If the rabbit is molting really badly, I usually repeat a couple times.

Um Hi. I have no idea what to blog about. I was bored, and figured, hey, why not blog? Well not such a good idea when you really have nothing to talk about.

Um well, I lost another Brun Kit. Sonata is down to 5 babies now, Prima Donna is down to 3, which Sonata is fostering. The thing is with the fostering is, Sonata's kits are all solid chocolate, 2 of PD's have big white streaks on their heads, and well the third doesn't so to tell him apart from Sonata's I coloured on him with Sharpie. He has black on his forehead, his right ear, inside his left ear, on his tail, and on his right hind leg. So if all that gets cleaned off I'm in trouble.

The Wiz is out in the exercise pen again, he loves it there.

Ice T is sleeping under my feet, he has free reign over the entire upstairs, yet you can always find him in the same place, under my computer desk, asleep or eating socks.

There is a week and a half until I have any litters due. 2 weeks until Mini Rex Nationals. So not much going on. I need to go to the feed store tomorrow if that's news?

Some observations

Observation between, Purebred and cross bred litters I have had.
Disclaimer: This is done with my own rabbits, and not to be taken to seriously because rabbits all have different personalities and different lines mature at different rates. So it won't be the same outcome for everyone.

Purebred Argente Brun litter:
-I have very similar sized kits in the litters. No runts, all sturdy kits.
-Really great meat qualities. No boniness what so ever.
-Fast growing. 5lbs by 8 weeks. (It's funny seeing an 8 week old baby larger then my biggest Mini Rex)
-Silvering comes in patches.
-Very friendly rabbits.
-Does not eat that much compared to size.

Cross Litter (Argente Brun X Harlequin)
-All different sizes, runts, large guys, and some in between.
-Very Weedy, lots of bone. Not very sturdy rabbits.
-Some were fast growers, some not so fast. None of them reached 5lbs at 8 weeks.
-Silvering came in strange. Like scattered hairs through the coat.
-Definitely not consistent in anything but personalities. (Very sweet rabbits).
-They eat a TON, actually more then a ton, yet they aren't growing that fast at all.

Purebred Mini Rex Litter
-All similar sized kits.
-Matured fast.
-All similar personality wise.
-I was able to accurately guess their mature weight while still very young.
-Eat A lot.

Purebred Jersey Wooly Litter
-Similar sized kits
-Matured at the same rate
-Accurately able to guess mature weight when kits still.
-Does not eat that much
-Very Reserved

Jersey Wooly X Mini Rex litter (raised by a Mini Rex)
-Very rangy, unusual for Mini Rex and Jersey Woolies.
-Matured slower (Like a Jersey Wooly).
-Shy personality (Like a Jersey Wooly).
-Typed like a Mini Rex
-Really strange fur.
-Did not eat that much (Like A Jersey Wooly)
-Died when I hit some bad feed, even though his cage mate who ate like a pig (Mini Rex) Lived.

Purebred Netherland Dwarf
-Small, similar sized kits
-Very Energetic kits
-Slow to mature
-Eat quite a bit compared to their size.
-More independent rabbits, didn't necessarily like human contact.

Jersey Wooly X Netherland Dwarf
-Very skittish babies
-Different sizes
-Very Slow to mature
-Ate quite a bit for their size
-They all had Wooly heads (if you've ever seen one without wool)

What I've learned from this is: You can't breed two different breeds together and assume you'll only get the good traits from each breed. Genetics don't quite work the way and you can have a completely random outcome the next time around.

I wish I had a video camera...

This past weekend I finally bought a Satin buck (two actually). Except this story is regarding the one my Mom likes to call "Charlie Sheen" a handsome broken blue. I've had him outside all day in the x-pen and he was enjoying himself quite well, eating grass, sleeping in the sun, and random bursts of running and jumping. He was quite the content guy...

...Until I went to bring him back to his cage. My mom and I decided that since he was relaxed and out anyways we should cut his nails. He let us cut them fine, then I had him on my lap patting his head and the dog wanders over and sniffs his face, (now that she's been freshly groomed she's not that much bigger then he is). Well he didn't like that at all, so he leaps off my lap to get away from her. My first instinct is to grab him, which would be fine if he were a 3lb Mini Rex, not a 9lb Satin with giant feet and freshly cut nails except thankfully for me my reflexes weren't quite as fast as a scared rabbit on the run, and I merely received two scratches on my wrist.

He sent a flat of pansies flying, which when they hit the deck were really loud and scares him even more, so he just takes off like a mad man on the run. There we stood watching him run off, the sun glinting off his coat spectacularly as he thundered through the neighbours yard. It was quite impressive watching him move, zig-zagging through the grass. We were sure of one thing as he ran away, we were not going to catch him while he was running. He hasn't even been here that long so he doesn't really know us. We were certain we just lost him.

That thought lasted all of two seconds, as he came to the neighbours yard 2 houses down, and stops running, and starts nosing around in the grass. So, wary of frightening him again, we sneak up on him, my mom going to the left, myself to the right as we go around the neighbours shed. And there Charlie looks at us like "What?" So I get on my hands and knees scoop him up, and we walk back home. He's just hanging in my arms exhausted from the effort. I stick him back in his cage and he flops on his side.

And that is why poor Charlie is a domesticated rabbit, and would never make it in the wild. The whole incident couldn't have taken more then 2 minutes, but it will definitely be in my memory for a long time.

St Hyacinthe Quebec Results.

Elvis Ain't Dead: 1st black senior doe. BOV, BOS
Noirette: 2nd black senior doe
Nuit Insensee: 2nd black junior doe
Born to Be Wild: 1st black junior buck. BOSV
Sancta Terra: 1st Chocolate senior doe.
Au Contraire: 1st Lilac Senior doe. BOV
Rendezvous: 1st Otter Senior doe. BOSV