Hi Hivers, I want to share with you how I started my rabbit farm.
It all began as an inspiration from my Pastor, who has been a livestock farmer for years. What started like a joke in 2024 has now become a passion for me.
The first thing I did was to study about rabbits, and that was when I discovered that there are different breeds depending on what you want to use them for.
After learning the basics, I prepared a cage where I would keep the rabbits. Then I got a small space in my compound, fenced it, cemented it properly, and placed the cage there.
I bought two females and one male, all of different species.
My first night with them was very funny. I was so happy to have them both as pets and with the mindset of going into the business. I kept waking up at intervals to check on them in their cage before going back to sleep.
Feeding them has not been difficult because their food is easy to find around: moringa leaves, sweet potato leaves, carrots, vegetable stems, watermelon, soya bean chaff, corn, guinea corn, and more. I tried my best to give them a balanced diet twice daily.
A friend of mine, who is also a rabbit farmer, visited and advised me to condition their cage to look more like bare ground. So I arranged for sharp sand and spread it inside their house. He also told me to get an empty 25-litre vegetable oil keg, cut an opening on one side, and use it to prepare them for delivery. I filled it with a bit of sharp sand so it could absorb their toxic urine.
As a novice, I didn’t take note of their pregnancy stage. But after one month and two days, I noticed one of the females started shedding hair inside the prepared keg. Then I suspected she was preparing a “baby cot” for delivery. She even dragged the sack around the cage and scattered the broom I use for cleaning.
I left for work, and immediately I returned, I went to check on them. I noticed a movement under the pile of hair. When I opened it, I found five baby rabbits underneath. I literally jumped up with joy!
After one week, the second female rabbit went through the same process. This time I understood their behavior, so I wasn’t bothered. The next morning, I saw she had also shed her hair. Lo and behold, she had delivered five babies in the middle of the night.
At birth, baby rabbits look like bare flesh without hair. Within 4 to 7 days, their hair begins to grow out with their color. Their eyes remain closed for about 3 days, after which they start opening gradually.
They all grew well without any mortality. Altogether, I ended up with 13 rabbits two mothers, one father, and ten babies.
There are many funny habits these animals have, and I will love to share them with you in my upcoming posts.
Thanks so much for reading my post.