Chickens or Rabbits. Which to raise and eat?

[ksacres]

I can't get past the cuteness factor with the bunnies. I used to raise show bunnies (Hollands and AFL's) so I thought, what the heck, what's a few more cages and got some Calis from a breeder to raise for meat. First litter came out and even though they all looked the same, they were just SO DANG CUTE! I sold them. At a loss. I just couldn't do it.

Chickens, on the other hand, I could do. They aren't as cute, and broilers (Cornish X, bred for meat) STINK. Raise twenty five of them, and by the time you get to processing size, it will be sweet relief!

I used to raise chickens, and some where definitely pets and others were definitely beautiful, but they bred all the cute out of Cornish X, believe you me!


One thing to consider though, chickens are noisy. Rabbits aren't. Rabbits kept in clean cages don't smell. Cornish X smell. And they smell to process-wet feathers and the like. Having never processed or been around a rabbit being processed, I don't know if they smell or not, but I seriously doubt they smell as bad as meat chickens.

Or, you can have a few layers and have a renewable protein source. Or both.

OR, GET A PIG!!!

Ok, so maybe that wasn't helpful.

 

[thistlebloom]

Is that a Duroc? My younger sister did pigs in FFA, and I thought the Durocs were the, er, handsomest. They pretty much all tasted the same to me though.

 

[ksacres]

Yes, Tina (Tina, come get some ham!!!) was a Duroc. They are one of my favorite pig breeds. Tina was soooo cool, she was seriously a six-hundred pound pet. We did not eat her, we sold her because I got WAY too attached to even think about eating her. I'm sure she was delicious, she was raised free range on alfalfa, goats' milk, and corn/grain. But I'd have cried over every bite, so we just sold her. I cried every time I thought about her for weeks.

If we ever get pigs again, it will be a couple gilts to breed (and keep) and then piglets to raise, because with only one, I just get so emotional. I always tell my dh, there has to be at least a few that I can keep for always and get attached to those, then it's not so bad to butcher or sell the others because your heart only belongs to the ones you keep. That's my theory anyway. I know there are some people that just never care about animals, but I'm not one of them. They all get names, they all get affection. Because I think, even if you or someone else is eventually going to eat it, it still deserves to be happy while it's alive. But that's just me.

 

[thistlebloom]

Because I think, even if you or someone else is eventually going to eat it, it still deserves to be happy while it's alive. But that's just me.

I agree!

 

[hoodat]

There is verry little odor in killing and processing rabbits. Even the guts on chickens smell as soon as you open them up to clean. Rabbits don't. The skin slides right off like a glove once you get the hang of it.

 

[Southern Gardener]

Because I think, even if you or someone else is eventually going to eat it, it still deserves to be happy while it's alive. But that's just me.

I agree!

Same here. I thought I wanted to have some meat rabbits, but I just can't bring myself to kill them - chickens I don't have a problem with but bunnies I just can't.

 

[April Manier]

I don't care for rabbit, but I have only had it wild.

 

[hoodat]

There is a lot of difference between the meat of wild and tame rabbits. Tame are all white meat but not dry like chicken breast. I like both but haven't had wild in quite a while. Given my druthers I'll take snowshoe rabbits for my favorite.

 

[Jared77]

Captive rabbits have much more fat on them from a rich diet and lack of exercise compared to their wild cousins. We always age it like we do venison which makes a difference. They do cook up good though. Something about the magic of a beagles baying on a hot track that just gets me down deep in my core....

http://youtu.be/KkrY4IPt1gk

botched the link the first time but here ya go......

 

[hoodat]

Just a note. Rabbit fat isn't especially good tasting. It is more like oil than the fat of other animals. You should remove it before cooking. A rabbit has almost all of its fat on the innards with just a small strip down both sides of the back. If you refrigerate it a couple of days it gets solid enough to strip out with just your fingers.