What Is The Best Breed of Rabbit For Meat? 

It was the first breed you mentioned, but I was going to recommend the silver fox as well. We raise New Zealand’s and Silver Fox. The NZ are okay, but our Silver Fox mom is just amazing. I’ve heard they make good moms, but by golly. She is amazing with her kits. She is usually bred a couple weeks behind our other does and her kits always catch up to the weight of the NZ kits despite being a couple weeks younger. Such good rabbits with great demeanors. While we are lucky that all our rabbits have great demeanors, our SF buck is my favorite rabbit. Such a sweet guy! Good luck rabbit hunting!

I love my Silver Foxes. I had a few Champaigns and they were very sweet easy keepers too. I have had California/New Zealand crosses that lacked in loving personality. By far my Silver Fox are my favorite. So many choices!

I would investigate the American Blue. Rare, and valuable, and excellent mothering abilities, plus you help with saving an old breed. Excellent meat rabbit.

I prefer litters of 7 to 8. Not too many for one mom to feed, and not too many for me to deal with.

Florida Whites are hands down my favorite for all of the reasons you mentioned.

We had Tamuks, I had been told that they had the best meat to bone ratio and they eat less and get to processing weight faster. I hope to get back into breeding rabbits again as soon as I can get my hutches re-built.

We had Silver Fox for a few years. The buck was wonderful. The major con was the does. They didn't want to mate. They would tuck their tail and grunt. I went through 4 or 5 does and finally gave up. The buck was recently rehomed after getting too old, so now more Silver Fox. Now we have NZ Reds, and they seem to be OK so far.

We love our Silver Fox and Crème d’Argents!!

We chose silver foxes because they are docile. Our children handle them regularly and we’ve never seen any aggression from a silver fox yet. They are becoming more common and colors are easier to find. We have blacks and chocolate. Looking to add lilacs in the future. In our experience the silver fox are great mothers. We have yet to lose a baby rabbit for any reason.

I have Palomino, New Zealand and Blanc de Hotot's. I raise for show and meat. For those that are unfamiliar with palominos, they are great rabbits. Calm temperament, easy to handle, beautiful coloring, good mothers, no complaints from me. The kits grow as fast as my New Zealands. For meat purposes, I had two litters of Palomino x New Zealand kits. The first litter grew at an average rate during the hot summer. The second litter grew faster than the purebreds during the late summer/early fall. Palominos are in demand for showing in my area, so I rarely have to butcher them for meat because they sell out. New Zealand are in demand with other people who raise rabbits for meat. This year I sold more kits as breeders/show quality than butchered, and actually put me in profit. Selling some of the kits offset all the feed and supply costs, which means any meat I get is free to me. I agree with you that there will (and should be) people raising purebred rabbits. There are a lot of great uncommon or rare breeds out there that need help gaining popularity. Experimenting with hybrid vigor (and rabbit genetics in general) is fun, but a person will always need that pure doe and buck to start. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

I have silver fox I think they're a great breed I'm waiting until 16 weeks for harvest as I want the pelts too

Supposedly, Polish used to be meat rabbits. They are so tiny though! I have Rex and Cinnamon, and then my husband surprised me with a Polish buck, and he wants to get a doe for him. Rex are awesome! Nothing feels soft after handling them, they are the softest things I've ever seen! Cinnamons don't seem to behave any differently, although my doe doesn't much like being handled, she cooperates, but she definitely dislikes it. The Cinnamons seem to grow faster than Rex, and they're pretty hard to find.

I have California, New Zealand White, and Silver Fox rabbits. My California doe is amazing and my Silver Fox buck is the sweetest and easiest to handle. I haven’t looked into other breeds, so this gave me some things to research as my does are hitting the end of their fertility and it’s time to start looking for replacements. Thanks, Chris!

We've always taken our babies to auction till this year..it was really tough to harvest. Had a friend out to do the dispatch lol. Gave him the hides and I took the feet and made lucky rabbits foot keychains for Christmas! Overall good experience. Good luck choosing your breed. I've always done newzeland/rex because they make cute babies with good patterning and typically get big for eating 🙂

We have New Zealand’s, and Tamuk Composites. We love our Tamuks! They are the sweetest, and they are great mothers. Our New Zealand’s are a tad skiddish, and just sensitive. Idk. Maybe because of the last breeder.

Back in '94 when I started in rabbit breeding Florida White rabbits were common in New England and I could easily get new "blood" to improve my heard. About 4 years ago I switched to Californians and was disappointed in their breeding. I've now tried to revert back to Florida Whites but they are hard to come by except in at least two to three States away, sometimes even more. Fl. Whites have great meat to bone ratio, they don't eat nearly as much as Cali's, and because they are small don't foul their cages near as bad as larger rabbits. I really plan on making a road trip in spring '22 for a new Fl. White heard.

Good morning, from Hawaii! Love your videos and the info you share. I'm raising meat rabbits, Nz/Flemish hybrids, currently 3 does and a buck. My doe had her first litter and she threw 9 babies in a beautiful nest. I'm on the lookout for a pure NZ White.

Your content is absolutely pure gold. Thank you so much. Please keep up the rabbit and quail videos!

I would recommend the American Blue breed.

This Dude speaks the truth. We recently added Silver Fox to our Californian line-up. The Fox is a fabulous breed and easily rivals the size and robust nature of the Californian! Our differing claim is that the Silver Fox is quite mellow, calmer, and seeks attention. The maternal instincts and nesting habit are astounding. I guess it all depends on genetics vs. environment :-)

Our two does are silver fox/new zeeland cross, both 12 lbs. They have big litters with 12 babies, they are good mamas and very sweet. They love their daily headrubs and they are so easy to handle! BTW, your advice to drive my one doe around the block before mating her with our buck: it worked! She was not grumpy anymore and our buck had some successful fall offs. Oh and another thing: we breed with something that was supposed to be a flemish giant. He is white, BLUE eyes and is now full grown, a year old and still just 8 lbs no matter what and how much we feed him. We think, we got cheated. He is a white something 😂😂😂 but produces good sized rabbits.

Good point about hybrid vigor. I think Silver Fox are the way to go. 67% dress out weight, unique stand-up fur and most lines are carrying white these days. The SF white fur is unique and I've seen uniformity in the pelts of the 6 I've raised. Silver Fox only have stand up fur when pure blooded, so your pelts prove the lineage.

Hi Chris thank you for the update I've just got 2 new Zealand does and I believe the buck is a Tamuk haven't bred them yet have to get another cage and nesting box. My first time and want to do it right ✅

We are very happy with our TAMUKS especially down here in Ms the heat tolerance is excellent

Check with your local community College and high school ag programs. I got my new Zealands from school ag programs where they were tracking breeding and colors. They breed, raise and sell them to fund the program. Good luck and thanks for all you do!

I personally LOVE my rex(not mini) the temperment is amazing, great moms, I average 10 per litter. And in my area alot of people are looking for Rex. Grow out rate is a little slower than the NZ I had but it's worth it for me for the temperment and ease of rasing alone. I had a few NZ and they were straight up mean. I've also been breeding for heat tolerance in my lines. Usually I can breed from sept- early June with no real issues.

Hi there! I love your videos!! they've given me such good ideas, even as I keep angora rabbits :) But you've got me thinking about meats... I just started looking at best breeds like 2 days ago! So thank you on this!! I've been thinking of American Chinchilla, so thanks on your thoughts! :) thanks on the flemish info! and what do you think about champagne d’argent?? I've seen them called 'the black angus' of rabbits... and I've never tried rabbit!! we're looking around to see if we could do a taste test! ?? thoughts on chinchilla taste, champagne d'argent, also Silver Marten?? vs. white new zealand or california?? thanks so much again!! Love your channel!!

I have a fenced area for my composting, I call it the retirement villa.. have a couple older, non producing rabbits out there.

Love my silver foxes!! Sweet, gentle, never grumpy!! Dont care if you handle the kits! Even first time moms are great!! Great nest builders..pull tons of fur!! Beautiful fur...my pure buck is chocolate, my pur does black with silver tips..dress out good ratio of meat vs bone...highly recomend them..treat them gentle and they respond in kind..got a new Zealand that attacks, but good mom, nice litters..bred her to my californian this time, got an American chinchilla buck that loves attention .beautiful rabbit...going to test bred ..mix and match to experiment.

Dec 14th i expect my first 2 Florida White litters. I chose this breed due to my own health. I have very bad arthritis and need a smaller breed. I will be raising Mini Rex as my 2nd breed as well but do not have a breeding pair yet.

I have a few different breeds, but I mainly breed standard Rex. I love them, they are my top choice. There are better meat rabbits, but you can get decent growth rates and the babies are easy to sell for extra income. I also tan some hides and they are the best for that. You did mention the white pelt thing for crafting, actually you can get white Rex. Other breeds are great too. My current favorite meat rabbit is my silver fox doe. First litter was 11 kits, raised them all and grew out great. Thanks for the video Chris! Love the content. Whenever you start selling pure bred nz whites I might have to pick some up from you.

Thanks Chris , for this review. No current plans t get rabbits, but we have discussed it. But, with our bigger flock of ducks, chikens & have incubator full of White wing jumbo Pharaohs from MySHire. a complete change of bird for us. plus we just sent three large hogs to processor. Dicided not to take on anything new for a bit. Will be following though.

Champagne d' argent also gives the NZ and Cali competition.

Where do you sell the hides and what do you have to do to them first? Am thinking about getting some rabbits but had not thought about the furs. Thank you for the informative videos you put out. Just found you and am looking forward to catching up!

Chris, your point at 18:40 is well taken. Get purebred stock from a reliable source. This year we sold a four-pack meat stack of Californians to some kids that knew what they were doing....came back with Reserve Champion and GRAND Reserve Champion at the Waterloo County Fair.

If you have access to the ARBA SOP( standard of perfection) the breeds with commercial and body type were primarily meat producers If one is into spinning fiber, a good Angora will produce good meat quality and quantity. I loved my AmChins and Rex. Nestbox eye...my AmChins never developed that issue.

Howdy Chris and hello from Southeast Texas! I am in the preliminary stages of beginning our rabbitry and would like to know if You have located any reliable sources for pure bred New Zealands? Truly enjoy Your channel and the content, please keep up the great work!

What is your thoughts on the American Blue rabbits?

I have a pair of new Zealand and a pair of American whites. The American buck is the biggest buck I've ever seen. The litter size is good and the doe is an awesome momma.

I failed to mention I’ve raised meat rabbits for many years and the Tamuk were in pens side by side next to my New Zealand’s and Californians.

I have Americans and love them. They are a real gem. I'm phasing out my rex and new zealands for Americans and silver fox. Americans have a longer loin which is our favorite part. They have great temperaments too.

I could rekommend a Swedish hertidge breed called Gotlandskanin they are extremely hardy and feed effective. And very good mother's.

I seem to remember VW Family Farm on you tube mentioned that they got Tamuks, you may want to shoot them an email and see if they plan to sell any in the near future. If you don't know, they are located in Arkansas, I'm not sure if that's too far for you.

Great video Chris, l learned a lot from you on this one. Never heard of Tomux rabbits. But, sounds like a good choice for me since I am in TexXas! I've done some cross breeding with my Netherland dwarfs & mini- rex's. They make great pets & pelts! Not bad eating either. I am hoping to start making some RU-vid videos of my own soon.

You may want to investigate a TAMUK, Taxas A&M University Kingsville. I’ve had good luck with them

New Zealand for life! I love the colorful ones you don't have to stick to albino

Roughly what would you think the white dyeable pelt would sell for? I have no frame of reference for this yet.

Anything with a full grown weight of 9-12 lbs. I like REX. They are great for me

Good morning. I might disagree with some of what you have said. But it is easier to process rabbits if they all look the same. I have had rabbits since my twenties and now in my seventies.

Does it make a differance witch breed (new zeland/california) is the doe or buck? Great channel, thanx

The reason NZs are so common... PelFreeze only buys white rabbits. That company set the bar for rabbits all those years ago when rabbit was commonly found in the meat case.

Chris I have no straw kits do 2 December got ideas what to use for nesting no dryer either

I breed Standard Rex, NZ's, and Tamuk's.... Your climate does dictate which breed is best. I am in Florida and most rabbits go sterile above 90 degrees. We are above 90 for 4/5 months a year! That's why I've added Tamuk to my herd which stay fertile up to 110 degrees.... Got my bases covered....

Question: why did you not use any of the buck/doe bred?

I've had NZW rabbits and added one Cinnamon buck later for several years now and am interested in getting a different meat breed like Silver Fox or Champagne D'Argent. After having White rabbits I think it would be nice to get some color. When I breed my Cinnamon buck to a NZW doe I get most of the litter all black and a couple brown color kits. I was hoping I would get a broken colored kit.

Lol @11:33 was that a fart??? 🤣🤣🤣🤣

What’s your opinion on TAMUK rabbits?

Can't beat trio of purebred NZ white for starter. 2 bucks are redundant. Why feed them both?

I find the complete opposite to be true on selling pelts. I can almost always sell colored and broken pelts. All white pelts rarely sell for me.

I'm doing silver foxes!

So my doe stopped feeding her babies at about 3 weeks. In 2 days I've lost 7of 9 babies. What happened?

Thanks you sir we are following from East Africa

Vă salut, sunt din România aveți canal bun, înțeleg engleză puțin,întrebări,cu ce hrăniți iepurii mici și care este diferența dintre Argintiu Francez și Silver Fox

Thank you for information. Blessings🙂

do you have a video on feed or mixing pellets here are expensive $20 a bag i mix with oats to thin it out but oats are $16 a bag to

Chris I have started a small rabbit farm. When I say small I mean small. I live in the Philippines but I'm from Seattle. I don't know my breed of rabbits. How can I tell what breed of rabbit I have? My buck is larger then my doe they were born April this year. But they don't know the breed.

Tamuck rabbits are good but if its a cold month born rabbit it may have lost the heat tolerance. I will post on the fb group you I know someone that has pure pedigree new Zealand.

What would you say about havana rabbits do you think they would be good enough to breed with say a California or New Zealand?

I'm surprised you didn't mention much about bone to meat ratio. Small, medium and large boned rabbits and the pro and cons of each

One of my favorites is a french lop

do the black rabbits have a harder time in the heat?

Hello i was wondering why my day 2 bunny turned purple then died. We unexpectedly found babies in our rabbits cage so i dont know much and what time should i feed them the mother just wont feed them we had 9 and only 3 survived. Thank you for reading i hope i can get any help i would very much appreciate it!

How about a Flemish giant cross ?

I breed Rex and New Zealand. I can cross them or not. I just had two litters and I'd give you some free. I've even got a small Polish doe. She is small but if I cross her with my Rex she produces some good fat chunky babies. Smaller frame but still good for the table. Right now I'm sitting on 13 babies and in two more weeks that will double. If anyone is in my area Custer SD leave a comment and anyone wants a rabbit or rabbits. I can get you started.

What do you go with the fur?

Did you find the Tamar rabbit?

What do you do with the fur?

I'm going to be buying some TAMUK

What about Flemish giant and Continental giant?

For a family of three I raised Mini Rex and was happy with the meat. We had them, though because my daughter wanted them for a 4H project. They are lovable and pelts are wonderful plus so many colors. Most were good moms and one was not but we also had a supermom. We could put little strangers in her litters and she never cared and raised them all. Kept them for 15 years but recently got out of them. May do them again after a break.

where do you buy rabbits from.

Are u selling them or eating them

TAMUK is pronounced tam ook. TAMUCC is pronounced tam uck. Just a friendly tip from a TAMUK alum. Also, TAMUK rabbits are not a breed, they are a composite intended for terminal production. They do not breed true when you breed them to each other.

The offer I made him, I will extend to any of the meat breeders and stock breeders.

Is a Rex Rabbits a good breed for meat ?

Don’t waste your time with the Texas A&M Tamuk rabbits. I drove 12 hours in each direction to buy this breed of rabbit after a lot of research to find a reputable breeder. They do not hold up to the hype. I had some die from the heat, they did not breed in the heat they didn’t grow out that well.

I find it weird how people say “New Zealand White” like it’s a different breed from New Zealand’s, even though its just a color variation of the New Zealand breed.

i just got rid of mine too i feel that feel time for a change for a bit

so you don't like reds?

good food

Are there any rabbits that taste better than others?

how to keep your rabbits from biting

Champagne d'Argent?

mind if i ask your opinion on flemish giants for meat?

Just my opinion...I've had tamuk... I'm in Tyler Texas & they are NOT that great. Their meat is NOT that great either. They are NOT as heat tolerant as one might think. Pelts are NOT that good either

If you are serius about meat rabbits, the best is Tamuks. Period.

Good info for sure. I learned my lesson with slow grow out of mutt rabbits. Turned out they are NZ/Cali/Flem Giant and maybe more. Lesson learned. I will take your advice and get a pure Cali and a pure NZ soon and hopefully have better results.

End of the day Californians are my favorite for meat. There's a reason they're ranked 1 or 2 in most cases.