Showing you how I groom a molting rex rabbit using a saw blade, and explaining why linebreeding (inbreeding) is useful in rabbits and other livestock to sort out genetics.
It’s not bad. The only thing it does is if you have a rabbit with a small weakness it can make that weakness appear a lot more in the kits. I’m trying to get my hands on some Japanese harlequins.
Even in the wild, per few acres, ALL wild rabbits are inbred. Rabbits have very small area of their whole entire lives, and they dont get to buy a train ticket to a different area. So - within an any given area, they are ALL related. The ones with wrong recesive genes simply dont make it. Become food for others. Only the best survive long enough to breed. Thanks for the grooming lesson. Advice- work with wet hands but have a bucket ready for quick rinses- works for me.
+Ann Fann linebreeding is great if you’re trying to weed out negative traits and encourage positive traits. As long as a breeder is willing to cull hard, it’s an extremely effective means of improving the quality of your herd. 😊
I have saved fur before, but I don’t often add any to the nests. For the most part even my first timers are good about making nice nests. Some of them actually pull too much fur and I have to remove some to keep the kits from overheating.
The blade I brushed her with? It’s just a fine toothed hacksaw blade that you can get at a hardware store. They get rex fur out better without damaging it 😊
It’s funny how bent out of shape some people get about inbreeding. I can assure them rabbits in the wild are not asking to see the pedigree before mating with another random wild rabbit. 😂
@ElbonMillFarm so true lol 😆 rabbit hey is this my daughter, mom yes oh ok I'll pass I can't do that lol never do that stuff they just hump the bit out of each other lol.... I'm glad I came across your channel I just start raising rabbits
I didn’t have any kits born with entropion. So thankfully the eye issue seems to have been from an injury instead of genetics. I did 3 different litters, so I’m pretty sure I’m good. But I still watch eyes carefully just to make sure I don’t miss a case of it, which would mean genetics. I am however now culling any kit who gets nest box eye, since the nest box eye is what caused her eye injury. Being susceptible to nest box eye might be an immunity issue, so I’m going to breed for stronger immunity.
Yeah, that’s why I usually just eat the culls. But occasionally people do ask if I will pet them out and in that case they have to pay to have them spayed or neutered and pick them up from the vet that way. Too many people lie and say they won’t breed a “pet” but then do and pass on bad genes 🙁
But what are you doing with the very first generation, I got two female but now I need to get a male who is not related to them at all, I mean I need to start of from somewhere. I do totaly understand what you saying about the genetics because my grandfather was a rabbit breeder.
I’m not sure what you’re asking? When I started I did buy somewhat unrelated stock. But now I only buy outside stock when I need to improve something my lines are weak on or if I want to bring in some genetics I don’t have.
I just got a flemish giant from a local breeder he only had 2 males he has re bred them already but should I get a sandy from a different pair or a fawn from the same pair as my current male. I don't plan on showing or pedigreeing them so I don't think the color matters too much.
+Shuyo Starwind I don’t breed Flemish, but I know my friends who do make sure they only breed color correct rabbits. If you plan to eat every rabbit, then color won’t matter, but if you ever plan to sell any to other people, you’ll probably have better luck if they’re color correct. As far as them being related, if they have great genetics, then those good genetics will be passed on. If they have bad genetics, those bad genetics will be passed on.
+Shuyo Starwind you’re welcome! I’ve got rex and while there are some colors they frown upon you breeding together, it doesn’t seem quite as strict as the Flemish world. And good luck with your breeding!
Great video. We got a a doe and buck from the amish. 2 out of 11 has a foot missing. They are getting fatter than heck. We breeding them to eat.. so I dont get what's up. Of course I like to keep some of the feet and make them in to lucky charms and dye them and sell them. But I dont have too.. yeah know. A lot kids wont buy them anymore like I did when I was a kid. Idk. Anywho this is a great video. Thank you for your time and sharing these ideas and suggestions. My boyfriend has only raised cattle, pigs and hound dogs. So he doesn't get in line breeding. Cant wait to show him this video.
Yeah, some people are funny about linebreeding. But if you’re willing to cull anything that doesn’t turn out the way you want, than it’s a great method to fix the good genes and weed out the bad.
