The Huron Expositor, 1975-08-28, Page 17AtI
OLI
It
W
N
A
A, c
SECOND SECTION 1A — 8A THE HURON EXPOSITOR, AUGUST 28, 1975
Bunny business .,boo: s
Three local, men raise rabbits for fun and profit
IT'S CHOW TIME -- Charlie Campbell is preparing
the rabbits food. They eat pellets which are strained
through a screen in the trough. (Staff Photo)
Rabbit raising has become a
profitable hobby for some Sea -
forth area residents.
Jim Crocker and Charlie Cam-
pbell, two.Seaforth town council-
lors started into the bunny
business about a year and a half
ago.
"It's a hobby, really. Some-
thing.to dp., .it's nice to go out to
the barn and have something to
do," Mr. Crocker said.
They have about 100 rabbits on
his farm on the fifth Concession of
Tuckersmith, and although there
is not much money in it, he said:
"We're having lots of fun."
As councillors they have plenty
of meetings but whoever is free,
looks after the rabbits. "For the
number we have, there is not
much upkeep," he said.
As rabbit raisers they started
from scratch with two does and a
buck, and remained a small
operation' until "we knew what
we were doing."
Since beginning less than two
years ago, he estimated they have
had about 600 rabbits which have
either been shipped to market live
or killed, by themselves.
They used to ship them out live,
but .they had to drive 20 miles
every two weeks, and it was
inconvenient. Now they kill,
process, and then freeze about
five every two weeks.
The feed is their major expense
and pretty well all their money
goes toward it, Mr. Crocker said.
Their rabbits get commercial
pellets which cost about $200 a
ton. Some people will feed them
fresh hay and carrots but they
don't seem to do as well on them,
he said.
Larger breeders are. able to
take advantage of deals with feed
companies so their costs may be
less,. he said.
°Tbe fryer rabbits sell for about
$4. a piece and breeding stock for
about $7.50. The fryer are usually
sold at around 4 to 6 pounds.
Besides selling the rabbits for
THE RABBIT ICING-- Tom Jorgensen, sometimes
referred tons the Rabbit King, is weighing a few of
the rabbits he raises at his Tuckersmith rabbit farm.
(Staff Photo)
meat, they are also shown at
_ rabbit . shows. A Campbell -
Crocker entry won best of breed
last year at a show.
The rabbits are judged on their
size, shape, colour, firmness,
lines of the rabbit similar to other
judging competitions for livestgck
The rabbits are classed accord-
ing to pedigree such as the New
Zealand, the snow-white. type.
Dutch and English spot rabbits.
The Crocker -Campbell operation
keeps only California rabbits,
which are white with black feet,
nose and ears. These rabbits are
kept because "it's one of the two
best meat animals" and have
good temperment and large lit
ters.
Misters Crocker and Campbell
are members of the Canadian
Rabbit Breeder's Association,
CRBA, which held a rabbit show
in Exeter last April.
There are about 300 to 400
rabbits at these shows so it's not
easy to ;win these competitions, he
said.A grandchampion must win
three best of breeds:
If you associate bucked teeth
with rabbits due to the influence
of Bugs Bunny, you would be
surprised to know that Bugs has
an inherited defect, caused by a
recessive gene.
This was reported in a booklet
distributed by the CRBA. The
article said it was impossible for
inherited buck teeth to appear in
a litter unless both parents were
carriers of the recessive gene.
Bucked teeth was considered a
serious problem because it dis-
qualifies a rabbit from compet-
ition and makes it,difficult for the
rabbit to eat.
When Mr. Crocker was asked
about the dangerto his rabbits
from this, he said: "I laughed
when I came across it."
"We're careful of a4ry stock we
get in," so in this way problems
are kept to minimum. He said
they don't lend rabbits and keep
the barn well ventilated to
prevent disease.
No Dog Problejn
The rabbits are kept in an old
pig barn, and so they haven't had
any problems with dogs killing
their stock.
Rabbits have a "very short life
span", if you'don't make pets out
of them, he said. It takes eight to
ten weeks for rabbits to reach
frYer size.
Pregnancy lasts 30 days and
the doe can be re -bred after three
weeks. For a doe kept for
breeding, her life span could be
from two to three years and for a
buck two years.
Mr. Crocker said a doe can
have 'an average of eight litters a
year with perhaps 190 babies in.
three years.
When asked if Bugs Bunny or
the Easter Bunny has damaged
the rabbit market, he said: We're
trying to overcome that. Every
animal has been characterized by
someone."
'He said they sell their rabbits
mainly to families and ship them
to Toronto where there is a large
ethnic population, that considers
rabbit a part of a stable diet.
"The problem is getting people
to try them for the first time.
Anyway you cook chicken, you
can cook rabbit," he said.
Tom Jorgensen, is known by
some in town, as the "Rabbit
King." Not only has he been in
the business for the last ten-.-.
years, but he estimates he has
had around 10,000 rabbits over,
the years.
Mr. Jorgensen -has one of the
largest operations in the area with
300 rabbits, and has encouraged
and supported others to start, to
raise rabbits.. Mr. Jorgensen said
he couldn't begin to guess how
many people he got started in the
business since some had bad luck
and got disgtjsted and quit,
others raised rabiiits but have
since got out of the business.
He said there are probably
more than a dozen people in the
Seaforth area involved in raising
rabbits.
WHAT HAVE WE HERE? -- Jim Crocker examines
one of his California rabbits to make sure It doesn't
have any, sores. This buck's pedigree can be
determined by•Its black nose, tail and feet. (Staff
(Staff Photo)
Story by Nancy Andrews
Photos by Dave Robb
a
a
Mr. Crocker gives credit to Mr.
Jorgensen for getting them start-
ed. He and CharlieCampbell came
to him for advice and he said he
thought at the time they would be
successful. Just last year, the
Crocker -Campbell -Jorgensen trio
took away all the awards at a
rabbit show held near Sarnia.
"I like to show rabbits, it's a
good hobby good advertising and
you meet a lot of nice people."
Mr. Jorgensen said.
Mr. Jorgensen tells those in-
terested in raising rabbits that
there is work in it or it won't pay.
There is money in rabbits just like
there is money in other types of
livestock.
Part Time
He figures it takes about an
hour and a half to take care of his
300 rabbits each day. This is one
of the advantages of raising
rabbits, because, "It's a hobby
you can look after quite well while
working. "Also you can keep
rabbits in a small buildings.
He suggests those starting into
the bunny business, begin with
only a few animals.
Mr. Jorgensen said a person
"never gets done leaming about
rabbits, each rabbit seems to be
different."
In spite of this admission, he
denies any attachment to his
rabbits.
Mr. Jorgensen is on the
executive board of the South
Huron Rabbit Breeders Associa-
tion, SHRBA, which has meetings
once a month. The entrance fee is
$3.00 and the club which has 40
members, is the biggest in
Ontario, he said.
Although, Mr. Jorgensen ad-
vised and encouraged the
Campbell -Crocker business ven-
ture, their operations differ.
Both, however, raise California
rabbits.
Mr. Jorgensen said he doesn't
specialize in killing his rabbits
because it takes too much time.
Instead, about 20 to 50 are
shipped every two weeks to the
SHRBA, located ' near Exeter,
which in turn ships the rabbits to
inspected packing plants.
While the Crocker -Campbell
combination weans the rabbits
after about five weeks, and then
kills and processes their fryers
after they are eight to ten weeks
old, Mr. Jorgensen takes the
rabbits directly from their mother
to the market. Weaning them
from the mother, stunts them for
four or five days, then you have to
keep them a week longer. "I tl*nk
they cost more that way." he
said.
FIe said the rabbits are supposed
to weigh four pounds in eight
weeks, but it is the last couple of
weeks that they gain.
Pens Help
Mr. Jorgensen said wire pens
helped to prevent disease be-
cause the rabbit droppings fall
from the cage.
Once in a while he'll buy
rabbits to have a new bloodline
and usually he buys them from the
United States. There are quite a
few full-time rabbit raiser who
come to Canada fromt he U.S. for
shows, he said.
Mr. Jorgensen would warn
novice rabbit raisers to watch
where they get the rabbits, so as
to prevent the spread of disease
from other rabbit hutches.
"Right now, there is a big
demand for rabbit." More people
are buying it because the law
says they have been inspected
and they have a stamp right on
them." he said.
"A lot of those who sold
diseased rabbits were weeded
out, because they couldn't pass
inspection. The industry is better
off without them," ite.,dded.
He said very few'` nts are
running at full capacity because
they are not getting enough
rabbits.
Rabbits don't multiply as fast
as some people think and he
expects only about four litter a
year, per rabbit, he said. But last
year he estimateshe shipped
about 1400 rabbits to market.
if Mr. Jorgensen ever had any
idea of going into rabbit raising
full-time, an experience last
winter would have convinced him
otherwise.
As he said: "No, I think I'll stay
part-time, things can easily fail."
Stole Feed
Last February when he was
HELD IN THE PALM OF A HAND — At about two
and a half weeks old this bunny is just about small
enough to fit into the palm of one's hand. This
Californian rabbit's ears, nose and feet wily turn
black when it gets older. (Staff F'hoto)
attending a rabbit club meeting,
someone stole nine bags of feed,
and sixteerf rabbits.
The old schoolhouse where he
kept his rabbits was broken into
by someone who knew rabbits
and probably knew he was at this
meeting.
As he said: "They even took
some of my crates to take them
away. "If this wasn't bad enough,
the thief jeft the door open, and
70 day-old rabbits died of cold in
their nest box during one of the
stormiest nights of the winter.
No one was caught and it's
hard to determine the worth of
-the day old rabbits, but two
months from then they would
have been woit'h something, he
said.
Rabbit can be expensive and is
in the same price range as T-bone
steak. "A lot of people say it
tastes like chicken but in doesn't,
it's much sweeter, higher in
protein and lower in fat," he said.
A domestic rabbit tastes quite
different from wild rabbit which
has a taste typical of wild
animals. As well he said, rabbit
has a nice smell to it when it's
cooking.
Tame rabbits are all white meat
and wild have all. dark meat. "We
ate some, 1 really enjoyed it,"
Mr. Jorgensen said.
A recipe book published by the
Canadian Rabbit Breeders des-
cribes how to makes such dishes
as rabbit a la flamande, Hawaiian
barbecued rabbit, gourmet sabbit
and rabbit caciatore.
Although, Mr. Crocker and
Mr. Jorgensen have encouraged
this reporter to taste rabbit before
writing the article, I'll take'
they're word that it's a s good as
they say. For the more advent-
urous stomacher here are a
couple of recipes.
OLD RABBIT SOUI
Cut up a large old rabbit in
small pieces and put in . roaster
with three blades of mace, . a little
salt, 2 large onions, '/: pint of red
wine and 3 quarts of water-. Bake
in 350 degree oven for 3 h ours.
Strain into large pot. Have ready
boiled 3 ounces of french,, barley
or sage water. Scald the li ver- of
the rabbit in boiling water 2 m in.
Ruil it through 'a fine sieve with
the back of a wooden spoon. Ad'd
to soup with '/h lb. butter-. Sti.r
while heating, but do not boil.
.Serve. (This is a rich soup.)
BAKED RABBIT WITH
TOMATOES
2'/I Ib. rabbit
'/s fresh lemon
2 med. onions sliced
1 sweet red pepper sliced
2 ripe tomatoes - peeled & cut in
wedges.'
'/s cup bacon drippings melted
'/. tsp. salt
Black pepper
Cut rabbit into serving pieces.
Rub pieces with cut side of lemon.
Place in 2 qt. casserole. Add
onions, red pepper, tomatoes,
bacon drippings. Sprinkle with
salt and pepper. Cover casserole.
Bake in 325 degree oven, i'/2 hrs,
or until rabbit is, fork tender,
basting occasionally with pan
juices.
R. Bizley
LOOKING AFTER HIS RABBITS — Tom Jorgensen
who has been raising rabbits for the last ten years
says the wire cages help to prevent diseases. Here he
checks on some of his stock. (Staff Phots)
1411
�I
1�s