Before I evaluate what's going on in my barn, I want to say a word about seasons. There are definite seasons in the barn and that will affect the composition of the barn. Right now, we're in the pre-convention, heavy show season. That means that certain rabbits are not being bred that would have been in another season and there are more juniors of showing age than normal. Also, we're already begun the breeding season for Nationals, thanks to an earlier-than-usual show date.
So, one idea is that this evaluation should probably be repeated from time to time to get a picture of the different seasons in the barn as well as evaluate how I am doing over time with my plan.
The first step was taking a census of what I have. I found that not all cages fit neatly into one of my categories. I have 64 holes. Here's how they are currently being used:
- 13 hold one junior buck each
- 1 has 3 junior does in it (I know, I've got to get them separated soon!)
- 1 holds 1 junior doe and 1 junior fuzzy doe
- 10 hold one junior doe each
- 6 hold grand champion does with kits (total of 25 kits: 12 in nestboxes, 13 older) - three does are bred
- 1 holds one of my two remaining non-show does, she's bred
- 1 holds the other of my two remaining non-show does, she's not bred (and why not? got to remedy that)
- 1 holds a senior doe with four junior legs - her top front teeth are now crooked and I'm debating what to do with her - process her, pet her out, sell her to someone who wants to breed her - I've decided not to keep her, just haven't decided what is the best thing to do
- 1 holds 2 juniors that are going to the processor this weekend (there's one of my cages for the junior does that need separating)
- 1 holds my daughter's Netherland Dwarf, so really, I have just 63 holes
- 3 hold grand champion does that are bred
- 3 hold pre-juniors (a total of 11 bunnies)
- 5 hold grand champion senior does, open for showing at Convention (will be bred October 23)
- 3 hold show does with legs, open for showing, trying to grand
- 1 holds a GC show buck who is sold and waiting to go home with his new stepmom
- 3 hold broken GC herd bucks, one whose offspring I am evaluating so I will know whether I can offer him for sale to BW
- 2 hold broken herd buck potentials, working on granding, have already started breeding - these I expect to take the place of the herd bucks I've sold/am selling
- 2 hold GC solid herd bucks
- 3 hold young GC solid herd buck potentials
- 3 hold young solid her buck potentials that I am working on granding
- That's 100 rabbits, including kits, minus 4 that are leaving for one reason or another, leaving me with 96 rabbits: 25 kits, 11 pre-juniors, 28 juniors, and 32 seniors.
Wow, I hadn't realized that the holes were being used for so many different purposes, but they are. Let me try to sum up, though, and combine some of the data so that we can work with it better. I'll use 63 holes as my total, since one is really Anna's.
- 28 cages are currently being used to hold pre-juniors and juniors that are being grown out. There are a total of 38 rabbits in these cages. A large number of the juniors also double as show stock.
- 11 cages are currently being used for breeding - either for bred does or for dams with litters or does that need to be bred. There are a total of 10 does and 25 kits in these cages.
- 13 cages hold 1 show rabbit each. Eight of these are does that double as breeding stock. Two are being groomed as broken herd bucks. Three are being groomed as solid herd bucks.
- 3 cages hold broken herd bucks. All three also double as show bucks.
- 5 cages hold solid herd bucks, 2 established, 3 young. All also double as show bucks.
- 3 miscellaneous: sold rabbit, rabbits for processing, rabbit to cull
So, let's look at this in terms of percentages, shall we?
- 44% are being used to grow out juniors and pre-juniors.
- 17% are being used for breeding
- 21% are being used for rabbits that are actively being shown right now; does are not being bred
- 13% are being used for herd bucks; these bucks double as show stock
- 5% are being used for miscellaneous purposes
By next month, the percentage of cages allocated to breeding will go up when at least five of the does, and hopefully more (having granded), will switch from show status to breeding status (or back to breeding status, as the case may be).
I can tell from my percentages that I'm sitting pretty with solid bucks right now. My biggest problem is maturity. I'll just have to wait for that. My two mature bucks are LaForge and Boris. My young granded bucks are Leo, Java, and Merlin. The solid bucks I hope to grand in the next few months are MLK, Quincy, Prince William, and Lord.
I'm right on the mark with my broken senior bucks. My goal is to have four. I have Rio, Merlin, Imagination, and Myrrdin. Imagination and Myrrdin are both quite young, but I'm willing to bet on both of them.
A good number of my juniors will turn senior just after Convention. Just before and just after Convention will be a tough time for allocating cage space. I already know I have more that I want to keep than I'll have space for, especially since Nationals pre-juniors will start demanding their own holes by then.
Now, was I surprised? I was definitely surprised to find a brood doe just sitting there. She slipped through the net. I really did know about my senior buck situation, but I really prefer to have my head in the sand and pretend that I can keep them all for the long haul. I know that's not true.
I do keep an eye on my breeding does, so the number I have of each of them does not surprise me.
I have more kits and pre-juniors than I realized. I had been disappointed at my recent production numbers, but I guess they'll do for a start on next winter and spring's juniors.
I found this to be a very good exercise. It will also give me a bench mark for evaluations in the future. That should help me keep my stock moving, keep enough cages for growing out juniors, and always keep me questioning the use of every cage.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry “Home Of Grand Champions”
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