Raising Rabbits for Their Wool

 Raising Rabbits for Their Wool

 

    DO YOU know that rabbit fur is dyed and used in the manufacture of synthetic sealskin coats? Well, it is, and it offers one more way for a wide-awake person to make a thousand dollars. Blanch Krabill, of Toledo, Ohio, had been raising rabbits for their pelts which she had been selling to a tannery at a profit. However, she discovered that she could make about as much money by shearing the rabbits for their wool instead of using the whole pelt. Her hutches now contain nine hundred rabbits which supply rabbit wool for commercial purposes. “I hated to kill the rabbits for their pelts,” Blanch said, “because I became so attached to them. But I had so many of them and they multiplied so rapidly that I could not afford to keep them. I had to get money out of them some way and when a friend suggested shearing them and selling their fur for wool, my problem was solved. Rabbit fur is softer than lamb’s wool, and not so greasy. My problem was to find out if there was a demand for the wool and, upon making inquiries, I learned about the rabbit’s commercial value as a wool producer. The Angora, with its unusually long silky hair, is the ideal rabbit for wool production. There are regular markets for this wool in all big cities, such as Detroit, Chicago and New York. Upon making this discovery, I sheared the rabbits and shipped the wool to the nearest market. “Rabbit wool is used for any number of things, such as knitting sweaters, baby clothes, muffs, scarfs and dresses. It makes a beautiful yarn which has the strength and durability of regular sheep wool although it is much finer and softer. I receive a dollar and forty cents a pound for this wool and shear the rabbits four times a year. The Angora rabbit is unusually large, and each one produces about one and one-quarter pounds of wool yearly.” The rabbit is one of the most easily raised of all the furbearing animals and as many as five hundred rabbits may be successfully raised in your own back yard. They are not subject to vermin of any kind, and resist practically all ailments. Success requires only ordinary attention to sanitation and cleaning the rabbit hutches regularly. The cost of raising rabbits in quantities of a hundred or more is about ten cents a rabbit. Miss Krabill gives this suggestion on breeding to those interested in raising rabbits. Secure two bred does and a buck from a reliable breeder who will guarantee them to be healthy, pedigreed stock. Specify that the buck must be from a different litter than the does, so he may be used when breeding the does’ litters later on. This precaution will enable you to mate the rabbits in the first and second litters without danger of inbreeding. Rabbits reproduce prolifically, and with good stock to start, you soon will have a number of animals with salable pelts. You can dispose of them through a tannery or, if you prefer, shear them for their wool.