My first rabbits came to me, hutch and all, from some kids that where tired of taking care of them. They were a pair of chocolate English Angoras. I eventually bred them and had some very nice colored offsprings. One white doe even won "Best of Breed" at the local County Fair. I quit breeding when I realized that a lot of the offsprings were not getting the attention required to keep Angoras healthy and clean. Admittedly it was that time consuming brushing what got me to change to short haired breeds. Over the years I have had Mini Lops, Dwarf Polish and the average Mutts.

All but one of my cages are large wire cages. I still have one old cage with a wooden floor and a grate in the corner to serve as the bathroom. Unless a rabbit is born in such a cage, they have a hard time grasping the concept of actually using the grate. All my cages are equipped with a feeder that hold one pound of pellets and two water bottles. In the heat of summer sometimes one bottle does not last 24 hours. In the winter I keep one set of bottles in the house and exchange the frozen bottles from outside in the morning with the set from inside. Rabbits relish warm water on a winter morning as much as you do a hot cup of coffee. All cages are built into a hutch with a solid sloping roof. I have heavy curtains to keep the breeze out in winter and light curtains to keep the sun out in summer. This past year I have added a mister system, since rabbits have a much harder time with heat than with cold. And this is Arizona.

My rabbits live on good quality rabbit pellets. Once a week I give them some straw or alfalfa. Every morning I feed one raisin per 2 pounds of rabbit, to keep them regular and to avoid hair balls in their intestines. They really love this sweet treat. They also appreciate the weeds from my garden.

None of my rabbits are the cuddly type. They like me but prefer not to be picked up. I'm o.k. with that. I keep my rabbits for the manure they provide and because I like being around them.

I would be happy to respond to any email questions.
My favorite reference book for Rabbits and more is "Barnyard in your Backyard " by Gail Damerow.