Is it profitable or not to raise rabbits as a home business? Breeding rabbits as a business: profitable or not

17.09.2023

The profitability of rabbit farming in our time is quite high. Many farmers know the secret of successful rabbit breeding, understand the specifics of the business, successfully make a profit and do this for many years. The question of whether rabbit breeding as a business is profitable or not is relevant only for inexperienced farmers.

Breeding rabbits: positive and negative aspects

Many are put off at the initial stage by the difficulties associated with the sensitivity of rabbits to certain diseases, which often lead to the complete death of the entire herd.

And the third scary thing about rabbit breeding as a business is the large initial investment.

In fact, rabbit breeding is a fairly quickly paying off enterprise that does not require any extra knowledge or effort to achieve a stable profit. Many rabbit breeders easily cope with the task, and there are many more positive factors here.

At the initial stage, it is important to choose a good breed of animals that give high growth, quickly gain weight, and are resistant to diseases.

Why you shouldn’t be afraid of negative aspects:

timely vaccination of the entire livestock will eliminate the loss of animals;
many butchers, shops, and market stores accept and place orders for dietary rabbit meat;
neighbors and relatives are always provided with rabbit meat and are happy to purchase a healthy product (proved by more than one rabbit breeder);
rabbit fur is valued as a natural, warm and beautiful material, making it easy to find regular buyers for the fur;
the ability for frequent fertilization, year-round litter (one female brings about 60 rabbits per year), allows you to expand production without the cost of purchasing individuals;
The rapid growth of rabbits contributes to uninterrupted production and stable income.

In addition, rabbits love green food, which is abundant in the summer-autumn period in every rural area, which also saves costs.

Secrets and basics of successful rabbit breeding

The positive aspects will be visible from the very beginning if you correctly draw up and apply a business plan for breeding rabbits. You will have to start from the possible and intended scale for which the enterprise is designed.

Where to begin:

determine the method of raising livestock;
decide on a designated area for pens, shads (special buildings), cages, enclosures;
prepare a place for rabbits to “reside”;
think over and prepare a workplace for slaughtering, freezing and storing the product;
purchase specialized feed;
choose a rabbit breed;
purchase young animals.

You can start the business of your own mini-farm for rabbits with one pair of animals, choosing a purebred mating method or crossing.

It is best to purchase young animals from experienced farmers. Rabbits for sale are guaranteed to be vaccinated and adapted to similar conditions.

On the market you can buy unhealthy and unvaccinated individuals. And also make a mistake with the breed, especially if you don’t have the skills. There are meat and fur breeds of rabbits.

Recommendations for the care and maintenance of rabbits are not so complicated. The main thing is to provide them with a comfortable place where there is enough light and space. Observe the feeding regime, ensure the cleanliness of the cages and a sufficient amount of clean water.

There are different ways to keep animals, by studying which you can find out whether breeding rabbits as a business is profitable or not.

Methods and principles of rabbit breeding for business

The main ways to successfully breed rabbits is to keep the animals in cages, enclosures or pits. Each method has its own justified advantages and small disadvantages.

This version of a rabbit farm is most suitable for crossing and breeding special breeds.

Keeping rabbits more freely, first of all, allows you to save space and equipment material.

The most affordable and easiest way is to breed rabbits in a pit. But it is necessary to choose the right place where groundwater will not reach. The floor is equipped with a fine metal mesh and covered with sawdust or sand for better drainage and easy removal of manure.

Just in case, a good roof should always be prepared, which will become the main protection from the weather.

Rabbits kept in pits happily dig holes, where they then hide their offspring. They move freely, actively breed and do not require frequent feeding, since the area allows them to provide sufficient food and drink for the whole day.

An aviary for rabbits is probably the most convenient option, both for the farmer and for the animals themselves. But first, enclosures must be equipped with protective fences from bad weather and possible enemies. Enclosures can be located under canopies or attached to a utility room.

Rabbits in enclosures simultaneously receive food and water thanks to long trays and drinkers along the walls. They feel great “in freedom” and grow and develop better.

The enclosure or pit should contain rabbits of approximately the same age. When introducing a new batch, you should be careful, since adult males tend to be aggressive towards unfamiliar or younger individuals. By spreading (scattering) fresh, fragrant grass on the bottom or floor, you can kill the smell of the newly minted male residents.

All methods will be a successful start to a profitable business if sanitary and hygienic standards are properly observed.

In addition, rabbits are afraid of drafts, frost and moisture. A dry, warm room in winter and a clean, ventilated room in summer is the main condition for keeping animals.

By calculating the total cost of the future enterprise and calculating the approximate annual profit, we can conclude whether rabbit breeding as a business is profitable or not.

Rabbits have an almost waste-free production: meat, fur, entrails, manure - all this makes a profit. Individuals quickly reach sexual age. In addition, in the future it is possible to sell live purebred rabbits.

Rabbit breeding business technology - video

Small business development involves many nuances. First, you need to decide on the type of activity and agree on all legal issues. - the key to success and profit.

Breeding rabbits is a good option for a profitable business. The meat and wool of these animals are always in demand.

Stages of doing business from scratch: where to start and how to develop?

First of all, you should register your business. If we are talking about rabbit breeding, then it is better to register your business as a peasant farm. This form of management will provide many positive factors.

First of all, taxes will be reduced and benefits will be provided. But opening this form of business will require a lot of effort. Opening an individual business is less problematic. Unfortunately, privileges will not apply here.

To breed rabbits you will need a plot of land, which should be located in a non-residential area. The site should be spacious. To begin with, it is better to rent a plot of land; if things go well, you can think about buying land.

On the site where rabbit breeding will be carried out there must be:

the required number of cages so that the rabbits do not live in crowded conditions;
special premises for storing feed;
equipped pit for manure;
slaughterhouse;
a specially equipped room for storing skins and a refrigerator for meat;
the owner's house where you can spend the night;
tool storage shed.

Purchasing rabbits. Breeds

Before breeding rabbits, you need to decide on the purpose of their further sale, whether it will be meat or skins. If the main profit will be the sale of meat, then you should choose meat breed rabbits.

These include:

New Zealand red;
white New Zealand;
Californian

These breeds quickly gain the required weight, literally in 2-3 months.

Fluffy breeds include:

Angora;
lop-eared sheep rabbits;
white downy.

When buying animals, ask for a passport that confirms the breed. Keep the ratio of rabbits to female rabbits, it should be 1:5.

Feeding rabbits

In order for rabbits to grow well and gain weight, they must receive all the necessary vitamins. Grass and hay should make up 1/5 of the daily diet, and there should also be vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, and beets.

Occasionally you need to add wood food, meat flour and chalk. Feeding should be regular so that there is no inhibition in development and deterioration in health. Mandatory supply of clean water.

Approximate daily intake for rabbits in their different states:

Males and females at rest, pregnant females, lactating females, daily rate in grams per pet.

Rabbits are bred by keeping them in cages or pits.

Breeding rabbits in cages

This method of keeping makes it possible to provide a full supply of food and distribute it correctly. Breeding work and treatment and prevention are carried out better.

Cages can be stationary or portable, they are kept in the open air. In areas with a cold climate, indoor maintenance is used.

better wool growth;
better health;
more resistant to diseases.

Plywood, wood, slate, brick are suitable for making cages; an alternative to combining materials is possible.

Breeding rabbits in pits

Pros:

Low costs for materials for arrangement.
Less frequent cleaning.
Possibility to keep more animals.
Rapid reproduction.
The meat tastes better.

Minuses:

High statistics of death of all individuals due to infectious diseases.
It is inconvenient to clean the pit.
Consanguineous incest.
Catching rabbits.

A pit measuring 2 by 2 meters can contain more than 200 animals.

Equipment for rabbit breeding

When organizing a farm, you need to have special-purpose equipment.

Cells, a mandatory attribute where rabbits are kept. You can make them yourself or have the option of making them to order.
Feeders. Its presence is mandatory in any cell. They are selected to suit the size of the rabbit and are positioned so as not to injure the animal.
Drinking bowl. It is located at a height of 8-9 cm so that the rabbit does not climb into it.
Carnage. Basically, a metal pipe is used which has two pointed tips on which a hook is attached.
Equipment for tanning hides refers to various devices. To begin with, liquid processes are carried out. Afterwards drying is carried out on special hangers.

Business plan for a rabbit breeding farm

In order for all the expenses and troubles associated with the development of rabbits to pay off, you should draw up a correct business plan with financial calculations. This industry is profitable based on the fact that the resulting products are always in demand.

Market analysis

Before you start raising rabbits, you need to choose the right region where production will be launched. Analyze the sales market, as well as the competitive state. In the business plan, it is necessary to note consumers who are interested in this product.

Calculations

Brief description of expenses and income when breeding rabbits:

Expenses:

The cost of renting a land plot can be from 25,000 to 90,000 rubles in a year.
Cells from 15,000 to 50,000 rubles, depending on whether you build it yourself or buy ready-made ones.
Purchasing rabbits from 20,000 to 28,000 rubles. It depends on the breed and the region you buy from.
Feed from 55,000 to 110,000 rubles.
Salary 150,000 rubles in a year.

We get from 265,000 to 329,000 rubles for the first year of production.

Income:

We receive meat for sale 1500 kilogram that can be sold 200-250 rubles per kg, in total we get from 300,000 to 375,000 rubles in year.

These figures are taken from the approximate calculation that 40 females can produce 20 rabbits per year. The weight of which is 1800-1900 grams. It turns out that 800 individuals will go for sale with a weight of 1500 kilograms.

Skins can be donated for 200 rubles (800*200= 160,000 rubles)

As a result, income can range from 460,000 to 535,000 rubles per year.

These calculations show profitability for the first year of operation. In the future, the rabbits that are born are used for the development of the farm and the costs of purchasing them will decrease. Further income will increase.

Income from the sale of meat. Marketing channels for rabbit meat

The business plan must foresee where the meat will be sold.

Sales options:

Wholesale customers.

Stanislav Matveev

Author of the bestselling book "Phenomenal Memory". Record holder of the Book of Records of Russia. Creator of the training center "Remember Everything". Owner of Internet portals in legal, business and fishing topics. Former owner of a franchise and online store.

In this article we will talk about a business that belongs to the agriculture niche. We will talk about a home business for breeding rabbits. This is a very difficult niche and may not be suitable for every entrepreneur, but if you have experience working with rabbit meat, then there is a high probability that you will succeed in this business.

Prospects

Back in the 70s, there were many fur farms in the Russian Federation engaged in breeding rabbits, but after the 90s, many of them ceased to exist. Because of this, today there is a significant demand for rabbits in the domestic market, which is very high, even taking into account the import of imported products from abroad. So you don’t have to wonder whether rabbit breeding as a business is profitable or not. The answer is clear: if you run your business wisely, it’s profitable.

Pros and cons of a niche

The pros and cons of such an area as the rabbit breeding business are:

Short payback periods
Fast and high income
Possibility of selling several types of products

As for the downsides, the main problems in breeding rabbits are:

Difficult to care for
Shyness of animals. Stress in them can not only cause physical illness, but also lead to the death of the animal.

Business risks

Before starting your own business in a particular area, you should familiarize yourself with all possible risks and draw up a business plan. A rabbit breeding company as a type of business has the following risks:

High mortality of young animals. This problem can be solved by involving experienced veterinarians in all production processes.

Competition. Before starting a business, you should carefully learn everything about sales channels, target audience and direct competitors in the market.

Business registration

In a business like rabbit breeding, starting a business from scratch requires mandatory registration. A mini-farm can be registered in two ways: as a peasant farm and as an individual entrepreneur.

Peasant farm (peasant farm)

Peasant farming is a type of individual enterprise that has several main differences. The composition of a peasant farm may include people who have the right to carry out any economic activity, as well as own the property of the enterprise. However, by registering a peasant farm you become, in essence, an ordinary individual entrepreneur.

Another important advantage of peasant farming is that its registration gives you the right to government assistance.

IP (individual entrepreneur)

Individual entrepreneur is one of the simplest and most convenient forms of doing business, especially for rabbit breeding. The nuance is that peasant farms have certain gaps in the legal definition, due to which receiving each benefit leads to enormous bureaucratic red tape, leveling out all the benefits.

As for the form of taxation, either a single agricultural tax or a simplified regime is suitable for a rabbit farm. In this case, you will need OKVED code A.01.25.2.

Necessary equipment

A business plan for breeding rabbits necessarily involves the purchase of equipment. There are several ways to keep rabbits. Namely: semi-free, in enclosures or cages. It must be said that the first two options are practically not used - the main emphasis is on the cellular system.

It allows you to maintain optimal feeding, breeding, and mating arrangements. In addition, being outdoors reduces the risk of spreading diseases.

Double single-tier cages are mounted on wooden poles so that 0.8-1 m remains from the floor of the cage to the ground. In the nesting compartment, the floor and walls are made of planks, in the aft compartment - mesh (the mesh is made of metal). The roof is made of boards and then covered with a layer of roofing felt. It is important to maintain a slope of 15-20 degrees. The floor in the cages should also be made at a slope of 5-7 degrees, for the outflow of the animals’ urine. Young animals are kept 3-5 heads per cage.

Shad system

The shad system has proven itself very well in keeping rabbits. It not only greatly facilitates care, but also makes it possible to mechanize many processes in this production. With its help, it is possible to care for more than a hundred female rabbits and more than 1000 babies at the same time.

There are about 250-200 cells in one shed. The dimensions of each cell are 140 by 70 cm (length and width, respectively). Front height - 55 cm, rear - 36.

The cages are installed in two tiers. Adult animals are housed in the lower one, and young animals are housed in the upper one.

Breed for breeding

For breeding, hybrid breeds with good breeding stock (i.e., the number of rabbits that a female can give birth to and raise in a year) are usually preferred. To purchase them, contact the distributor of foreign breeding centers - they will not only help you with the choice, but will also select high-quality equipment.

Purchasing rabbits

You should also not buy pregnant females - it is unlikely that anyone would sell such an animal if it did not have serious problems.

Feeding rabbits

Among ordinary people who know about raising rabbits only by hearsay, there is an opinion that they only need grass and hay for adequate nutrition. This is nothing more than a myth. Hay and straw make up only a fifth of a rabbit’s complete diet; the rest comes from grain and flour feed. There are many options for creating a complete diet. For convenience, we provide a table with daily feeding rates for rabbits. They can be included in the “rabbit breeding” business plan with calculations for a specific enterprise.

Stern	Adult rabbits	Young animals aged, months.
		from 1 to 3	from 3 to 6
Grass of natural meadows	1500	200-500	500-900
Legume grass	1200	150-400	400-700
Green branches of deciduous trees	600	50-200	200-400
Beet tops	200	50	50-100
Feed cabbage	600	100-150	250-400
Cabbage leaf	300	100	100-200
Carrot	600	100-250	250-400
Fodder beet	200	100	100-200
Sugar beet	600	100-250	250-400
Turnips, rutabaga, turnips	400	50-100	100-200
Boiled potatoes	400	50-150	150-300
Raw potatoes	150	50	50-250
Silage	300	20-80	80-200
Hay	300	100	100-200
Cereal grain	150	30-60	60-100
Legume grain	50	10-20	20-30
Pancake week grain	20	5-10	10-15
Bran	100	5-20	20-80
Cake and meal	100	5-20	20-80
Meat and bone meal	15	5-10	10
Salt	2.5	0.5-1	1
Chalk	2	0.5-1	1

You should not increase the norm given in the table - this can lead to obesity.

In the second table you can see the annual food intake of the animals:

Physiological state	Annual count kormodny	Feed in kg.
		concentrates	hay	roots	green stern
Female rabbit and male during the non-mating period	33	3.46	1.19	3.23	4.48
Female rabbit and male during breeding period	32	4.16	1.44	3.84	5.6
Female rabbit	120	16,8	6	15,6	23,1
Lactating rabbit	180	62,4	21,1	57.2	83,35
For one head of young animals from 45 to 120 days	75	10,14	3,14	—	11.97
In total for 24 heads of young animals	—	243,36	75,36	—	287,28
Annual requirement of replacement young stock	42	5,25	1,89	5,67	8,19
Male annual requirement	365	47,50	16,40	44	64
Male share per female rabbit	—	5,93	2,05	5,5	8
For one female rabbit with offspring (24 heads up to 4 months of age)	—	341,36	109	91	420

How to save on feed?

Feed is the main expense on a mini-farm, so many people want to somehow reduce it. Store-bought feed is quite expensive, but underfeeding animals is not an option at all. The best solution would be to make your own feed.

All you need for this is grain and grain waste, a good powerful grain crusher and a granulator.

Here are three good balanced combination food recipes:

1) Recipe No. K-92-1 concentrate feed for adult rabbits.

2) Recipe No. K-91-1 concentrate feed for young animals.

3) Recipe for concentrated feed for rabbits of all ages.

You should not try to prepare silage or root vegetables as feed. This is a good solution for a small private farm with 15-25 animals, but on a farm scale it is unprofitable. Growing, collecting, harvesting... it will cost a considerable amount. An exception can be made only for making hay - it’s difficult to buy quality hay from the outside; it’s easier to make it yourself.

Rabbit breeding

Rabbit breeding as a business largely depends on the rate of reproduction of animals. It is better to reproduce animals according to this scheme (if you use a shad system, of course): in one shad of 60 cells, 14 cells with females and one cage with a male are placed on the upper tier. All other cages on the tiers are allocated for young animals. Each of the rabbits gives birth three times a year, then the cubs stay with the female for 2 months. Thus, each female produces about 25 rabbits per year, and the total increase is 300-350 animals per year.

Of course, calculating exact numbers will be problematic, but you will get at least 250-300 heads from one shad. If you have pure breed rabbits, you should not breed them separately - this will take a lot of effort and time; it is better to purchase replacement young animals every few years.

Protection against diseases

Vaccination provides good protection against diseases - of course, this does not guarantee a complete absence of disease. But it will help reduce the risks significantly. Veterinarians recommend annual vaccination with a complex preparation; other vaccines are recommended only during epidemics.

Waste management

In addition to producing meat and fur, the mini-farm can also use waste. For example, glue is made from paws and ears, and the ventricles are sold to dairy farms or meat processing plants. It's better to burn the rest.

Sales of products

Breeding rabbits for meat as a business requires the organization of stable sales channels for goods. Sales of finished products are an important plan in the rabbit production business strategy. There are three main options here.

Own customer base

Simply put, this is “word of mouth” - relatives, friends, acquaintances, acquaintances of acquaintances, etc. Do you think this option is frivolous? In vain, this category of people is capable of creating a good reputation, and such that the products will “fly away”. And you won’t need to spend on advertising. This is good for a start - then, of course, you can worry about something more ambitious.

At the initial stage, it is important to ensure an affordable pricing policy in order to attract the maximum number of people. In addition, direct farm sales do not require any additional permits.

Sales of rabbit carcasses through restaurants

At first glance, this is very profitable and tempting. But there is one significant “but”: it is a rare restaurant that includes rabbit dishes on the menu. So there will be little demand.

But, if you still decide to take such a step, do not contact the owner or administration - it is better to express your proposal to the chef. This is a really working way that will help you get an additional source of income. But here you will need permits - you will need to obtain a veterinary certificate form No. 2 from the veterinary department and the SES.

The shops

Selling products to stores is a good idea, but it is useless to target large supermarket chains, since the required volumes of products are very large there. And you will have to compete with large wholesale suppliers. Therefore, it is better to look for small butcher shops or shops - their owners will probably be interested in your products.

Additional sources of income

To generate additional income, you can also sell rabbit by-products.

Rabbit skins

As it was said in one film, “Rabbits are not only valuable fur...”. But this includes fur, because warm soft hats, muffs and even fur coats are made from rabbit. But in the Russian Federation today the situation with the sale of rabbit skins is quite complicated. But difficult does not mean impossible.

As a business, it is quite a profitable business if you take it seriously. Dietary rabbit meat is in consistently high demand. The profitability of rabbit farming is determined by its waste-free nature. In addition to meat, you can sell the skin and even the insides of these animals. Oddly enough, it is also unique because it is the best fertilizer.

Before you decide to create a business for breeding rabbits, you need to resolve several issues, namely: choose the method of raising them. There are a large number of breeds and technologies, but the decision must be made independently, based on the available financial and labor resources.

Before starting to implement the idea, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the features of keeping, feeding and reproduction of animals. The first step is to decide on the method of raising rabbits. It must be remembered that this is a complex matter that requires long and painstaking work to obtain good results.

Raising rabbits (business from scratch)

There are several methods for raising rabbits.

Purebred - mating of one breed of rabbit.
Crossbreeding is the mating of different breeds.

The Mikhailov method and breeding animals in pits are also common.

In order to get an answer to the question “how to start a business with rabbits?”, you need to familiarize yourself with all the proposed technologies, choose the appropriate one and gradually implement it.

Purebred growing method

This method involves mating rabbits of a certain breed. The male is matched with a female that is as close as possible to his productivity and physique.
The purpose of this selection is to: consolidate the desired type of rabbits in the herd, enhance certain valuable qualities of young animals and increase the number of highly productive animals.

Sometimes pairs of rabbits with a certain outstanding trait are selected in order to secure it in future offspring. At the same time, they also look at other indicators, especially the state of health: whether it has worsened. This method is used to obtain meat, fluff and skins of rabbits of a certain breed. Along with the purebred breeding method, crossing is used, that is, mating of different breeds of rabbits.

Crossbreeding

It is used to breed new and improve existing breeds of animals. Any rabbit breeding farm primarily uses crossbreeding.

In comparison with “pure” breeds, animals obtained as a result of this method are distinguished by accelerated growth, lower feed consumption per kilogram of weight, high fertility and vitality.

There are several types of crossing.

Reproductive - breeding new breeds of rabbits.
Introductory - change in a certain indicator of animal productivity (single crossing).
Absorption - a radical change in a low-productive rock due to its absorption by a highly productive one.
Industrial - production of marketable young animals, meat, fluff, skins and other things. Industrial breeding of rabbits through crossbreeding is widespread on commercial farms.

Breeding in pits

Rabbit breeding as a business was originally practiced in pits. Today this approach is practically not used. The method of breeding in pits is relevant when owning a plot of land or premises of a small area. It was used when there was no necessary time for feeding and caring for rabbits, as well as when finances were limited, when there was not enough money for construction or purchasing equipment.

As the name suggests, rabbits are kept in pits. The depth of such pits is 1 m, the width and length are at the discretion of the owner. Up to 200 heads can be placed in one pit.

A metal mesh is placed on the floor of the pit and a mound of sand is made. The walls of the pit should be lined and a small area should be left near one of them, where a hole is dug 10-15 cm above the floor level.

The size of the hole should be large enough so that 3 rabbits can go into it at the same time. Placing the hole above the floor is done to prevent urine from flowing inside, since rabbits urinate at the entrance.

To protect from precipitation, the pit must have a roof. Life without light has a bad effect on the development and growth of rabbits, so you should make a glass window in it or illuminate the pit with an electric light bulb. A 40-watt light bulb, for example, is suitable for a 10 square meter hole. meters.

Feeders and drinkers from various containers are placed along the walls of the pit, which should be wide enough and not very deep. This will avoid crowding and allow the rabbits to reach food or water without effort.

Rabbits as a business are quite a profitable business, but the method of raising them in pits is far from the most profitable. The advantages of this technology: low financial costs, the ability to keep a large number of rabbits in a small area, absence of drafts, quick payback. Disadvantages: light weight of rabbits due to frequent illnesses, difficulty with breeding distribution.

Mikhailov method

This method is aimed at developing natural immunity. Mikhailov's method of raising rabbits leads to an increase in the quality of animals.

The author of this method is not a supporter of classical breeding, since it does not make it possible to achieve the real genetic potential of these mammals. In addition, the rabbit breeding business involves keeping animals in cages, which leads to frequent stress and high mortality of young animals. The Mikhailov method allows you to avoid such undesirable moments.

The essence of the Mikhailov method

In the generally accepted version of raising rabbits, they are fed no more than 3 times a day, and according to the Mikhailov method - up to 80 times a day.

As a rule, young animals are fed with rabbit milk for about a month, and according to Mikhailov’s technology, this should continue to be done for up to 3 months. This innovative method allows you to minimize the investment required to create a rabbit farm.

The result of Mikhailov's approach is accelerated rabbits. On average, they bring 10 rabbits every 3 months. These breeding features make it possible to significantly increase the profitability of the business, that is, increase its effectiveness. It should be noted that the skins and meat of accelerated rabbits are much better than those of classically raised animals.

Cages for industrial breeding of rabbits differ significantly from those proposed by Mikhailov. The latter are presented in three tiers. On the north side, such cells are equipped with a thick insulated wall, and on the south side, on the contrary, with an open wall that allows sunlight and fresh air to pass through. This has a beneficial effect on the growth and development of rabbits.

The cell area is 1.4 square meters. meters. It provides automatic mode for a long time. Within the tiers there are lattice floors, under which there are shafts shaped like pyramids. The operation of the cage is based on the principle of a stove: gases from the room with droppings exit upward through the exhaust pipe, and at the same time fresh air from outside enters. One such cage can accommodate up to 30 rabbits. On average, in practice, 13-15 animals are placed in cages.

Any profitable enterprise has a clear development plan. A well-thought-out business plan for breeding rabbits is the key to successful and profitable work.

Production part

Breeding rabbits according to Mikhailov’s method involves keeping them on special mini-farms. One mini-farm requires up to 500 kg of feed and about 250 kg of hay per year.

One accelerated rabbit eats about 14 kg of feed and up to 7 kg of hay per year. Product output - 1 animal (5 kg) in 10 days. The turnover period of cash capital is 100 days.

There are various models of farms for raising rabbits, including two-tier ones. The number of mini-farms on a farm depends only on the owner of the business, but it should be noted that they do not require large plots. For example, a rabbit farm of 16 mini-farms will occupy only one hundred square meters of land. Such production can be serviced only once a week with a productivity of 10 rabbits weekly.

Mini-farms require a certain heating at temperatures below +10 C with an energy consumption of 30 Watts.

Rabbit breeding as a business is not limited to breeding animals. To achieve maximum production efficiency, you should organize a personal workshop for processing products, a workshop for sewing clothes, as well as a site for the production of vermicompost.

Expenses and income

The cost of manufacturing a mini-farm, without additional equipment, can vary in the range of 5-20 thousand rubles. If you decide to do it yourself, it will be cheaper; if you decide to use the services of professionals, it will be more expensive.

For production to be effective, at least 300 mini-farms should be organized. The costs in this case will be about 350 thousand rubles (excluding taxes and the farms themselves). Revenues will be about 1.5 million rubles.

Market analysis

This section of the business plan should contain characteristics of similar farms in your region, indicate wholesale and retail buyers and their purchase volumes.

Production plan

The first step in organizing a farm is finding the right plot of land. The best option would be the site with the lowest rent. At the same time, we should not forget that the minimum area of the site for full-fledged work is 5 acres of land - it will be possible to place the cages themselves and ancillary buildings on it.

The next step will be to purchase or build cells, depending on your decision - to save money or give up the functionality of ready-made cells. Next is the purchase of livestock.

This business plan assumes an initial herd size of 60 animals, including 20 males and 40 females.

Sales plan

In order not to be left with a surplus, the sales plan needs to be thought out and calculated before organizing the business. The main buyers of rabbit meat are markets, supermarkets, and private traders. The skins are often bought by fur studios and private fashion designers. An important factor in sales success is the proximity of megacities.

Financial plan

Breeding rabbits as a business requires careful development. This indicates the costs that production will incur and the income from it.

Expenses

Rent of a plot - 20-80 thousand rubles.

Purchase (construction) of cells - 10-40 thousand.

Purchase of rabbits (60 heads) - 18-30 thousand.

Compound feed - 50-100 thousand.

The salary of the hired employee is 120 thousand/year.

Total costs - 218-370 thousand in the first year.

Income

Sales of meat - 1.5 tons/year at 200-250 rubles/kg (300-375 thousand rubles). These figures were taken due to the fact that 40 female rabbits on average produce 20 rabbits per year, weighing 1.8-1.9 kg. Total - 800 rabbits weighing 1500 kg.

Sales of skins - 160 thousand (200 rubles per skin, 800 skins).

Total income - 460-535 thousand rubles/year.

In general, the payback on such a business will take no more than a year if you take the business seriously.

Today I would like to bring to your attention an article: “Raising rabbits – is it profitable or not. Let’s calculate the profitability of rabbit breeding.”

Lately I’ve been getting a lot of questions: “How am I doing with rabbits and their breeding? Are there any disappointments in rabbit farming? Many readers are also interested in: “Is it profitable or not to breed rabbits? What is the profitability of rabbit farming?

I would like to immediately answer a number of questions, then go into more detail on the answers. I have not given up breeding rabbits. On the contrary, I am becoming more and more involved in studying the topic of rabbit breeding, and I plan to devote part of my future village life to this area.

Is it profitable to breed rabbits? I believe that raising rabbits is profitable and profitable. You will definitely always have meat. I advise everyone who still has doubts about this issue to take it and try it. You definitely won't regret it.

Now I'll move on to the extended answers.

Why did I hesitate for a long time to breed rabbits?

The main reason why raising rabbits kept getting delayed was because of my constant doubts and inquiries from the local village population about rabbits. Did you keep it or not? For what reason did they refuse? What are the difficulties of rabbit farming? Almost everyone said that rabbits are not profitable, they constantly get sick and die, they need to be constantly vaccinated, and they only cause losses. And if other people’s rabbits die and it’s not profitable to raise them, why do I need this?

The problem of slaughtering rabbits was also very important. I couldn’t even imagine that I would take a cute fluffy animal by its hind legs, hit it on the head with a stick, pull off its skin and then try to eat it. Horrible! It’s unpleasant to think about it, let alone perform it and do it, and even personally, with your own hands. Brrrrr…. From the idea of the upcoming reprisal, goosebumps began to run across the skin in a large crowd, sweat profusely appeared from the emotions.

The following events helped me dispel all doubts.

The first was a local newspaper with an article that told how an ordinary village boy for 12 years raised rabbits himself and everything worked out for him. I mentioned this in the article:

Re-reading the newspaper article several times, I couldn’t understand how it happened that a 12-year-old boy from an ordinary village started breeding rabbits, everything worked out, but the adult villagers did not. Something is wrong here. What is the mystery? How am I an adult worse than a 12 year old boy? How?

The second event happened by chance. A year ago, in winter, I bought nails in the regional center. And the owner of a small shop asked where I was from and why I needed so many different nails. Word for word, and fifteen minutes later he knew what village I was from and was very surprised that I didn’t keep rabbits on my farm. When I expressed my doubts to him and referred to the experience of the local villagers of my village, this man of about 60 years old laughed for a very long time, tears appeared in his eyes, his eyes turned red from laughter. I obviously made him laugh a lot. To his satisfaction, laughing and wiping his eyes, he said: “Listen to everyone else. It is profitable to keep rabbits. You need to be aware of them, have an idea of how and what to feed. It is necessary to understand how these animals live, to know more about them. Study and read books, listen to the advice of others, but do not forget to think with your own head, discard everything unnecessary. The main thing is to try, learn from your mistakes, don’t stop and everything will work out.” He also gave me some advice, which I listened to and realized that my random interlocutor was right. What did the stranger manage to tell me?

Rabbits should not be housed with other domestic animals: chickens, pigs, cows in the same common room. Try to allocate a separate clean shed for them. Rabbits grow better in enclosures than in cages. In the summer, do not place the cages outside in a sunny place. Find them a cool, cold place. Try to avoid contact between rabbits and other animals, especially poultry. Make a rule for yourself: when entering a designated barn with rabbits, always change your shoes and clothes, do not bring dirt to them. Do not take other people's rabbits for mating and do not give them your own. This will significantly reduce the likelihood of transmitting diseases. When purchasing rabbits, check very carefully how and in what conditions they are kept, and at what level the seller is engaged in rabbit breeding. Is he a professional or just someone who likes to earn extra money?

The third event was my constant reflection on which animals in the village were the most profitable to raise. And again all the rivulets of doubt disappeared, and preferences and sympathies were reduced and confined to rabbits.

Thus, having been in thought and hesitation for more than two years, I came to the conclusion that it is necessary to start breeding rabbits on my own private farm; there is no point in delaying it any further. Your personal experience will dot all the i’s correctly. Which I do now with great pleasure.

Profitability of rabbit farming.

Now I will share my thoughts and considerations regarding the benefits and profitability of rabbit breeding.

What do I know for sure? A female rabbit carries her babies for 30 days. At birth, one female rabbit gives birth to offspring from 5 to 9 rabbits. You can breed one female rabbit 5-6 times a year. In this case, the total number of offspring will be at least 25 animals (I took into account the very minimum values, we breed 5 times a year and each time the offspring should be 5 rabbits). If you feed all 25 rabbits born, taking into account that the net weight of meat will be 3 kilograms from each carcass. You will end up with at least 75 kilograms of rabbit meat per year from one female rabbit. Almost like a pig carcass.

Having grown this amount and slaughtered the rabbits, you can decide for yourself where to put the meat. Keep it or sell it. Set any selling price.

The data I provide is minimal. Reality allows you to get a lot more rabbits and meat.

I will immediately answer a number of questions that readers of the article may have.

Why did the net weight of meat from one rabbit carcass turn out to be 3 kilograms?

Here, in my calculations, I take my own data, which took place during my short experience in breeding rabbits. The rabbits in my yard are outbred, so-called village ones. No one knows their pedigree, where they came from, what kind of blood flows in their rabbit veins. (Why exactly do I have these rabbits on my farm? Details in the following articles on the site). The net weight of meat after slaughter is 2.9 - 3.4 kilograms. The age of rabbits at the time of slaughter is 6 – 7 months.

Why do I count the number of baby rabbits born as 5?

I want the story to be believable, without exaggeration or embellishment; it’s better to take some of the parameters to the bare minimum. Although my rabbits gave birth to 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 rabbits. There was no less than 6. Mostly 7 or 9. Now I’m starting to cull the rabbits into the best ones and the not so good ones. Thanks to this, I hope to increase the offspring from one rabbit and get more rabbit meat.

I think we've sorted out the meat.

Now let's calculate the cost of keeping rabbits.

I will not take into account the costs of cages, enclosures, drinking bowls. At the first stage, these investments are one-time and each one has its own individual investment. It all depends on the conditions of keeping rabbits in cages or enclosures, the erudition of the rabbit breeder himself, his wishes and financial capabilities. You can make it yourself or buy cells at different prices, investing huge amounts of money, or you can modestly make them yourself in a rustic way. Like this? Details in other articles in the Rabbits section. Subscribe to new articles, the subscription form is at the very end.

Let's move on to feeding the rabbits. Rabbits are not known to be rodents. They eat: grass, vegetables, fruits, tree branches, oats, hay, straw. Almost all products for feeding rabbits can be prepared in the forest or grown in your own garden, which is what I did in the spring and summer. I only bought oats. How much is it? Let me give you an example. Now on my farm there is one rabbit, nine adult rabbits, twelve rabbits aged 4 months, fifteen rabbits aged 2.5 months and newborns from three rabbits. The total number of rabbits of different ages eating oats is currently 37 individuals. Feeding them takes up to 2 bags of oats in the winter month, costing 180 rubles per bag and weighing 28 kilograms. It is simply impossible to calculate all other products collected and grown with one’s own labor. My total costs for feeding rabbits in winter are 360 rubles per month. These data are approximate due to the growth of the rabbits themselves, the birth of new ones and the slaughter of adults.

What other costs are there for keeping rabbits? I would like to say that in the summer, gasoline is one of my significant expenses. Traveling by car to pick up grass, branches, and making hay. It is very difficult to calculate how much it was spent due to the combination of trips. Like this? I have always combined business with pleasure and vice versa. When you go for firewood, you make sure to mow the grass and cut branches for the rabbits. I went to pick cherries, apples, currants, sea buckthorn or mushrooms, and again I brought a trailer of grass and branches. I went to the regional center, on the way back there was the same grass and branches. If I specifically chose to harvest hay and branches, I traveled short distances from the village, up to 2 kilometers, to save gasoline. Yes, and there is no point in traveling far when everything is nearby.

So is rabbit farming profitable or not? Of course it's cost-effective. Firstly, I always use dietary meat, without chemicals or additives. Real, useful. In any season. In any quantity. And the most important thing is not purchased, but your own. You know exactly what you are eating! At what cost can this be estimated? What money? I don’t think this is calculated; you definitely can’t save on yourself and your health.

Secondly, the surplus can always be sold. There are no problems with selling rabbit meat in my village. Not many local residents raise rabbits, just a few. The sales market exists. There are resellers who charge rabbit meat for 260 rubles per kilogram. There are also willing villagers. The price for the local rural population is currently 300 rubles per kilogram of pure rabbit meat. There are no big queues. But there is not a lot of rabbit meat on sale, but very little. Those residents who breed rabbits in the village keep them mainly for themselves. Meat is rarely sold. And this makes me, a novice rabbit breeder, happy.

I would like to summarize the article.Raising rabbits is beneficial to me personally at this time and in this place, in my village. I will continue to work on this matter in the future. I definitely won’t quit. I see only advantages and future prospects in this direction of livestock farming. The positive aspects can be expressed in two words: rabbits reproduce themselves quickly, constantly and a lot, you can feed them by preparing food yourself, on your own, spending money within reasonable limits. In the near future, I just need to increase the livestock and start selling meat on a regular basis, monthly. Consider purchasing meat rabbit breeds. At the moment, there are still many mysteries of rabbit breeding that are not clear and have not been tested by me, requiring experiments, trial and error. After all, there is simply no limit to the perfection of proper rabbit breeding.

Are there any problems? Of course, there are many mistakes, there have been and there will be. Read about many that had to be overcome and comprehended, solved and corrected in the near future; new articles are expected to be published.

Good luck to you and your loved ones!

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