Beginnings ... the Kaleidoscope Rabbit project

My livestock raising adventures started when I was five years old. My grandmother gave me six baby chicks to raise when a coyote killed the mother hen. I raised those baby chicks, sold them in the fal, saved the money and bought 25 baby chicks the following spring. By the time I graduated from high school, I no longer owned chickens, but had four commercial Hereford cows that I ran on shares with my parents, under my own registered Montana brand.

As an adult, even though I did not live on a working ranch or farm again until recently, I have always managed to have animals around me and have usually been raising something. Although rabbits were not something I had as a child, I raised them for several years for the table when I lived on a "hobby farm".

Very recently, I started with rabbits again, for the table, going back to the Rex breed I had before and of course, as usual for me, it has expanded into a more extensive project that I planned for.



The first thing I found was the new colors! I had blacks and blues before and had never seen all of the new-to-me colors that now exist, so I'm now like a kid in a candy store ... I've got to have one of those ... and one of these ... and ooooh ... look at that one!

The sable point kit in the above photo is one of my first "fancy colored" litters and I am spending a great deal of time reading the various rabbit color genetics books I've collected. Unfortunately, it does seem that the learning curve is a bit slower than it was with the horses, 20 years ago, but I can't deny I'm having fun.

When I had the Rex before, I loved the feel of the pelts, there is absolutely nothing as plush and luxurious as the Rex fur and I not only had them for the table but also used the pelts for some small craft projects. With more time I have hopes of doing that again.

I can't convince myself a patchwork fur sleigh robe could be considered a necessity in Kentucky as I did in Montana, as there hasn't been enough snow in the 10 years I've lived here to even use a sleigh. However, I'm thinking that I could justify a lop robe at least. After all, this is a project to keep me busy in my coming "old age" and I'm sure the arthritis in my knees will eventually require a lap robe to keep me warm in my recliner some day.