Many families on a small farm enjoy having livestock but dont have a lot of land for pasture. I never meant to hurt my cow by feeding her grass.

Frequently Asked Questions About Mini Jersey Cattle

But perhaps one of the most interesting benefits of a keeping a miniature cow is that it provides people with an accessible way to capture that unique connection to the land that farming brings.

Are mini jersey cows good for meat. But they are known for growing really well and producing quality meat and hides. Some Miniature Jersey cattle farmers also utilize the breed for meat providing another potential use for this versatile animal. Ive not had 100 Jersey meat but I have had 100 Dexter meat.

I believe we all are trying to do the absolute best we can for our cows and have good intent in our hearts. Their beef is fine-textured tender and delicious. Just keep in mind that to buy one you will need to fork over up to a whopping 30000.

I respond by saying that unlike some miniature livestock miniature cattle are functional and productive farm animals. But minis do equate with fine prime beef. This doesnt mean that they will have muscle mass it just means.

A lone animal is not happy or as productive as a cow with companions however. This problem can be resolved with miniature cattle. Giving between 2-4 gallons a day a growing family can make all the cheese butter yogurt cream cheese heavy cream ice cream and milk that they could want by keeping a single Mini Jersey and her calf and have enough left over to share with a neighbor.

Dexters are tri-purpose cattle beef milk and draft. Like other miniature cow breeds they are loving and easy to care for. You can finish a grass-fed Dexter steer in 18 to 24 months and it will dress out at 50 to 60 percent live weight.

These miniature breeds convert expensive organic feed into choice cuts more efficiently than their standard-sized counterparts. Each generation from then on is bred to a pure mini jersey bull meaning each generation gives more dairy and less beef. Some folks ask me if I think that miniature cattle will be a fad.

This means that while you get less meat per butchering because of their smaller size a higher percentage of the cow actually becomes meat than is the case with other breeds. They are raised mainly for beef and are often crossed with another beef breed like Angus. CLICK SHOW MORESupport Our ChannelPa.

Once you have greater than about 93 mini-jersey it is considered pure. So if you like to make leather from your cattle this would be a good breed to consider. If you butcher an entire miniature cow you get just the right amount of meat for a small family.

You would breed it back to another mini-jersey bull giving you a 75 dairy and 25 beef animal. In addition to being great pets they also provide great tasting milk and beef Pat Schout. A Holstein is all bone whereas the bones of a Jersey are smaller therefore more meat to them.

Because Jerseys are a dairy breed they are naturally thin and genetically selected to produce milk not meat. These cows put on weight quickly much quicker than Galloways or Highlands. You wont need super tough and expensive fencing for mini cattle.

Call for organic edibles will increase 20 percent per year claims the genetic merchandise association. With our cows we give them free choice grasspasture or high quality hay in the winter. Bulldog Gene Miniature Jersey.

We had a neighbor a few years back who told us to look at the head of an animal to judge how boney it would bea bigger head means a higher ratio of bone to meat. They are primarily bred for milk production but with their compact size they they tend to carry more body condition. Which makes them suitable for meat and milk.

Gourmet markets and upscale restaurants clamor for lean and luscious grass-fed mini steaks and roasts. Miniature Jersey Cows are extremely friendly and are lower maintenance to take care of. Small Cows Offer Tasty Meat.

Cattle are rough on pasture due to their hooves and weight. Mini Jerseys are by nature dual purpose breed. However Mini Dexters are also popular for their meat production ability.

It has been a few weeks and we are so excited to try the meat from our first steer raised on the farm. With only one or two acres you might be able to keep one standard-size milk cow or a couple of calves to grow for beef. In raising dairy cattle for beef Jersey produces a higher ratio of meat than a Holstein does.

Mini cows are much easier on pasture as well as fencing. Dexters give the highest ratio of meat to live weight than any other breed. The calf can be sold for income or raised for meat.

Jersey steers are most definitely good for meat--several on here can attest to that--its just that they arent like your classical beef steers for two reasons. Beef cattle are especially known for being rough on fencing ie. You will save money on feed.

In fact these cows can reach 400 pounds in just 14 months thanks to their feed efficiency. A single tiny cow can feed a family of 4 people for months. The breed has a good foraging ability as well as high feed conversion and meat-to-bone ratios.

They would make a good addition to any family. Hopefully other Jersey cow owners can learn from my mistakes and save their sweet bovines some unnecessary problems. Which in turn makes them easier keepers.

Continue reading to know the truth about the grass-fed-cow craze and how it may be. Theyre ideal to raise for meat.

They dont take up much space and they dont stink if they are managed properly. Rabbits may potentially begin breeding before three months of age.

Why You Should Raise Rabbits Modern Farmer

However if the rabbit is not of a decent size at eight weeks you need to choose another breed to raise.

How long to raise rabbits for meat. Small operations need only one buck male and two does females to get started. Beef - 35lbs beef 5lbs chicken rabbits none The US. Rabbit meat is a true bargain in todays economy and food market for.

Even after several apparently successful breeding. The rate of breeding makes rabbits one of the best sustainable meat sources you can raise. Department of Agriculture has stated.

A good California White or New Zealand White two of the best breeds for meat production can produce 6 litters per year with 6-10 kits per litter. Breeding Meat Rabbits Rabbits have a 30 day gestation cycle and become mature at seven months. Raising rabbits is simple and economical.

A single female has on average about 8 babies or kits per litter and rabbits have a gestational period of 28-31 days so it is feasible for your rabbit to have one litter per month but more likely a little less. Younger rabbits almost always cost less than mature rabbits since theyre smaller meaning less meat and face higher mortality risk. If you raise rabbits in the typical hanging cages or hutches you bring the doe you wish to breed to the bucks cage after doing a pre-breeding health check on both.

They are capable of getting pregnant again right after kindling giving birth. You dont need a large complement of breeders to provide your family with a steady supply of fresh meat. This doesnt include water per pound of meat.

But you would be surprised. The perfect butchering age is around 8 weeks of age. So week ten is the optimal time to slaughter a rabbit.

You need to take note though that a rabbits meat gets tougher as they get older so they need to be butchered at around eight weeks. It is important to know that when raising rabbits for meat that the older the rabbit gets the tougher the meat becomes. After about seven weeks the rabbits are grown enough to butcher and are called fryers.

For example rabbits take 3 -. You can buy rabbits as young as four weeks just a few days after theyre weaned. Kits baby rabbits mature to butchering size in about ten weeks.

Smaller breeds non meat type genetics and alternatively feed rabbits will take longer. They multiply rapidly and can in the end herald up to 200 pounds of meat a year depending on your herd and the amount you breed. If you prefer to raise them for a larger carcass and do not separate them you will undoubtedly find some surprise pregnancies either at slaughter or with unexpected litters.

We would routinely butcher by. Meat rabbits are raised to 10 weeks of age and five pounds of weight before processing. If you start with three rabbits 2 females and one male you could have well over a hundred rabbits in the first year.

Rabbits reach breeding age by about 6 months and their gestation period is only 30 days. Rabbits dont exactly breed like rabbits. Selling rabbits for meat or for breeding is a creative way to make some extra money when living off the grid.

Rabbits are a great choice for a meat animal for the small homestead. Between 4-6 weeks they become fully weaned and should be held and handled to increase their tameness. Rabbitry meat is becoming more popular.

It takes little space and time as well as being one the most inexpensive types of livestock to raise for food production. Even if youre just raising meat for personal consumption and never plan to sell poor rabbits produce really expensive meat. They can be gently handled at that time.

This means you will need a larger breed so it will be a decent size by the 8-week mark. Where its 2500 gallons for beef 600 gallons for chicken. Rabbits are easy to raise and can be a rewarding project for the homesteader.

Not only do they require little attention but they also provide a great amount of meat. Smaller breeds non meat type genetics and alternatively feed rabbits will take longer. Even with the startup and feeding costs included raising rabbits keeps its spot as one of the cheapest meats to raise on a homestead.

You can breed the same doe once every 90 days. In comparison to red meat rabbits do not take a long time to reach slaughter weight you dont need acreage to raise them on and you get a higher amount of meat from the carcass. The reason people raise California and New Zealand rabbits for meat is that they are very good at growing to five pounds in 10-11 weeks.

At 2 weeks the baby rabbits will start venturing outside the nesting box.

Rabbits are cute and furry and friendly. The housing provides the rabbits with shade from the hot sun and keeps them warm in the winter.

Meat Rabbits What You Need To Know About Raising Rabbits For Meat

Offering nursing does 18 protein will help with milk supply.

How to raise meat rabbits inside. Do not let the water mist on the rabbits. Youll just need help from an urban farm or community garden. Give it a cage that is large enough to move around in and build it a run so it can get daily exercise without going anywhere it might get hurt.

There are hundreds or rabbit breeds and even more crossbreeds. When just beginning in raising rabbits the first thing you have to prepare is land and housing. If you are raising meat rabbits in hutches each cage should be at least 3 feet by 3 feet and 2 feet tall.

Each cage will accommodate one adult rabbit and her unweaned kits babies. The information I cannot find is legality of raising rabbits in MN a suburb of St Paul MN. 5- Rabbit can be raise up to 5 months but some were commercially go straight to the market at 2 months 8 to 10 weeks is a good fryer and the meat will be tender and succulent.

Rabbits are the most economical meat item to raise. You can still raise rabbits for meat without using a third-party processor to humanely kill and process them. If your hometown doesnt allow you to complete the rabbit-rearing lifecycle on your homestead dont despair.

In this video we will talk about the last step in the process which is getting the rabbits rea. I am planning on raising Florida White rabbits for meat production in the spring. How to Raise Meat Rabbits - YouTube.

Rabbits have been known to chew through chicken wire. A rabbit house can be designed using wire fencing hardware and hay. Raising rabbits for meat will give you a lot of practice in butchering.

Off-Grid AC and Survival Cooling How to Make and Use Bone Broth I showed Justin and his wife Rebecca my no-worry low-work system for raising meat rabbits using paddock rotation gravity-fed watering systems and regenerating food systems. As with most things the first time is the slowest and most difficult. Stay away from using chicken wire as its just not strong enough.

Raise Rabbits on a Communal Farm. Flip the rabbit on. Start by taking down the carcass and placing it on a hard flat surface like a wooden cutting board or tree stump.

This is part 8 in our series about raising rabbits for meat. Raising rabbits requires you to build a proper house for them. I can build a 144 sqft shed with not issues as long as it is 5 feet from the property line.

Watch the video to learn how I do it. Aside from a quality pellet feed and grass hay a portion of their diet can be supplemented for a more natural seasonal feed plan. Misters will lower the temperature 10-15 degrees in dryer climates.

Housing meat rabbits Hutches. How to Treat Ear Mites in Rabbits 102F to 85F. They can be litterbox trained and make great pets if you can get them to stop eating the lamp cords Raising meat rabbits in the house would be a problem due to the urine smell and the fuz.

It can be pretty hard to raise a few rabbits as a pet only to later decide to use them for meat and have to kill and harvest them. Rabbits are becoming more popular with people wanting to be more self sufficient or anyone who wants some home raised great tasting meat. Place a soaker hose upside down close to the front of the roof edge.

Raising a rabbit inside is a cinch. Decide Why You Want To Raise Rabbits. We have been raising nearly ALL of our meat for several years.

Decide from the onset what the purpose of raising rabbits is. Now that you are thinking about raising some of your own meat rabbits youll need to know how long it will take to go from birth to processing. We eat it at least once a wee.

A protein level of 16 is good for meat rabbits. If you want to raise a single rabbit keep it inside so it can socialize with humans more. To keep it healthy feed it.

Always serve fresh water to avoid this contamination. Rabbit meat is one very important source of meat for our family. -Outside hutches Staple a burlap bag to the roof of the cage and have it drape over front of the cages.