The profitability of rabbit farming in our time is quite high. Many farmers know the secret successful breeding rabbits, 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 good breed 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 butcher shops, shops, market warehouses 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 (proven 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 furs;
- 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;
- rapid growth of rabbits promotes uninterrupted production and stable income.
In addition, rabbits love green food, which is in abundance in the summer-autumn period in each rural areas, 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 start:
- 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 workplace slaughtering, freezing and storage of 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.
More free keeping of rabbits, first of all, allows you to save space and equipment material.
The most accessible and in a simple way is breeding 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 ways will be a successful start profitable business subject to proper compliance with sanitary and hygienic standards.
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 almost waste-free production: meat, fur, entrails, manure - all this gives profit. Individuals quickly reach sexual age. In addition, in the future it is possible to sell live purebred rabbits.
Rabbit breeding business technology - video
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 - mating 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 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 develop new and improve existing breeds 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, as rabbits urinate at the entrance.
To protect against 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, no drafts, quick payback. Disadvantages: low 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.
Author this method is not a supporter of classical breeding, since it does not provide the opportunity 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 northern side, such cells are equipped with a thick insulated wall, and on the southern side, on the contrary, with an open wall that allows sunlight to pass through and fresh air. 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 efficiency production, it is necessary to 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 producing 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 there will be a plot with the lowest rent. At the same time, it should not be forgotten that minimum area 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 must be thought through 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. The costs that production will incur and the income from it are indicated.
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.
A small business raising rabbits is a very interesting topic that requires painstaking calculations. After all, the majority raise small livestock near their place of residence, and it is rare that, for example, individual entrepreneurs dare to place bulky cages in the area of industrial zones. But if there is demand, then why not?
Location is a secondary matter. More important is the rabbit itself, its breed, fertility and disease resistance.
Business plan
There are not many business ideas or plans for raising rabbits in cages, pits or sheds. Indeed, for rural areas (and rabbits have always been bred on private farms) it is difficult to officially obtain a loan or credit for development. This often happens in practice.
But in legislative order There are only two options. Let's present it in table form:
Factors | Personal subsidiary farming | Individual entrepreneurship |
Papers required for registration | 1. Documents for land; 2. The owner’s health record; 3. A veterinarian’s report on the general condition of the rabbits; 4. Papers for meat (issued in the laboratory at the veterinary clinic); 5. Delivery issue: on vehicle You need a health certificate. |
1. Certificate for a rabbit farm; 2. Compliance with GOST; 3. Phytosanitary certification. |
Taxes | Not held | Unified agricultural tax |
Control | District or city administration | Selkhoznadzor |
Rabbits as a business: pros and cons
Let's put it in order. Pros:
- Meat of any breed is dietary (no fat in the carcass). For a similar food product demand all year round ;
- Now It is possible to obtain consumer loans working citizens to start a business for breeding and selling rabbits;
- If you work hard, then selling rabbit skins will also bring profit. Well, downy breeds pay for themselves in a season. The approximate price of processed rabbit fluff (grade 1) starts from 100 rubles;
- You can sell some individuals alive(if there is demand);
- The fastest payback with minimal investment.
Of the minuses:
- The small living organism of a rabbit is very sensitive, needs a balanced diet. This is especially true for pregnant females and young animals (up to 2 months inclusive);
- Can't do without vaccines, although there is a lot of resentment about this. But veterinarian visits to rabbit farms are routine;
- No points or depots for receiving meat among the population. This practice took root well in the USSR, where any skins, furs and, of course, down were accepted. Some regions are trying to catch up, but most mini-farms sell slaughter by appointment, selling meat in small quantities to city residents and rarely to retail.
- Earning money from a breed can lead to serious expenses. The fact is that an adult rabbit (six months old) must be sold as soon as possible, otherwise it will have to be fed in vain every day. Such cultivation is unprofitable.
Rabbit business – myth and reality?
Animal business without investment is definitely a myth. It is not difficult to organize a small income comparable to a regional salary.
But the desire for profit has a detrimental effect on living organisms. Rabbits as a financial instrument are extremely unstable.
Let's assume that an average businessman received a contract for the supply of 200-250 kg. rabbit meat per month. This is cool. However, now precautions are needed so as not to miscalculate, and the entire livestock is consistently pierced with antibiotics. This is how everything works, otherwise you won’t survive under the contract. This is the real reality about business on rabbits and other animals.
Therefore, the purchase of natural and dietary meat should not be made from large trading network, where the carcass harmoniously flaunts on the substrate, and ideally a meter from the place of slaughter. Where the farm is visible, and it’s clear what they feed and how they care for it.
What do people with experience write?
There are general final reviews among former and current rabbit breeders:
- Forget about stability. Exactly there can be no guaranteed income. It also happens that the entire month's litter dies in a few days from poor-quality food, infection or an ordinary fly. All this takes a toll on your nerves and your pocket!
- Business is not for everyone. Rabbits even with automation (water supply, heating) time consuming. A simple example: there is a sale, and you need to score some 5 units. Treat one rabbit for at least 40 minutes. And here are five pieces! What if the volume is good and you need to score 20-30 per day?
- The most important thing in similar business– this is equipment! We are talking about the quality of the cells and premises. Whether it is profitable or not to spend money on them is not important. Everything that is created for comfortable conditions, always pays off, certainly with rabbits. Therefore, you should not skimp even when choosing wire for the cage. And, of course, test all feed purchased from new suppliers.
- Routine activity. The first year, maybe two years, is interesting. But experience makes itself felt, and even with a population of 200-300 rabbits, you constantly need to carry heavy bags of feed, supply water and do cleaning. Is it worth it? And all processes are on schedule, otherwise there will be illnesses.
- Can be kept for yourself, relatives and regular good customers. If there is a profitable outlet for food, that’s another matter! You can organize space and purchase equipment.
- Increasingly, rabbit breeding has become an outlet for housewives. A few dozen, maximum 50 heads at home are enough trouble. And the whole point is that they are increasingly trying to extract benefits through speculative means: they buy the breed at exhibitions for brood, and then sell it as an elite species for many times more expensive. Also a business, but not on a product.
- In rural areas, where there are their own small customs, rabbit breeders try to cross blood, inviting a female to mate in a hunt, for example, with a neighbor. And you have to pay for this, give food or help with housework.
- Owners who have kept rabbits for decades will tell you whether it is profitable to keep them only for themselves. More likely yes than no. A real, high-quality product for home consumption.
- Can only be bred for the warm season. As a type of business it’s very good. Minimum feed costs. Abundant nutrition with hay or pasture. But here you need a guaranteed seller of teenagers every spring, otherwise nothing will work out. Regions with problematic climates often practice such breeding.
Is it profitable? Conclusions
There is always a benefit. The first is experience. Breeding can cost several thousand or millions. But the essence is the same: organize the fertilization process in time, save young animals and preserve the breed. And with responsible care there will be offspring every season. If you run a small business without selling live weight, there are more prospects. But rabbits from private household plots are rarely sold alive, due to great connections. This is a risk for the owner.
What’s great about the rabbit is its unpretentiousness to the weather. This animal can get along well in a wide enclosure (shed), in a hole (breeding rabbits in pits) or in a classic cage. Now there are many breeds of rabbit that require special care (warm room, vitamins from pet stores, etc.). It’s better not to take people like that into the meat business.
Our outstanding rabbit breeder Alexey Alekseevich Tsvetkov learned from his own experience all the intricacies of working with rabbits. From the choice of breed to the slaughter system - he personally tested all this. And this man runs his unique farm himself, not allowing outsiders. Maybe this is the secret of success?
According to Alexey himself, pigs, for example, are more difficult to keep. They are noisy. The rabbit is calm, quiet until a certain time. Of course, cleaning cages with rabbits is a daily routine, but even here you can think about how to make your farm even more autonomous, since there are a lot of materials for imagination on the markets.
Tsvetkov mini-farm design
The experience of one of the most experienced rabbit breeders in the country.
Experience of Tsvetkov A. A.
According to approximate calculations for the volume and technology developed by Alexey Alekseevich, you need to follow the following rules so that the rabbit farm is in the black:
- 2-3 employees on a permanent basis. People are needed to carry feed, unload and load. Otherwise, your back won’t hold up for long;
- Custom designed cells(project by A. A. Tsvetkov);
- For a livestock of up to 2 thousand, at least 40 acres of land are needed to install the entire subsidiary farm. According to Alexey Alekseevich, even the light cycle can affect the growth and development of the immune system of a rabbit. Light should penetrate into designated areas from dawn to dusk;
- Only local breeds can be hired. It is not advisable to cross with European species. “Soviet chinchilla” is an ideal option for breeding. Has good performance in terms of weight gain and resistance to climate change;
- The sales market in the central region of the country is developed, demand is high. But the cost of meat in winter may be more expensive, since in summer more hay is used as feed. It's cheaper;
- Waste removal. Such a mini-farm produces exactly the same amount of waste as the feed it imports. Therefore, it is better to either remove animal waste products immediately or organize a special area for compost. An interesting fact is that rabbit droppings are equal to horse droppings, which means they are the best natural fertilizer for the garden.
- You cannot start a cycle with cell cleaning or vaccination of young animals.. Young animals need to be fed with natural supplements (like calves on a farm). Even flour will do;
- Food and drink are plentiful all year round. It is necessary to balance the amount of hay with feed so as not to cause upset in the rabbit’s food system;
- It is better not to invest heavily in breeding rabbits, but to start gradually. Haste does not solve financial problems, and even more so, without experience, rushing into medium business risky.
Whether it is beneficial to keep it during daily worries is up to those who have set a specific goal to decide!
Another story about personal experience on video
The value of this video is that it motivates. Most commentators noted: the video improves mood and inspires.
Running a farm or small private enterprise for lately has gained popularity as a source of the main or additional income. The main thing in this activity is to choose the right livestock industry and provide living conditions for the pets. Rabbit farming will bring you profit or provide your family with food. But first you need to draw up a business plan for breeding rabbits, which includes calculations of the initial capital, items of expenses and income, and additional profit. It is also useful to familiarize yourself with the features of caring for animals.
Rabbits can bring good profit
The meat of these animals is characterized as dietary, has a delicate taste, is absorbed by the body and does not cause an allergic reaction. Included in the menu for patients suffering from metabolic disorders.
Income will come from both meat and skin areas in rabbit breeding.
Advantages
Rabbits are characterized by a number of advantages that will become a source of profit:
- fertility;
- short period of pregnancy;
- productivity: both meat and skin.
Breeding rabbits is beneficial even for a novice businessman:
- pays for itself quickly;
- brings profit with little investment of time and effort;
- does not require large start-up capital;
- not subject to high taxes;
- does not require large expenses for keeping animals.
The downside is losses among young animals.
Rabbit farming costs quickly pay for themselves
Varieties
Choose meat breeds, since the main source of income from a rabbit farm is meat. Among these varieties are popular:
- New Zealand red - weight up to 5 kilograms, early maturity;
- New Zealand white - quickly gain weight, already at three months they weigh up to three and a half kilograms;
- Californian is a broiler breed, by the age of five months the specimen weighs four and a half kilograms, with an increase of up to 45 g daily.
Breeders purchase representatives of these breeds at special fairs and exhibitions agriculture. Avoid purchasing livestock from poultry markets.
The New Zealand red rabbit is a representative of the meat industry.
Where to start?
Opening a rabbit farm does not require a large down payment. Thus, maintaining a herd of up to 1 thousand heads will require a plot of no more than the standard six acres. Homemade cells and facilities for eating and drinking water will have an impact on reducing costs.
Before starting rabbit farming, choose a method of registering your activity. For a mini-enterprise, a personal type of subsidiary plot is better suited. Another option is to obtain documents of an individual entrepreneur. The decision is related to the methods of selling products.
If you have thought about the sales market (meat sold to friends or exhibited at fairs rural production), then a personal subsidiary plot (LPH) is suitable for you.
You will save on taxes. Choosing the activity of an individual entrepreneur (IP) will completely promote the business, but with some disadvantages:
- increasing costs for organizing business activities;
- permits are required.
Rabbit cages take up quite a lot of space
To open a rabbit breeding farm you will need a place where you will build it. This can be done on your own or rented garden plot. Calculate losses from company registration. A separate expense item is the arrangement of the entrance and water drainage system. You will also need materials for the construction of shed structures:
- fine-mesh galvanized mesh;
- wooden bars;
- metal sheets and profiles;
- materials for the roof.
Homemade feeders and drinkers will reduce payments, but refrigeration units and equipment for preparing combined feed are store purchases. If you plan to hire workers for your rabbit farm, then their wages- these are additional costs.
LPH or individual entrepreneur?
When choosing a private household plot, you will need the following documents to start a business:
- confirmation of rights to a land plot;
- your health record;
- health certificate of the vehicle in which the rabbit meat is delivered (if it is your personal vehicle);
- a certificate from a veterinarian about the condition of the rabbit population;
- safety assessment of meat products obtained from a veterinary laboratory.
Documents that will be required to register an individual entrepreneur and engage in rabbit breeding:
- certificates: rabbit farms, phytosanitary control;
- declaration of conformity state standards quality.
Individual entrepreneur status implies payment of taxes
Private household plots are not subject to taxes; individual entrepreneurs pay a single tax on agriculture.
The activities of private household plots are controlled by rural or city administration bodies, and Rosselkhoznadzor is responsible for individual entrepreneurs. Your code economic activity– A.01.25.2, that is, “breeding rabbits and fur-bearing animals on a farm,” and a ban is imposed on leather production from animals hunted by hunters.
Construction conditions
- Find out from your local administration the requirements for the distance between agricultural buildings and residential buildings;
- choose a flat area on a hill to avoid flooding during rainy periods or when snow melts;
- choose a quiet place, away from noisy roads;
- avoid wetlands with high humidity (rabbits get sick from this);
- lay asphalt on the territory of the rabbit farm and arrange for moisture drainage.
Humidity is contraindicated for rabbits
Fixed expense items
If a kilogram of such food costs on average no more than 9 rubles, then the cost of feeding a rabbit family will be 3,000 rubles. Three shad devices per year consume feed worth approximately 126,000 rubles.
Making feed from grains and grass flour at home with vitamin and mineral supplements will reduce food costs. You can prepare succulent feed and hay with your own hands, but it is not recommended to spend money on this if you have a farm of more than a thousand heads.
Set aside 300 rubles or more per head for veterinary care. For three sheds, each containing 14 queens, you will need more than 12 thousand rubles. Add to this payments for electricity (1500 rubles) and hay (2000).
Rabbits may need a veterinarian
Fixed income items
The sale of meat products is the main income in rabbit farming. Clean slaughter yield per head – 2 kg. Three shad complexes annually produce up to 1000 young animals, a total of 2000 kilograms, 250-300 rubles each.
At these prices, the profit per year from the sale of meat will be 500 thousand rubles. If you subtract expense items from this amount, you are left with 360 thousand rubles (30 thousand monthly).
Separately, calculate the yield of by-products - liver and kidneys (plus two thousand per year). Rabbit farming will pay for itself within six months.
Additional profit
Money also helps rabbit skins, which are best preserved during slaughter in the summer. In studios or factories they are accepted for 30-40 rubles; processed ones cost more (up to 150). Selling a thousand skins annually, the breeder receives up to 150,000 rubles.
It is advisable to use rabbit droppings to produce vermicompost, which is obtained after fermentation of excrement in biogas plants.
Vermicompost from rabbit droppings will bring additional income
Sales markets
Build your own customer base. At the initial stages, it will include relatives, acquaintances, etc. Advertise in newspapers, post notices on the streets. They sell meat products directly from the rabbit farm. If resellers contact you, show them a certificate from a veterinarian.
To cooperate with restaurants, you will need a certificate from a veterinarian, Form No. 2.
In addition to the veterinary department, visit the SES, the local center for standardization and metrology, to find out about the standards for marketing meat products.
It is unlikely that the network will be a promising market for you large supermarkets. Such suppliers offer too low wholesale prices for meat.
Restaurants willingly buy rabbit meat
Organization of livestock care
For breeding, they buy 45-50 heads of pedigree young animals (expenses up to 13,500 rubles). The most convenient system, which offers the possibility of automating the keeping of animals and saving space, is cage batteries (shed system).
The two batteries are connected via the roof. The body of the shed is made of wooden or metal raw materials, the passage between the batteries and the floor are sheathed with boards or filled with concrete.
With the shad system, the cages themselves and additional utility rooms are located on one hundred square meters, where up to a thousand specimens are grown annually (in square meters):
- three sets of shads (20*2.4*2.8 meters) – 360;
- room for mixed feed, grains, with an entrance – 200;
- storage room for equipment – up to 50;
- place for slaughter and refrigeration units for meat (with ventilation and compliance with sanitary standards) - up to 50;
- concreted manure pit up to three meters deep, under a canopy - 30;
- the rest is passages for a small tractor.
In the shed, 60 cells with parameters of 1.3 * 0.7 * 0.55 meters are placed using the two-tier method. To make cages, use galvanized mesh with small cells (in mm) 18 by 18, 20 by 20, 16 by 48. To install the floor at an angle, install the back wall of the room 20 centimeters lower than the front. This will make cleaning easier. Arrange a double flooring so that the roof of the lower segment serves as a collector for the droppings of the inhabitants of the upper floor (a double floor is also required in the lower tier).
The slaughterhouse is equipped with a blood drain and an oven in which post-slaughter waste is burned. If you install refrigeration units nearby, this will make meat processing easier and save time.
Cage batteries are the most convenient option for keeping rabbits
Feeding and breeding
Separate rooms are allocated for the mother rabbits and the breeding male in the upper segment of the shad (14 cells plus one). The remaining 45 cells are inhabited by young animals, 7-8 specimens per group. Maintain cleanliness, change the flooring on time, remove litter, and disinfect.
Queen rabbits are ready to breed immediately after giving birth, but farmers at home allow them to see the male 3-4 times annually (spring, summer and autumn).
6-8 rabbits are born, which the female feeds for at least two months. In total, keeping fourteen female rabbits in a shed brings in from 250 to 350 heads annually, and an enterprise with three sheds will produce up to a thousand rabbit carcasses.
Between the eating places and the nests in the cages there are mangers made of a 35 (25) by 35 millimeter mesh filled with hay. Feeders and drinking bowls are installed under them.
Concentrated food (cereals, mixed feed) is stored in a special dry room. Compound feed made by yourself will cost less. It is healthier than store-bought, which contains synthetic vitamins and substances undesirable for animals. IN summer time They are given dried fresh grass, and hay is prepared for the winter. The menu of lactating and gestating females is more varied and nutritious, including succulent varieties of food and supplements of mineral and vitamin elements.
You can buy rabbit feed or prepare it yourself
For self-made for mixed feed, purchase a grain crusher and an extruder for granulation. One of the homemade food recipes contains (in percentage):
- ground grains of oats and wheat – 30;
- ground barley and corn grains – 45;
- wheat bran – 12;
- cake – 12;
- chalk – 0.5;
- salt – 0.5.
An adult rabbit consumes per day (in grams):
- forbs – up to 1500;
- bean hay – 1200;
- branch food – 600;
- carrots – 600;
- cabbage for feed – 600;
- fodder beet – 200;
- bran - 100.
Additives to the main menu – animal flour (15 g), table salt– 2.5 g, crushed chalk – 2 g. In the morning the herd is fed with succulent and green feed, at lunchtime and in the evening – with mixed feed and grain crops. Pour fresh, clean water, slightly warmed, into the drinking bowls.
The market niche for rabbit meat is currently little occupied, unlike chicken or pork.
Even as a new breeder, if you have a sound business plan, you can make money with little expense. Rabbit farming, which previously received little attention, is gradually becoming a profitable business venture.
– the idea is not new, but despite this, it is not very popular. Farmers prefer to raise other animals such as pigs or cows, whose meat is in high demand. It is very rare to find a rabbit on store shelves or at the market. Although its meat is considered dietary and is highly valued among consumers.
Rabbit business – underdeveloped niche, and this is its main advantage. Low level of competition and demand for fresh food homemade meat will allow farmers to easily start their own business and achieve high results in it.
People who own large farms have the opportunity to breed several types of animals for themselves. For example, when engaged in pig farming, they keep several cows for their own consumption. Rabbits are usually kept in small numbers in order to enjoy the delicious meat themselves and treat their neighbors. Is it profitable to breed rabbits for sale? Let's consider several aspects.
- Rabbit meat- a rather rare product that can not always be found in pavilions or supermarkets. Chicken, beef, pork and even turkey are the list of the most common meat products. It can be concluded that rabbit breeding as a business is in its infancy, and this is a great chance to become someone who can take this business to the next level.
- The rabbit has proven itself well as a precocious animal. On average, one female is capable of producing 55-60 cubs per year. The age at which rabbits can be sold is 3 months. During this time, they turn into individuals weighing up to 4-5 kg. There are also larger relatives, which is not always good. Since selling a carcass weighing more than 5 kg is a little problematic.
- In order to found rabbit business, no big required starting capital . As they say, “Moscow was not built in a day.” It is enough to first organize a mini-farm, which is quite simple to do. Cages do not take up much space; they can be kept in a barn or other utility room. As for the feed, the main part (grass and hay) can be made independently.
And yet, rabbit breeding as a business: is it profitable or not? If there are any doubts, we will present a powerful argument: income is brought in not only by meat, but also by the skin of the animal. Rabbit breeding is quite promising business , which does not require huge investments and can be developed at home. To start doing this, you need to know the basics of creating a farm.
First of all, you need to decide on the organizational and legal component of your activity. There are two options here: individual entrepreneur or personal subsidiary plot. Each of them has its pros and cons. In the first case, you will have to pay taxes, but there will be more opportunities for development. So, what do you need to breed rabbits?