"This book provides an overview of domesticated rabbit production, covering breeding, husbandry, feeding and health. In this fully updated 10th edition, it includes expanded consideration of animal welfare and sustainable production methods, as well as new information on artificial insemination, embryo transfer, cloning and molecular genetics"--.

• Cover
• Dedication
• Rabbit Production
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Appendix
• 1 Introduction
  • History, Taxonomy, and Domestication of the Rabbit
  • Potential of the Rabbit for Meat and Fur Production
  • Production of Pharmaceuticals
  • Youth Programs
  • Hobbies and Pets
  • Laboratory Use
  • Factors Limiting Rabbit Production
  • Sources of Helpful Information
  • A Rabbit by Any Other Name
  • Further Reading
• 2 Rabbit Production Worldwide
  • Europe
  • The Americas
  • Asia
  • Australia and New Zealand
  • Africa
  • Future World Rabbit Production
  • Rabbit Research Worldwide
  • Further Reading
• 3 Rabbit Breeds
  • Selecting a Breed
  • Purchasing Breeding Stock
  • Breeds of Rabbit
  • Further Reading
• 4 The Rabbitry and Its Equipment
  • Planning the Rabbitry
  • The Rabbit Building
  • Hutches and Cages
  • Feeding Equipment
    • Feeders
    • Hay mangers
  • Watering Equipment
  • Nest Boxes
    • Winter nest boxes
  • Identification Equipment
  • Feed and Utility Carts
  • Other Equipment
  • Further Reading
• 5 Rabbit Management
  • Handling Rabbits
  • Number of Bucks
  • Age to Breed
  • Breeding Schedule
  • The Mating Process
  • Gestation Period
  • Factors Preventing Conception
    • Sterility
    • Physical condition
    • Pseudopregnancy
    • Sore hocks or injuries
    • Retained fetus
  • Determining Pregnancy
  • Kindling
  • Care of Young Litters
  • Nest Box Management
  • Fostering Young
  • Causes of Losses in Young Litters
  • Feeding the Doe after Kindling
  • Weaning
  • Determination of Sex
  • Tattooing and Ear Tags
  • Care of the Herd in Hot Weather
  • Fur Chewing
  • Other Causes of Hair Loss
  • Sanitation
  • Shedding or Molting
  • Environmental Effects on Rabbit Performance
    • Temperature
    • Light
  • Hypnosis
  • Breeding Herd Replacements
  • Herd Records
• 6 Economics and Financial Management
  • Financing
  • Expenses
    • Buildings
    • Equipment
    • Breeding stock
    • Feed
    • Labor
    • Miscellaneous expenses
  • Income
  • Cash Flow
  • Further Reading
• 7 Principles of Rabbit Nutrition
  • Nutrient Categories
    • Protein
    • Carbohydrates
    • Fats
    • Minerals
      • Calcium and phosphorus
      • Magnesium
      • Potassium, sodium, and chlorine
      • Sulfur
      • Iron
      • Copper
      • Cobalt
      • Manganese
      • Zinc
      • Iodine
      • Selenium
    • Vitamins
      • Definition of a vitamin
      • Units of vitamin measurement
      • Fat-soluble vitamins
      • Water-soluble vitamins
  • Water
  • Digestive Processes in the Rabbit
    • Digestion and digestibility
      • Protein digestion
      • Carbohydrate digestion
      • Fat digestion
      • Digestion of minerals and vitamins
    • Cecotrophy
  • Feed Analysis
    • Total digestible nutrients
    • Information on a feed tag
  • Relationships between Feed Manufacturers and Rabbit Raisers
  • Further Reading
• 8 Feeds and Feeding
  • Nutrient Requirements of Rabbits
  • Composition of Feeds
    • Roughages
      • Clovers
      • Grasses
      • Green feeds and succulents
    • Alfalfa
    • Concentrates
      • Grains
      • Other energy sources
      • Protein supplements
  • Non-nutritive Feed Additives
    • Antibiotics
    • Probiotics (direct-fed microbials)
    • Prebiotics
    • Pellet binders
    • Flavoring agents
    • Salt
    • Copper sulfate
    • Yucca and quillaja
    • Enzymes
  • Feed Formulation, Preparation, and Processing
    • Diet formulation
    • Feed storage
    • Feed requirements and feed conversion
    • Feeding systems
    • Creep feeding
    • Examples of diet formulas
  • Grazing Rabbits
  • Orphan Litters
  • Conditioning Show Rabbits
  • Further Reading
• 9 Toxins in Feeds
  • Goitrogens
  • Gossypol
  • Lectins (Hemagglutinins)
  • Mimosine
  • Mycotoxins
  • Nitrates
  • Oxalates
  • Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids
  • Saponins
  • Trypsin Inhibitors
  • Urea
  • Poisonous Plants
  • Herbal Remedies
  • Agricultural Chemicals: Pesticides and Herbicides
  • Further Reading
• 10 Rabbit Diseases and Health Problems
  • General Considerations
  • Quarantine
  • Diagnosing Diseases
  • Major Rabbit Diseases and Health Problems
    • Pasteurellosis
    • Snuffles (rhinitis)
    • Pneumonia
    • Abscesses
    • Metritis and orchitis
    • Wry neck
    • Weepy eyes (conjunctivitis)
    • Enteric diseases
      • Enterotoxemia
      • Mucoid enteropathy and Epizootic rabbit enteropathy
      • Coccidiosis
      • Tyzzer’s disease
    • Mastitis
  • Other Rabbit Diseases and Health Problems
    • Bordetellosis
    • Broken back
    • Buphthalmia (congenital glaucoma)
    • Cannibalism
    • Colibacillosis
    • Dystocia
    • Ear mites
    • Encephalitozoonosis
    • Fibroma
    • Heat prostration
    • Hepatitis E
    • Hutch burn
    • Listeriosis
    • Malocclusion
    • Mange
    • Moist dermatitis
    • Myxomatosis
    • Necrobacillosis
    • Nest box death
    • Papilloma
    • Pinworms
    • Pregnancy toxemia
    • Pseudotuberculosis
    • Rabbit hemorrhagic disease
    • Rabbit pox
    • Rabbit syphilis (venereal spirochetosis)
    • Red urine
    • Ringworm (dermatophytosis)
    • Salmonellosis
    • Sore hocks
    • Splay leg
    • Staphylococcosis
    • Tapeworms
    • Toxoplasmosis
    • Trichobezoars (hairballs)
    • Tularemia
    • Urolithiasis
    • Uterine adenocarcinoma
    • Vitamin A deficiency
    • Young doe syndrome
  • Further Reading
• 11 Rabbit Reproduction
  • The Male
    • Organs of reproduction
    • Spermatozoa
    • Reproductive activity of the buck
  • The Female
    • Organs of reproduction
    • Estrus and ovulation
    • Pseudopregnancy
    • Fertilization, implantation, and pregnancy
    • Parturition and maternal care
    • Lactation
  • Artificial Insemination
  • Winter Breeding Depression
  • Embryo Transfer
  • Cloning
  • Further Reading
• 12 Rabbit Behavior
  • Ethology: the Science of Behavior
  • Domestication of Rabbits
  • Behavior of Wild Rabbits
  • Behavior of Domestic Rabbits
  • Systems of Rabbit Behavior
    • Ingestive behavior
      • Feeding behavior
      • Feeding problems and vices
      • Drinking behavior
    • Eliminative behavior
    • Sexual behavior
    • Maternal behavior
    • Social behavior
    • Shelter-seeking behavior
  • Environmental Factors Affecting Behavior
  • Further Reading
• 13 Principles of Rabbit Genetics
  • Genes: the Basic Units of Inheritance
  • Mendelian Genetics
  • Other Basic Genetic Terms
  • Gene Expression
  • Further Reading
• 14 Breeding Systems
  • Inbreeding
  • Linebreeding
  • Outcrossing
  • Crossbreeding
    • Hybrid vigor
    • Breed complementation
  • New Breed Development
  • Random Mating
  • Summary
  • Further Reading
• 15 Genetic Selection for Herd Improvement
  • Selection for Qualitative Traits
    • Selection for desirable genes
    • Selection against an undesirable gene
  • Selection for Quantitative Traits
    • The concept of heritability
    • Indirect selection for lowly heritable traits
    • Direct selection for moderately to highly heritable traits
    • Selection practices for fanciers
    • Selection practices for Angora breeders
  • Recordkeeping
  • Computers as an Aid to Genetic Selection
  • Further Reading
• 16 Coat Color Genetics of Rabbits
  • Classification of Major Coat Color Genes
    • A series
    • B series
    • C series
    • D series
    • E series
  • Coat Pattern Genes
    • Dutch white spotting
    • English white spotting
    • Silvering
    • Viennese white
    • Wide band
  • Modifier Genes
  • Coat Structural Genes
    • Angora
    • Furless
    • Rex
    • Satin
    • Waved
  • Coat Color Breeding Schemes
    • Simple gene introduction
    • Multiple gene introduction
    • Multiple gene recombination for producing new varieties
  • Further Reading
• 17 Rabbit Shows
  • Preparation of Rabbits for Shows
  • Shipping Show Rabbits
  • Judging and Showing
  • Registering Rabbits
  • Further Reading
• 18 Pet Rabbits
  • Introduction
  • House Training
  • Nutrition
  • Health
  • Further Reading
• 19 Animal Welfare
  • Further Reading
• 20 Rabbits for Family and Small Farm Development
  • Rabbits as a Family Activity
    • Family food production
    • Youth development
    • Other benefits
  • Integrating Rabbit Production on the Family Farm
  • Diversifying Rabbit Production on the Family Farm
  • Market Development
  • Further Reading
• 21 Rabbit Production in Developing Countries
  • Cages and Equipment
  • Feeding and Management
  • Special Problems in Tropical Rabbit Production
    • Heat stress
    • Zoonoses
    • Tsetse fly
  • Rabbits as Pests
  • Agencies Involved in International Development of Rabbit Production
  • Further Reading
• 22 Angora Wool Production
  • Wool Coat Growth
  • Wool Yields
  • Management
  • Wool Block (Gastric Stasis)
  • Equipment for Grooming and Wool Harvesting
  • Removal of Wool
    • Plucking
    • Shearing or clipping
  • Care of Shorn Rabbits
  • Grading and Storing Angora Wool
  • Home-spinning of Angora Wool
  • Further Reading
• 23 Meat Production
  • Fryers
  • Stewers
  • Nutritional Properties of Rabbit Meat
  • Alternative Systems of Commercial Rabbit Production
  • Further Reading
• 24 Harvesting and Preparation of Meat and Skins
  • Meat
  • Skins
    • Curing
    • Tanning skins for home use
    • Salt–acid process
    • Salt–alum process
  • Further Reading
• 25 Marketing Rabbits and Their Products
  • Rabbit Meat
  • Breeding Stock
  • Laboratory Stock
  • Skins
  • Pharmaceuticals
  • Angora Wool
  • Fur Crafts
  • Pets
  • Fertilizers
  • Worms
• Glossary
• Index
• Back_Cover