Meat Rabbit Breeds

New Zealand

The most common breed of meat rabbit is the New Zealand. They are bred specifically for the meat industry. That is the main purpose of the New Zealand breed and this is because they grow fast and they have an excellent meat to bone ratio. However, New Zealand rabbits can also make great pets because of their easy going personality. This is great for small farmers because they can raise these rabbits and sell them as pets but if they do not sell as pets then the farmer can still make money by processing the rabbits and selling the meat (check your state requirement for selling meat legally). This was the whole idea when we started with New Zealand rabbits in 2022. We sold live rabbits and those that did not sell we processed and used for ourselves or sold as meat.

Most people think of New Zealand rabbits as the white rabbit with the red eyes (albino). But New Zealand rabbits come in other colors as well. Our first doe was red and our buck was white. They gave us an assortment of colors but mostly white as that is their dominant color. Some of the other colors include gray and steel which is a black peppered color. There are also rare New Zealand rabbits that are white with blue eyes.

New Zealand does are great mothers and average about 7 kits per litter but can range from 1-14 kits. Their weight rage for does is 10-12 lbs. and bucks are around 9-11 lbs.

Standard Rex

There are Standard Rex and there are Mini Rex. Don't get them confused. The Standard Rex are the rabbits you would want if you are raising them for meat. The cool thing about the Standard Rex rabbits is that they are a duel purpose rabbit, meaning that you can use them for their meat, pelts, and pets. The most striking feature about the Standard Rex is their soft plush fur and striking colors. They come in more colors then the New Zealand. They can be solid colors, spotted, and tri-colored. It is always exciting to see what colors your doe gives you in each litter of kits!

We raise Standard Rex and have found that they are a little more high strung if not handle regularly. It takes more work of regularly handling them to make them friendly then with the New Zealand. But once you gain the trust of a Standard Rex they can be really sweet and can have quite the personality. Rabadash, our one Standard Rex buck is a little escape artist but he is always a very happy bunny and is always excited to see anyone that stops by his cage. He loves treats and being petted.

The average number of kits per litter is 6-8. Our Standard Rex doe has had 9 before but has not been able to take care of that many so either one dies of starvation or we can foster one onto another doe that had kits at the same time. The average weight of a doe is 8-11 lbs. and bucks 7-9 lbs.

If you are considering raising rabbits for profit Standard Rex might be the best fit for you because you can sell them as pets or raise them to be processed and then sell the meat and the pelt.

Flemish Giants

This is the third type of meat rabbit that we have. They are sometimes left out of the lists of meat rabbits because they grow slower and most people want to raise quick growing meat rabbits. A Flemish Giant can weigh between 15-22 pounds with the larges recorded Flemish Giant was at 49 Lbs. That's a huge rabbit!

Flemish Giants are normally used as pets because they are known for their docile temperaments and it is just cool to have a huge rabbit as a pet. They are also used in 4-H programs as a starter rabbit. They do not have as many different colors as other breeds and are normally sandy, blue(gray), and some broken colors.

The thing with Flemish Giants is if you cross a Flemish Giant doe with a New Zealand buck you will have a large meat rabbit (the Flemish Giant) that grows quickly (the New Zealand). So, with the proper breeding techniques Flemish Giants can be excellent meat rabbits. They can have between 5-12 kits in a litter.

Other Breeds

There are many other meat rabbit breeds but the ones mentioned above are the ones we have experience raising. Tell us in the comments your experience with the same or different breeds of meat rabbits you raise. And we can learn from each other! And sign up to get our weekly email to let you know when we post and other blog so you do not miss out on any of our experiences and information with our farm life.

Email List