Rabbit Production

Rabbits are versatile animals, farmed for their meat and fur, as laboratory and show animals, and also as pets. This well-established book continues to provide an overview of domesticated rabbit production, covering topics such as breeding, management, feeding and health. Now in its fully updated tenth edition, it includes an expanded consideration of important issues such as animal behavior and welfare and sustainable methods of small-scale rabbit production. With chapters relating specifically to international and backyard family rabbit production, pet rabbits, rabbit shows, and angora wool production, this new edition: - Includes new information on the latest methods of rabbit reproductive management, including applications of artificial insemination, estrous synchronization, embryo transfer, cloning, and molecular genetics; - Tackles globally prevalent health issues such as mucoid enteropathy (ME), epizootic rabbit enteropathy (ERE) and rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHD); - Reviews up-to-the-minute developments such as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on food production, opportunities of selling rabbits at farmers markets, organic rabbit meat, raising of pastured rabbits, as well as new projects addressing poverty alleviation and food security. Providing updates on worldwide production trends, breeds, and figures, as well as use of color photos throughout, this book is an essential resource for anyone involved in rabbit production - from novice to experienced breeders, trainers and managers of rabbit projects, veterinarians and industry professionals.