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I NTRODU CTION
The domestic rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) descended
from the European wild rabbit originating in countries
around the Mediterranean Sea and was introduced into
England in the late eleventh or early twelfth century. The
various breeds of modern domestic rabbits have been
developed since the eighteenth century. There are now
several hundred varieties throughout the world, varying
in size, color, type of hair coat, and other characteristics.
Thirty-eight breeds representing a wide range in size and
other characteristics are now recognized by the American
Rabbit Breeders Association. Rabbits are produced for
meat, research, and wool and as pets or for a hobby. Meat
production is the most important commercial aspect and
will be emphasized in this report.
The New Zealand White and Californian breeds are
marketed most extensively for meat. These are medium
weight breeds (3.6-5.4 kg), providing a size of carcass to
which the retail purchaser has become accustomed. Skins
or pelts find some use in industry. Blood and other organs
and tissues used as specimens for biological and medical
research are also important by-products from the large
slaughtering units. Some slaughterhouse by-products
may be used in pet foods. Production of woo} from Angora
breeds was popular at one time, but presently there is
little commercial production of angora wool.
Official statistics are not available on the numbers of
rabbits produced annually in the United States. It has
been estimated that 4.5 to 5.4 million kg of rabbit meat is
consumed annually, some of which is imported. Approx-
imately 6 to 8 million rabbits are produced annually for all
purposes. Peak production was reached in 1944, when it
was estimated that about 24 million rabbits were pro-
duced. In times of national emergency, such as occurred
during both world wars and in other times of food short-
age, production of rabbits has traditionally increased. A
growing phase of the rabbit industry is that of supplying
animals for laboratory or research use. Current usage for
this purpose is about 600 thousand annually.
The domestic rabbit is primarily herbivorous and will
consume most types of grains, greens, and hay. Diets
provided, whether home grown or commercially pre-
pared, consist almost entirely of ingredients from plant
sources. Although a few producers may still rely on
homegrown feeds, a major portion of the rabbit feed
presently used is commercial, pelleted feed. Since Me
rabbit can utilize a certain amount of forage, it has a place
in food production by making use of some non-competi-
tive feeds.
Rabbits habitually practice coprophagy, sometimes re-
ferred to as pseudorumination. This refers to the produc-
tion of two kinds of fecal matter, one hard and one soft,
the latter being consumed directly from the anus as it is
excreted. This practice begins In rabbits shortly after they
begin eating solid feed at about 3 to 4 weeks of age but is
not practiced by germ-free rabbits. Fe~entation in the
large intestine and the practice of coprophagy probably
provide the necessary amounts of most B vitamins, pros
vice some bacterially synthesized protein, and may per-
mit further digestion of some nutrients by multiple pas-
sage through the digestive tract. The high digestibility of
forage protein in rabbits may be due partially to co-
prophagy.
The subcommittee considered the inclusion of Stan-
dard Reference Diets but found insufficient information
on such diets that had been adequately tested in feeding
trials. Specific requirements for many of Me nutrients
assumed to be needed by rabbits have not been estab-
lished. The literature contains some information, and a
number of significant reports have been published since
the previous revision of this publication. The require-
ments summarized and presented in Table 1 reflect
published data on intake levels reported to insure normal
health and performance. A safety factor has not been
added, and increased intakes may need to be considered
under conditions of stress, variability in content, and
availability of nutrients in the feed. Possible additional
requirements under such conditions have not been eval-
uated, and no separate recommendations are made. Ma-
ture rabbits vary in size from 1 to 6 kg, so it is not
possible to state requirements on a daily basis.
1
Representative terms from entire chapter:
domestic rabbit
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