SF 453 
 .G5 
 Copy 1 
 
 The New Zealand Red Rabbit 
 and Rabbit Culture 
 
 G. P. GILMORE 
 
 "RANGITERIA" 
 
 (Meaning "Gentleman" in the language of the New Zealander). A Gilmore 
 Farm Registered New Zealand Stud Buck. Note the splendid, medium long 
 body and the long, well shaped ears. First prize Sr. Buck, Los Angeles, 
 California, January, 1917. 
 

 7^; ,^-r. J 
 
 The New Zealand Red Rabbit 
 and Rabbit Culture 
 
 DEVOTED TO THE CARE AND BREEDING OF THE 
 POPULAR NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 FIRST EDITION 
 
 Published by 
 
 Pacific Coast Publishing Company 
 
 Santa Barbara, California 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 SRS-3 
 
 The aim of this Httle book is to enlighten ail those interested in 
 the New Zealand Red Rabbit and to help them to attain a degree of 
 success that without its aid would require a much longer period of 
 time and probably a much larger expenditure of capital. 
 
 It is to familiarize breeders with the correctness of type and 
 color markings of this splendid rabbit so as to enable them to direct 
 with intelligence their efforts to secure better quality in their breed- 
 ing stock. 
 
 While the book is devoted principally to the New Zealand Red, 
 I have tried to give enough general rabbit information to make the 
 book well worth the price to anyone interested in rabbits; few 
 breeders are more successful than I, and wliat I have written is 
 based upon my successful methods. 
 
 Yours very truly, 
 
 'T^ 
 
 •CI.A457«55 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 HOUSING, BREEDING, FEEDING 
 
 AND GENERAL CARE OF NEW 
 
 ZEALAND REDS 
 
 (The following applies to practically 
 all breeds of rabbits.) 
 
 In housing rabbits there are three 
 essentials to keep in mind, no matter 
 what kind of climate or what part of 
 the world, you live in. They are: 
 Plenty of sunlight, pure fresh air and 
 dry clean floors. If you give these 
 to your rabbits your troubles in this 
 
 be built on the order of the eastern 
 poultry houses, built as a shed, leav- 
 ing one side open and using a burlap 
 curtain during cold nights and storms, 
 or better still have a shed with large 
 doors or windows on all sides that can 
 be opened through the day and closed 
 at night — leaving one side open with 
 the burlap curtain at all times. 
 
 Self-cleaning hutches could be used 
 in these sheds, thereby eliminating 
 much of the work and making a san^ 
 itary rabbitry. We have discovered 
 
 A ROW OF GILMORE'S SELF-CLEANING HUTCHES 
 
 This picture was taken over a year ago, since then we have remodeled the entire 
 
 rabbitry; the appearance of Ihe hutches, however, is very much the same 
 
 line are over. By sunlight I do not 
 mean direct sunshine, but the air that 
 the sun shines on must be allowed to 
 reach the rabbits. A great number, 
 in fact most beginners, make the mis- 
 take of placing their rabbits off in 
 the corner of a dark barn, in a dark 
 cellar, or in some other place that has 
 practically no ventilation. This is es- 
 pecially so in the cold states. Now a 
 rabbit can stand a great deal of cold 
 if the direct wind is not allowed to 
 blow on it. In California hutches can 
 be Built in the open, having curtains 
 for protection during the winter; in 
 other states an ideal rabbitry should 
 
 a method which enables one to bed 
 rabbits in our self-cleaning hutches 
 and they still maintain their self- 
 cleaning efficiency. The real merit of 
 self-cleaning hutches is that the floors 
 are always dry; the principle of these 
 hutches is in the spaced floors. Many 
 improvements have been made since 
 the first ones we built. 
 
 The required floor space for a sin- 
 gle doe and litter is 2% by 4 feet. 
 Many breeders do not give their ani- 
 mals this much space but a smaller 
 space will not allow the room really 
 necessary for the young to grow as 
 they should, bucks also require this 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 much space on account of their ac- 
 tiveness. The height should be no 
 less than 18 inches in front to 1 foot 
 in the rear; more height is better. 
 Always make your hutches wide and 
 narrow^meaning 4 feet from side to 
 side and 2i/^ feet from front to back. 
 The reason for this is that you can 
 reach in and grasp the rabbit with- 
 out having to get a pole or some other 
 instrument to enable you to catch the 
 rabbit. Then, too, if you make solid 
 floors you can give the floors the 
 proper slant, which is 3 inches, slant- 
 
 A doe should never be bred under 
 7 months of age, while 8 months is 
 better. The same applies to the buck, 
 and I do not advise breeding does 
 oftener than every 10 weeks. Breed 
 the doe when her young are 6 weeks 
 old, leave the young with her another 
 week, wean them and give the doe 
 the other three weeks to herself. 
 
 The big mistake or rather one of 
 the big mistakes that the beginner 
 makes is weaning the young too 
 young; most of them believe that the 
 young should be weaned at 4 weeks, 
 
 THIS CUT SHOWS HOW YOUNG NEW ZEALANDS GROW 
 Their ages are one, two and three months 
 
 ing from the back of the hutch towards 
 the front. 
 
 There is but one way that you can 
 raise rabbits on the ground and that 
 is by moving the pen to new ground 
 every week or so, for if rabbits are 
 left too long in one place the Coccida 
 germ begins to breed and coccidossis 
 is deadly to rabbits. This germ breeds 
 in the fllth that accumulates, or in 
 the poisoned ground caused from the 
 continual urinating of the rabbits. 
 BREEDING 
 
 The most important thing to bear 
 in mind in breeding rabbits is nature, 
 the nearer you can follow nature the 
 better. 
 
 a great mistake this and one that 
 amounts to total loss. 
 
 In breeding the doe always take her 
 to the buck hutch, place her with him 
 for a few minutes, if she refuses to 
 breed remove her and try her again 
 the next day, and so on until she 
 breeds. There is no positive way of 
 telling when the doe is ready to 
 breed, with the exception of the en- 
 larged appearance of the external or- 
 gan and sometimes she will appear 
 restless. 
 
 One service from the buck is suf- 
 ficient. We do what we call testing, 
 that is, five days after the doe breeds 
 we try her to the buck again. If she 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 whines we are sure that she is bred. 
 If she is not bred she will probably 
 accept service again. 
 
 It is a wise plan never to breed old 
 does to old bucks but old does to 
 young bucks, and young does to old 
 bucks. 
 
 The value of a good buck can not 
 be overestimated. If you have some 
 fair stock you can greatly improve 
 same by purchasing a first class buck. 
 If it is exhibition stock you have, then 
 it is up to you to purchase the very 
 finest buck that you can afford. Our 
 buck, "Gilmore's Red Wonder," pro- 
 duced over $1000.00 worth of stock. 
 His value was $50.00, so you see how 
 profitable a good buck is. This was 
 during the year of 1916. 
 
 The natural breeding time of the 
 rabbit is during the spring months, 
 although they breed during every 
 month of the year; they do not, how- 
 ever, breed as readily during the last 
 six months of the year as they do the 
 first. 
 
 The average useful life of a rabbit 
 is four years, after this age they gen- 
 erally produce inferior offspring. 
 
 The proper way to carry a doe to 
 the buck hutch is to grasp her by the 
 loose skin on the back of the neck; 
 never handle them by the ears. 
 
 If a doe proves stubborn about 
 breeding, place her in a hutch which 
 a buck has previously occupied and 
 feed her on soaked peas; do this for 
 two or three days. 
 
 Never let your bucks serve more 
 than three does a week; two would be 
 better. If a buck appears to take no 
 interest in a doe when placed with 
 him he is either too fat, too old, or 
 perhaps too young. 
 
 FEEDING 
 
 Feeding is very important and it re- 
 quires quite a little time and practice 
 to become an efficient feeder. 
 
 One of the reasons why rabbits are 
 becoming so popular is the fact that 
 the food that they require is much less 
 expensive than that required by chick- 
 ens or pigeons. Rabbits wiil exist 
 on green feed alone, but results ob- 
 
 tained from feeding green feed alone 
 are never satisfactory, especially with 
 the youngsters. This is where the 
 old idea comes in that rabbits do not 
 require water. If you feed nothing but 
 greens, then they do not require 
 water, but if fed properly they 
 should always have water before them. 
 
 Feed mornings either carrots, rolled 
 barley or mash; at night, alfalfa hay 
 and greens. We only feed twice a day. 
 We have found the mash to be much 
 more reasonable than rolled barley and 
 we get the same if not better results. 
 One large carrot will make a good 
 breakfast for a rabbit. As to the 
 greens fed at night with the hay, I 
 will say that we have tried almost 
 every kind of greens known and we 
 have found that the ideal green feed 
 for rabbits is chicory. Alfileria is 
 also splendid, Swiss chard is another 
 good green — in fact nearly all kinds 
 of grasses or vegetables are good. We 
 only advise against feeding cabbage, 
 kale or cauliflower. These greens are 
 too severe on the kidneys and will 
 bloat. They also give the rabbitry 
 an awful odor. 
 
 The question asked by all begin- 
 ners is "How much do I feed?" I 
 have suggested a handful of this and 
 a handful of that, but I find that 
 there is considerable difference in 
 some people's idea of a handful. So 
 to be more exact I made up the fol- 
 lowing table of weights: 
 
 Feed required for one rabbit over 
 five months of age per day: Mash 
 3 ounces, or rolled barley or oats 2i/^ 
 ounces, alfalfa hay 5 ounces, green 
 feed 10 ounces. 
 
 For a doe with six young, one month 
 old: Mash 14 ounces, or rolled barley 
 or oats 12 ounces, hay 14 ounces, 
 greens 1% pounds. 
 
 Doe with six young, two months old: 
 Mash 28 ounces, barley or oats 28 
 ounces, hay 1 pound, 2 ounces; greens 
 2^/2 pounds. 
 
 The above table is just what is re- 
 quired for a good healthy growth, but 
 if they are to be raised for market, 
 mash and hay may be before them at 
 all times. 
 
 Now that I have given you the food 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 staples, etc., let us get down to food 
 costs. I am going to reprint the fol- 
 lowing by Mr. C. 1. Hunt of Hunt, 
 New York: 
 
 "In a recent test to determine the 
 exact cost of raising rabbits for meat 
 purposes we took twenty-two and 
 placed them in a run by themselves, 
 keeping a strict account of all feed 
 used. The result is shown herein. 
 The twenty-two weighed 118 pounds 
 when sold and brought $20.31. Ex- 
 penses: Feed, $7.08; express and com- 
 mission, $4.43; total cost, $11.51; leav- 
 ing a net profit of $8.80, or 40 cents 
 each. Had they been sold at home 
 they would have brought a net profit 
 of $13.23 or 60 cents each. The feed 
 cost to produce live weight was 6 
 cents a pound." 
 
 We figure on 11 cents per pound for 
 dressed stock which sells for 35 cents 
 per pound on the local market. 
 
 The food cost depends altogether on 
 where you live. In some places al- 
 falfa hay is twice the price it is in 
 other places; then, too, If you can 
 raise some of your feed this will bring 
 the feed cost down. 
 
 Most breeders feed too much; this 
 causes waste and makes the breeding 
 stock too fat and fat breeders give 
 very poor returns. It is a hard matter 
 to feed a doe with young too mucli 
 hay or mash, but be careful in feed- 
 ing other stock, and don't overfeed for 
 the sake of your pocketbook and the 
 rabbits. 
 
 GENERAL CARE 
 
 In the general care of your rabbits 
 just keep in mind these essentials: 
 sanitation, cleanliness, pure fresh wa- 
 ter, regular feeding, proper breeding, 
 small litters, weaning at the proper 
 age and pure fresh air. 
 
 The rabbit is naturally a very dainty 
 animal and you cannot raise them un- 
 der the same conditions and with the 
 same disregard to sanitation often 
 shown a hog. Do not overlook the 
 fact that disinfecting is very import- 
 ant. We have a large spray pump and 
 once a week we go over the entire 
 rabbitry, using a good strong disinfect- 
 ant. For this we have found Mayhew's 
 
 exceptionally good, on account of its 
 non-poisonous character. Good slaked 
 lime should be sprinkled on the floors 
 every time you clean the hutches. 
 (This is of course unnecessary in our 
 self-cleaning hutches, although even 
 these should be sprayed good every 
 week or so). Keep the ground clean 
 around the hutches, also whitewash 
 your hutches inside and out; this will 
 give them a much better appearance, 
 make them lighter and will keep down 
 germ enemies. 
 
 The very finest cure for rabbit ail- 
 ments is "Prevention." Keep your 
 stock under sanitary conditions, feed 
 properly, etc., and you will need no 
 "Rabbit Dope." In case a rabbit does 
 become ill, exile it at once from the 
 rest of the stock and use the best 
 remedies obtainable. If a rabbit re- 
 mains ill for more than a month with 
 no signs of recovery, give it the axe. 
 Snuffles is probably the most serious 
 disease of the domesticated rabbit, 
 with the exception of Coccida, which 
 is very rare, being caused from very 
 unsanitary quarters. Snuffles is either 
 caused from poor air or comes from 
 weak vitality; once this disease gets 
 a good hold of the rabbit there is 
 nothing that will cure it. Ear Canker 
 is the most common disease of rab- 
 bits; it is a little parasite that can be 
 seen with the naked eye if you look 
 closely enough. This parasite eats 
 the lining of the inner side of the ears, 
 causing it to scab. This is very easily 
 cured and generally requires about 
 two applications of a good remedy. 
 
 One thing that breeders do not pay 
 enough attention to is the nest box. 
 This is very important inasmuch as it 
 broods, so to speak, the little rabbits. 
 First it must be large enough, 12xl2x 
 18, is a good size. Second, the open- 
 ing must be made so that the little 
 fellows cannot be dragged out by 
 holding on their mother's teats. Make 
 it no less than 5 inches up from the 
 floor and no less than 4 inches wide, 
 have the lid on hinges or a nail in one 
 corner so that it will swing around. 
 Use good nesting material. We have 
 tried about everything and find com- 
 mon engine waste about the best 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 thing yet. Never use alfalfa or clover 
 hay. Good oat stravi^ is good. In win- 
 ter time fold a burlap sack and place 
 over the bottom, also place four or 
 five old newspapers under the sack. 
 Cold, as you know, ccmes up from 
 underneath. I will venture to say that 
 thousands upon thousands of little rab- 
 bits are frozen every winter because 
 the breeder does not know the import- 
 ance of the proper care of the nest 
 box. 
 
 CARE OF YOUNG 
 As I have previously stated, two 
 things, in fact, the two most important 
 things to do in raising rabbits is to 
 not let the doe raise over six young 
 and not to wean said young under 
 seven weeks of age. If you follow 
 
 and by the time they are seven weeks 
 old there will probably be four or five 
 left, which will weigh about half as 
 much as the other five litter. I do not 
 insinuate that it is impossible to raise 
 litters of 10 with one doe. It is quite 
 possible, but I am basing my writing 
 on what is generally the case. 
 
 The first two weeks of a rabbit's 
 life are the most important of its 
 whole life practically speaking, and it 
 is altogether how you care for the 
 mother whether or not it will receive 
 the proper start. Begin when the doe 
 is bred, feed her well and be sure that 
 she has green feed, for if she is not 
 ii"d greens when she is pregnant said 
 greens will not agree as well with the 
 youngsters. Whf^n tlie liUle fellows 
 
 SIX GILMORE FARM NEW ZEALAND YOUNGSTERS 
 Age two niontiis. Average weight 4 1 /4 lbs. 
 
 this rule you will have very little 
 trouble in raising your young rabbits. 
 This knowledge alone is worth many 
 times the price of this book, because 
 these are two of the greatest secrets 
 of successful rabbit raising. Many do 
 not like to cut down the litters, claim- 
 ing that "I am just raising them for 
 meat." Gentle reader, if they only 
 knew that if they were to take two 
 does, place them side by side, breed 
 them the same day, let one doe have 
 ten and the other have five, at the end 
 of two months the five would weigh 
 more pounds than the whole litter of 
 ten and the chances are 5 to 1 that 
 when the ten litter were about one 
 month old they will begin to kick off 
 from apparently no reason, caused 
 Irom tlie lack of enough nourishment. 
 
 are born begin feeding the doe heav- 
 ily, using plenty of greens (a good 
 sized handful night and morning), 
 keep mash before her all day and give 
 plenty of good hay. When the little 
 fellows begin to come out of the nest 
 box feed less greens, otherwise make 
 no change in the feed, only to give 
 more mash or grain and hay. Clean 
 out the nest box on the 14th day and 
 re-bed with good clean straw. 
 
 NURSE DOES 
 
 Let us suppose that you have a very 
 fine doe which you have purchased 
 from some big breeder, said doe has 
 ten youngsters. It is a hard matter 
 to have to cut this litter down to 4 
 or .5 youngsters. Now the way we get 
 around that is to l)reed an ordinary 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 doe at the same time that the fine 
 doe is bred, in a day or so after they 
 have both kindled we destroy the 
 young of the ordinary doe and give 
 her half of the fine doe's litter. It 
 is always best to do this about 8 
 o'clock in the morning, as the nurse 
 doe will probably not go into her nest 
 
 box until that evening when she feeds 
 them. By this time they have taken 
 on the scent of her nest box, and she 
 cannot tell the difference. Some 
 breeders put a little eucalyptus oil on 
 her nose, but I have never done this. 
 So far I have had very little trouble 
 in getting the foster mother doe to 
 take the young. 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 The New Zealand Reds are, strictly 
 speaking, business rabbits for general 
 or utility purposes. They do not be- 
 long to the ornamental classes, yet 
 
 bit we were raising. At the present 
 time they are the most popular rabbit 
 in the country. Why? Well, let us 
 see. 
 
 itmore <:Jarm 
 feu} jLeaizirT,<L-^ 
 
 //ijife-^. 
 
 4 
 
 THE FOUR NEW ZEALANDS WINNING "BEST DISPLAY" OF 
 NEW ZEALANDS AT THE "WORLD'S FAIR," 
 SAN FRANCISCO, 1915. 
 They are "Gilniorc's Red Wonder, "Wai Apoo," "Princess Zealand" and "Gibson Girl 
 
 they are among the most beautiful of 
 breeds. Their bright reddish buff col- 
 oring, their big hazel eyes and hand- 
 some type makes them a much ad- 
 mired rabbit. 
 
 The New Zealand is practically a 
 new rabbit in the American fancy; it 
 was only about three years ago that 
 we organized the New Zealand Red 
 Club and began to inform the Amer- 
 ican public just what an excellent rab- 
 
 First. As exhibition rabbits they 
 are u n e c i u a 1 e d ; they are by no 
 means an easy breed from which to 
 produce 90 per cent animals, which 
 makes them all the more favored as 
 an exhibition rabbit. 
 
 Second. The prices obtained for 
 good exhibition specimens makes them 
 very profitable. 
 
 Third. The fact that they are a new 
 breed makes the breeding stock branch 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 very profitable. Veryfew of we breed- 
 ers can supply the demand for our 
 stock. Last year we ran over 200 
 animals short of our orders, averag- 
 ing them at $5.00 each means quite a 
 little money. 
 
 Fourth. As a market rabbit they 
 are par excellence; practically all the 
 large rabbit breeders around Los An- 
 geles, which has the best rabbit mar- 
 ket in America, breed New Zealands. 
 
 Fifth. They mature rapidly, making 
 fine fryers at from 7 to 10 weeks. 
 
 Sixth. They are medium boned, 
 making them superior as fryers, for, 
 taking a larger rabbit when the young 
 begin to grow they must grow a big 
 frame, consequently when dressed at 
 eight weeks you have much bone and 
 little meat. New Zealands are very 
 plump. 
 
 Seventh. They breed very true to 
 color. It is most discouraging to find 
 that your thoroughbred doe of some 
 other breed has several dilferent col- 
 ors in her litter. This is especially so 
 if you are selling exhibition stock. 
 Pure bred New Zealands never throw 
 off colored animals. 
 
 Eighth. They are a very quiet 
 breed, consequently they take on flesh 
 very rapidly. 
 
 Ninth. The bucks', with very few 
 exceptions, can be raised together 
 without tearing each other to pieces 
 until they are 7 months old. This 
 means a great saving of hutch space 
 as well as of extra work. 
 
 Tenth. The flesh is of fine grained 
 texture and very juicy. 
 
 Eleventh. The fur of the New Zea- 
 land is coming in demand, being used 
 for imitation Red Fox. We have seen 
 a great deal of it on the streets this 
 winter. One fur house put out sev- 
 eral hundred sets this year. 
 
 The National New Zealand Red Rab- 
 bit Club has been a great factor in in- 
 troducing this rabbit. Three years ago 
 little was known of the breed outside 
 of California. If you are interested 
 in New Zealands you should by all 
 means belong to this club as it is "The 
 power behind the Throne," and by be- 
 coming a member you are adding your 
 
 bit to the progress and prosperity of 
 the breed. Application can be made 
 by dropping me (who happens to be 
 the secretary) a card. The dues are 
 but one dollar a year. 
 
 WHAT WE KNOW OF ITS ORIGIN 
 
 The first New Zealands we have 
 record of in this country were im- 
 ported by John Henry Snyder of San 
 Francisco in 1906. When he returned 
 from New Zealand he brought four 
 does and a buck with him. Later we 
 learned of a Mr. Henry of Los An- 
 geles who also imported a large 
 number. 
 
 When we first introduced this rab- 
 bit to the fancy we were met with the 
 usual opposition that always greets 
 anything new; in the April, 1915, num- 
 ber of "Domestic Pets," a Mr. M. H. 
 Branning, who had taken up the breed- 
 ing of the New Zealands, wrote an 
 article about them and incidentally 
 mentioned that the first specimens 
 were imported intO' California in 1906. 
 This article drew forth considerable 
 comment from those who were ac- 
 quainted with the Sport Belgian and 
 Golden Fawn, which are of a buff 
 color. They were wont to believe 
 that they were all one and the same 
 rabbit. Some of these parties wrO'te 
 Mr. Branning, stating fl^atly that he 
 was mistaken. Mr. Branning then sat 
 down and wrote to Mr. Jas. Duncan, 
 Acting Director of the Department of 
 Agriculture of the Dominion of New 
 Zealand and the following is the reply 
 he received: 
 
 In His Majesty's Service. 
 
 Dominion of New Zealand, Depart- 
 ment of Agriculture, Industries, and 
 Commerce. Advice on Field Crops 
 — Inspection of Rabbits. 
 
 Wellington, Jime 17, 1915. 
 Mr. M. H. Branning, Los Angeles, Cal. 
 The New Zealand Red Rabbit 
 I am in receipt of your letter of the 
 7th ultimo with reference to the above. 
 The description you give of the rab- 
 bit coincides with the rabbit known 
 in the southern part of this Dominion 
 as the Otago rabbit. It is largely ex- 
 
10 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 ported in a frozen state to Great Brit- 
 ain. Last year there were 105,752 
 crates of rabbits shipped away from 
 here. In addition to this there are 
 two tinning factories tliat make up the 
 flesh of the rabbit. 
 
 This Rabbit was originally imported 
 into this country in the early days 
 from Scotland and was known as the 
 Scotch Rabbit. 
 
 (He then goes on to tell how they 
 breed and so forth and signs himself) 
 Jas. Duncan, Acting Director. 
 
 This letter is in my possession and 
 can be seen by any one at any time. 
 
 The first or original New Zealands 
 were of a much lighter color than are 
 the ones that we have today, in fact 
 there are almost four shades between 
 the ones of four years ago and the 
 ones of today. They also weighed 
 about seven pounds, but were ex- 
 tremely hardy and healthy. 
 
 As you will note, Mr. Duncan states 
 that the original specimens were im- 
 ported from Scotland to New Zealand. 
 Now just what cross the Scotlanders 
 made to produce this rabbit we could 
 not say, but it is very evident that the 
 cross was well established, for the 
 pure bred New Zealands never throw 
 "Sports" as do our other crossed or 
 made rabbits. 
 
 (Note. — A "sport" is an animal of 
 different color than its parents). 
 
 HOW TO JUDGE NEW ZEALAND 
 REDS 
 
 Describing the standard of perfec 
 tion as arranged by C. P. Gilmore and 
 Judge C. S. Gibson and adopted by the 
 National New Zealand Red Rabbit 
 Club and the National Rabbit and Pet 
 Stock Association, July, 1916. 
 
 (Please bear in mind that the fol- 
 lowing is a description of the perfect 
 New Zealand Red Rabbit, of which 
 there are none. We are striving to 
 produce such an animal or animals and 
 consequently the closer we are able 
 to approach this 100 per cent animal 
 the more valuable is the specimen). 
 
 Disqualifications 
 
 First, what are disqualifications? 
 Disqualifications are deformities, for- 
 eign coloring and faking. 
 
 The disqualifications of the National 
 N. Z. Club and N. P. S. A. standard 
 are: Lop ear (fallen), crooked feet, 
 other than hazel eyes, wry tail 
 (crooked), white bars on front feet, 
 faking on the ages of juniors in the 
 junior class, plucking or dying. 
 
 Lopped ear is a case of an ear over 
 which the rabbit has lost control and 
 is caused by hot weather. It hangs 
 down to one side and gives the rab- 
 bit rather a lop-sided appearance. 
 Crooked feet does not mean flat feet 
 or feet which lay flat from the first 
 joint to the toes on front feet but feet 
 that turn out to one side, but while 
 flat feet is not a disqualification it 
 will count against a specimen on the 
 judging table. White bars on front 
 feet means two small stripes of white 
 running around the front feet about 
 at the joints. This is of course on 
 the front side, faint fiakes are not a 
 disqualification, but are not desired 
 in the perfect animal. Faking on the 
 age of juniors in the junior class, this 
 means entering specimens that are 
 over six months of age in this class 
 and faking their age on the entry 
 blank. Plucking means pulling out 
 patches of white or black hairs. Dye- 
 ing means using dye to try and color 
 up white cr black to produce even 
 color. 
 
 Standard Weights 
 
 The standard weights of the New 
 Zealand Red are as follows: 
 
 414 pounds at 3 months. 
 
 6 pounds at 5 months. 
 
 8 pounds at 8 months. 
 
 Does 10 pounds at 12 months. 
 
 Bucks 9 pounds at 12 months. 
 
 As a rule the animals are not fully 
 developed until they are about 16 
 months of age. Does develop consid- 
 erably after breeding. In order to 
 produce standard weights not more 
 than five young can be left with the 
 doe and four is better; our average is 
 four and with our best grade of stock 
 three is the limit. 
 
 In using the score card, cuts of 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 11 
 
 Vs to 8 are to be made on under- 
 weight animals. There is no cut for 
 overweight, but specimens over ten 
 pounds at maturity are generally fat, 
 which will count against them in com- 
 parison judging. 
 
 Head 
 
 Medium full and shapely. Color to 
 match body, color with as little white 
 under jaw as possible. Points 5. Cuts 
 that may be made V2 to 3. 
 
 Medium full and shapely. Now this 
 does not mean thin or full; it means 
 
 white under jaw is not wanted in the 
 100 per cent perfect animals. 
 
 Ears 
 
 Erectly carried, medium thick, 5 to 
 5% inches long, color to match body, 
 color free from black lacing 10 points. 
 Cuts that may be made % to 6. 
 
 Erectly carried is plain enough in 
 itself. Some rabbits carry their ears 
 as though about half inclined to have 
 lop ear, and while this is not a dis- 
 qualification, it is not desired in the 
 
 "JOHN BUNNY" 
 This old buck, now deceased, is the sfud that put the type 
 in the Gilmore Farm New Zealand Reds. His color was 
 very poor. 
 
 just what it says, medium. We do not 
 want a Flemish or a Belgian head on 
 the New Zealand but a New Zealand 
 head. The head of the buck is some- 
 what shorter in length and broader 
 between the eyes than that of the 
 doe. The lines should be clean cut. 
 As to color it should be the same as 
 the body color, but owing to the fact 
 that nearly all present day animals 
 have white under jaw the provision, 
 "with as little white under jaw as 
 possible,'' is placed in the standard. 
 This is to let the breeder know that 
 
 perfect animal. As to shape of ears, 
 I ask you to turn to the cut of 
 "Rangiteria" and note his ears. They 
 are a splendid example of a standard 
 ear. The short bell-shaped ear is far 
 from our standard ear and should be 
 avoided. As to length they should be 
 between 5 and 5i/^ inches, either under 
 or over would be out of proportion. 
 
 The color is to be the same as that 
 of the body and free from black lacing. 
 Black lacing is black hairs along the 
 upper front edge of the ear. It will 
 
12 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 be some time before we get rid of this 
 in our dark reddish buff animals. At 
 present they all have it more or less. 
 EYES 
 
 Large, bright and hazel, with as 
 small a white eye circle as possible. 
 Score 5 points. Cuts that may be 
 made i/^ to 3. 
 
 Some rabbits have a small beady 
 eye, others have a sort of an almond- 
 shaped eye. These are undesirable, 
 as the standard calls for a large, 
 round, bright eye of hazel color, 
 which is a shade of brown. The white 
 eye circle, meaning the white hairs 
 around the eye, is not desired and is 
 to be as small as possible. 
 LEGS AND FEET 
 
 Strong and sti'aight, medium heavy 
 bones. Color same as body color (all 
 
 "GILMORE'S RED .WONDER" 
 
 This is the buck that put tlie wonderful winning 
 
 reddish buff color in the Qilmore Farm Strain 
 
 of New Zealands. His type is very poor. 
 
 four feet). Score 15 points. Cuts Vz 
 to 6. 
 
 Too often we see 9 or 10 pound New 
 Zealands with legs that would look 
 good on a 7 pound animal. They are 
 small and spindly, tapering in at the 
 first joint. So the New Standard was 
 made to call for straight and strong, 
 medium boned legs; not a Flemish 
 leg, understand, but smaller on the 
 same order. Color same as body, all 
 four feet; this would mean that they 
 are to be solid reddish buff with no 
 white hairs to be seen, even where 
 the bars now are. 
 
 COLOR 
 
 Reddish buff, carried well down to 
 
 "PRINCESS ZEALAND" 
 A doc of both good type and color 
 
 the skin and evenly down over the 
 sides and hind quarters, free from 
 black or white hairs and not dark 
 smudgy or light buff. Reddish cream 
 belly color. Score 30 points. Cuts 
 that may be made % to 10. 
 
 Color as you will notice is allowed 
 30 points in the score. This then 
 makes color the most important thing 
 in the standard, weight being next 
 with 20 points. This is as it should 
 be for in exhibition animals color is 
 the big thing. You may have an ani- 
 mal with good type and standard 
 weight, but if it is poorly colored it 
 will never stand a chance of winning 
 in competition. 
 
 New Zealand Red is somewhat de- 
 ceiving, for the New Zealand is not a 
 red rabbit on the order of a red Cavie. 
 cow or horse. If it were, our stand- 
 ard would call for cherry red or some- 
 
 'RED RIDING H00D"-F1RST 
 
 Prize doe Ventura, California, 1915, dam of 
 "Rangiteria." 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 13 
 
 thing like that, but it calls for reddish 
 buff and to describe it ^YOuld be rather 
 a hard proposition. The Red was 
 given the breed as a "for short" name 
 by Los Angeles breeders, and at the 
 time it was given them they were a 
 long ways from being even red- 
 dish buff, let alone red. However, as 
 the name Red is so well established 
 it will have to be let go as it is. Red- 
 dish buff is neither red nor buff; 
 should you take some dark red paint 
 and some buff and mix them you would 
 have the New Zealand color. Some 
 of the present day New Zealands run 
 very dark, but they show blackish or 
 smudgy color, principally on the head 
 and ears and on the haunches. At 
 first glance this blackish color cannot 
 be noticed, but if you look closer it 
 can be plainly seen. Then again in 
 the lighter animals there are the 
 white hairs. These also can be seen 
 only by close examination; these hairs 
 will be found principally on the back 
 and haunches. Looking at a New 
 Zealand from its head it will appear 
 much redder than looking at it from 
 behind; there is something in the way 
 that the hairs lay that makes this, also 
 you will notice that they are much 
 redder at twilight than in the bright- 
 ness of day. 
 
 If you are a novice with New Zea- 
 lands, no doubt you will be very much 
 disappointed with the first litter of 
 youngsters born. They will appear 
 very light in color, but you should 
 know that ofttimes the lightest col- 
 ored little fellows make the darkest 
 colored animals when grown. They 
 do not begin to get dark until they 
 begin to molt out their baby coat, 
 which is at about two months of age. 
 From that on they darken until they 
 are a year old, then if they are the 
 non-fading kind they remain the same 
 the rest of their lives, but if they are 
 of the fading variety they will get 
 lighter every year. Direct rays of the 
 sun should of course be avoided if 
 you wish to maintain the dark color. 
 
 The color on the majority of New 
 Zealands is mostly surface color. Tho 
 standard calls for the reddish buff 
 color to be carried down to the skin. 
 
 this means that the same color that 
 is on the surface should go the full 
 length of the hair or be the same 
 under the surface as on it. In poul- 
 trydom this is called under color and 
 is a very important factor, especially 
 in such breeds as the Rhode Island 
 Red and the Barred Plymouth Rock. 
 The belly or under body color should 
 be reddish cream, this comes with the 
 red feet and legs, for the redder they 
 are the better colored the belly will be. 
 It would be impossible to produce red 
 hind feet with white belly celor. 
 
 SHAPE OR TYPE 
 
 Body medium long ana medium 
 broad fore and hind quarters, does to 
 have even dewlap. Score 10 points. 
 Cuts that may be made Vo to 6. 
 
 In the cut of Princess Zealand is 
 shown a good type of a Standard Bred 
 New Zealand. Notice the depth of 
 the body just behind the forelegs, 
 then note a cut of a pure bred Bel- 
 gian posing in the same position that 
 she is. The belly line of the Belgian 
 curves upward from the hind quarters 
 to the neck, giving the animal a very 
 racy appearance. 
 
 The cut of Rangiteria gives one an 
 idea of good New Zealand type; note 
 the ears, they are 100 per cent in 
 type. 
 
 If the New Zealand has correct 
 type they will weigh up to standard 
 at maturity and will not appear fat, 
 but if they haven't correct type they 
 will have to be hog fat to come up to 
 standard weight. The dew lap is a 
 small growth of loose skin underneath 
 the lower jaw, on the front of the 
 neck, and the standard says that it 
 should be carried evenly, meaning that 
 a large pouchy dew lap or one that 
 hangs to one side more than to the 
 other is not desired. The dew lap on 
 the does is larger than on the bucks. 
 
 CONDITION 
 
 Full in coat and solid flesh. Points 
 .5. Cuts U to 3. 
 
 For explanation of "Condition," see 
 "Conditioning fcr the show room." 
 MATING 
 
 When mating your New Zealands 
 
14 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 keep in mind the disqualifications of 
 the standard, providing of course that 
 you are breeding 'for exhibition. No 
 animal v/ith a disqualification should 
 be used. If you have i fine colored 
 buck with short ears and a doe that 
 is not quite so well colored but that 
 has fine ears, mate them and hold the 
 liest results for your next breedings, 
 etc. Always go over your does be- 
 fore breeding and try and figure out 
 just where they lack, then choose the 
 buck that you think will bring up 
 these points. Never breed a doe with 
 poor type to a buck with the same 
 failing. Never use animals that are 
 not in good condition and strictly 
 healthy. Do not breed from New Zea- 
 lands that do not hold their color more 
 than one year; if you have such ani- 
 mals get a good non-fading buck from 
 some reliable breeder who has non- 
 fading New Zealands. 
 
 LINE BREEDING 
 
 The foremost breeders of live stock 
 use line breeding in order to preserve 
 and yet at the same time improve the 
 blood of their best stock. A beginner 
 wishing to establish line breeding 
 should select the very best pair or 
 trio that he can afford to buy from 
 some well known reliable breeder 
 who has line bred for years, always 
 selecting quality in preference to 
 quantity. 
 
 The young from this pair will be 50 
 per cent male blood and 50 per cent 
 female blood. Now select your best 
 does from the litters and mate them 
 back to the sire. The young from this 
 mating will be % male blood and ''■A 
 female blood. At the same time mate 
 the original or old doe to the best 
 young buck raised which will give you 
 % female blood and % male blood. 
 
 Now you have rabbits from the two 
 matings with % female blood on one 
 side and % male blood on the other 
 side. It is now a good policy to in- 
 troduce new blood from the same 
 strain by purchasing a good buck 
 from the original owner of your foun- 
 dation stock. Mate him to either lot 
 of females and the young bucks and 
 does from this mating can safely be 
 
 crossed with either of the % blood 
 lines, with little danger of weakening 
 the vitality of the stock. 
 
 Some breeders prefer to introduce 
 the new blood tlirough the female side, 
 thus keeping the strong male line un- 
 broken. The original male is often 
 mated to the third generation or % 
 male blood does. 
 
 If you intend to line breed you must 
 make up your mind to keep a strict 
 account of all your stock, for in no 
 other way will you obtain results. 
 There is no question but that line 
 breeding is the greatest method to 
 establish a prize winning strain. In 
 poultrydom all such breeders as W. 
 D. Holterman, E. B. Thompson, Lester 
 Tompkins, Cecil Shepherd, Mrs. E. B. 
 Martin, U. R. Fishel, John S. Martin 
 and others who take a string of birds 
 into the show room and come away 
 with every first prize and in many in- 
 stances every prize offered, all line 
 breed; in no other way could they 
 produce so many grand fowls. I have 
 seen several fine New Zealands that 
 were what we called chance matings. 
 In one case 1 raised a beautiful young 
 buck, I had great hopes of doing things 
 with him, but, O me, O my, when his 
 young were old enough to qualify they 
 were sold as utility stock. 
 
 In line breeding my own stock I 
 had several different bloods to start 
 with and by choosing the best of each 
 litters for some five years I am able 
 to keep within my own strain, for as 
 you must understand the further 
 away you get from your original mat- 
 ing the easier it is to make your se- 
 lections for mating. Not so long ago 
 I went out for a buck and was fortji- 
 nate enough to purchase a buck which 
 came from the only other man in the 
 country that I know of who line breeds 
 New Zealands, thus I did not stand a 
 chance of going back so to speak when 
 I introduced new blood. 
 
 Incidentally I might mention that 
 the four first prize New Zealands at 
 Los Angeles owned by me are of my 
 line bred stock. 
 PEDIGREEING AND REGISTERING 
 
 Until just recently it has been a hard 
 matter to purchase New Zealands 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 15 
 
 with pedigrees extending back more 
 than one generation. The reason for 
 this is that the first breeders to talve 
 them up paid no attention to their 
 pedigree and consequently it has taken 
 some time to establish strains of pedi- 
 greed stock. I am often asked why 
 purchasers wish a pedigree. The rea- 
 son is this: Let us say that one 
 wished to purchase a buck to improve 
 his breeding stock, supposing that he 
 purchased a youngster sired by Rangi- 
 teria who in turn is sired by Gilmore's 
 Red Wonder, now when you go to sell 
 stock from this buck you can show 
 that he has fine breeding back of 
 him, the pedigree is really family his- 
 tory and it is a question whether cer- 
 
 ing every year and it is a good plan 
 when purchasing exhibition stock to 
 demand that it is sired and damed by 
 registered animals. The fee for reg- 
 istering is $10.00 per animal. 
 
 CONDITIONING FOR THE SHOW 
 ROOM 
 
 If you wish to win in strong com- 
 petition you must have your stock in 
 proper condition. Conditioning is far 
 more important than one would think, 
 the finest rabbit in the world could 
 not win if it were in poor condition. To 
 begin with you must begin the day 
 
 ONE OF OUR DOES, HER LITTER OF ELEVEN AND HER NURSE DOE 
 
 tain stock came from high brow or 
 low brow families. The pedigree gives 
 the name of an animal's parents, 
 grandparents and great grandparents 
 on both sides. 
 
 Registering is a guarantee of good 
 stock; no animal can be registered un- 
 less it is of good quality; an animal 
 having disqualifications is barred. All 
 animals must be pedigreed for three 
 generations, which guarantees that it 
 •is a pure bred. If you have an ani- 
 mal which you wish to register write 
 to the National Secretary, and ask him 
 where the nearest registrar is to you. 
 You ship the animal to this man for 
 him to pass on and if favorable he will 
 tattoo the official number in the ear. 
 The name that you give this rabbit is 
 then copyrighted. The demand for 
 stock from registered stock is grow- 
 
 that they are born and from then on 
 they must receive the best of care. 
 Never breed does until after your 
 show season is over, for once you 
 breed an exhibition doe it is almost 
 impossible to get her in good show 
 condition again. Nine months old 
 makes fine Senior animals while bucks 
 show up well for 18 months. We 
 breed for our Seniors in February and 
 do not use them until after the winter 
 show season is over. 
 
 About 30 or 40 days before the stock 
 is to go to the show room begin to 
 groom their coats. This is done by 
 rubbing with the hands every day; 
 put a few drops of glycerine on the 
 hands and rub briskly, do not get too 
 much for you will make the hair 
 sticky. Then about 15 days before the 
 show rub with a chamois skin or a 
 
16 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 silk handkerchief. Feed a teaspoon- 
 ful of linseed meal every other day in 
 their mash and be sure and give good 
 greens, not too much but enough to 
 keep their bowels in good condition.. 
 These help to make the coat glossy. 
 Never enter a New Zealand in bad 
 molt, for remember that the judge 
 judges the animal as it appears on 
 his judging table, and not what it will 
 be or has been. If the animal is in 
 bad molt he cannot tell what it will 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 By Hale Prather 
 
 (Mr. Prather is the President of the 
 National New Zealand Club, and one 
 of the leading breeders and boosters 
 of New Zealands in the country.) 
 
 The New Zealand Rabbit, perfect in 
 all sections as set forth in the new 
 Standard of Perfection, has never been 
 produced, in fact nothing has ever 
 been produced that is much more than 
 
 "PRINCESS ZELZAH" 
 
 Winner of the silver cup awarded for best New Zealand in the Show at 
 
 San Jose, October, 1916, a daughter of "Princess Zealand." 
 
 be when fully molted out and could 
 not give it first place over an animal 
 in full coat. 
 
 We began on the seven New Zea- 
 lands entered at Los Angeles (1917) 
 40 days before the show and spent 
 from one to two hours every day 
 working with them. Needless to say 
 they were in splendid condition when 
 placed on the judging table and said 
 splendid condition helped them to win 
 in such classy competition. 
 
 a mere approximation of the stand- 
 ard. Our idea in fixing a high stand- 
 ard was that it would thus improve 
 the rabbit more rapidly than would 
 be the case If w^e set a low standard, 
 which nearly all breeders in the coun- 
 try could breed to without difficulty. 
 A low standard also tends to lower 
 the prices on the best specimens and 
 to decrease the interest in breeding 
 the variety. Under the standard 
 which we now have, if a man produces 
 a specimen that comes well up to the 
 standard he will be able to get a price 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 [7 
 
 for it that will pay him well for his 
 trouble. It will be extremely difficult 
 for any breeder to produce a perfect 
 specimen for years to come as there 
 are so many things that are sadly 
 lacking in even the best specimens 
 of the present time. The extremities 
 are the hardest thing to get up to the 
 standard. Several breeders have now 
 produced a very good color on the 
 body with creamy belly, but when it 
 comes to having the color of the ears 
 the same shade of red as the body and 
 no black lacing on them, no white un- 
 der the jaws, very little white around 
 the eyes, no black or white hairs in 
 the fur, and all four feet solid red 
 without even flakes, let alone bars, they 
 are sadly lacking as yet l)ut we are get- 
 ting there slowly. If breeding simply 
 amounted to mating a rabbit with ex- 
 tra fine body color but lacking on feet 
 and head color with a rabbit very 
 strong in these points and having the 
 litter come with the strong points of 
 both sire and dam and none of the 
 faults of either we would soon have 
 perfection, but from sad experience I 
 find the faults are just as apt to ap- 
 pear in the offspring as the good 
 points, in fact the young may have 
 most of the bad points from both 
 specimens and very little of the good. 
 
 To breed high class specimens it is 
 absolutely essential to have stock that 
 is from higla scoring ancestors. I 
 would rather use a specimen that was 
 from winning parents and grandpa- 
 rents if he has perfect health and 
 vigor and no disqualifications, even if 
 he does not approach the standard as 
 close as another buck of great indi- 
 vidual merit, the result af a chance 
 mating, and no record of what kind of 
 rabbits his ancestors were. It is sur- 
 prising how the young will divert back 
 to their parents and even stronger 
 back to their grandparents. 
 
 Also in breeding for exhibition 
 points we must never lose sight for an 
 instant of what the New Zealand rab- 
 bit has been produced for, that of rais- 
 ing a meat rabbit that will produce a 
 maximum amount of white, Juicy meat 
 in the shortest possible time. Even 
 if a rabbit in my hutches has extra 
 
 good color and all around fine points 
 and does not show a quick and early 
 development into a round meaty rab- 
 bit considerably over standard weight 
 at three months of age, I do not care 
 to use him as a breeder. I am satis- 
 fied that careful selection of quick ma- 
 turing specimens as breeders will even- 
 tually help us out greatly along this 
 line. Investigation of the markets will 
 show that the demand is for young 
 rabbits weighing from 4 to 6 pounds, 
 or about the right size for the ordi- 
 nary family. Stock weighing over that 
 is subject to a cut on the rate per 
 pound and 10 and 12 pound specimens 
 are not desired at all, in fact can hard- 
 ly be forced upon the aealers. The 
 breeder of market rabbits should mar- 
 ket his stock at not over 4 months of 
 age to get the most profit, and the 
 rabbit that will produce the largest 
 amount of meat at that age is what 
 is wanted. With the larger breeds it 
 is necessary during the first few 
 months of their lives for them to use 
 the feed they consume to build their 
 big long frame and heavy bones, while 
 the medium coupled, fine boned, Ne\v 
 Zealand will begin to lay on the meat 
 from the start. Take a 5 pound New 
 Zealand Red and one of a heavier 
 breed weighing the same and remove 
 the meat from the bones and you will 
 find there is considerable more meat 
 on the New Zealand. In fact the other 
 breed would have to be considerably 
 heavier to equal the New Zealand in 
 the matter of edible meat. 
 
 From the above it can be readily 
 seen that the New Zealand Red breed- 
 er certainly has his work cut out for 
 him, as there is room for improvement 
 all along the line. The breeder that 
 starts with good stock and is always 
 striving for improvement will find a 
 ready market for all his product at 
 top notch prices, and as the New Zea- 
 land rabbit gradually takes its proper 
 place more and more in the economic 
 life of the country the price of the 
 best specimens will grow larger and 
 larger. As proof of the prices that are 
 being paid for the best New Zealand 
 specimens even now, I would say that 
 the buck that won first senior at the 
 
18 
 
 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 P. P. I. E. show has been sold for 
 $40, and was worth every cent of it, 
 and a like amount has been paid for 
 the doe that won first senior at the 
 same show. There Is certainly no 
 danger of over production as I see it 
 and the future of the wonderful New 
 Zealand rabbit certainly looks bright. 
 
 What is prettier than a nice bunch 
 of New Zealands? No other breed can 
 compare with them in looks and they 
 are far ahead of chickens to eat. I 
 find them very healthy. In my two 
 years of raising New Zealands have 
 lost but two with no other sick ones. 
 For the party in town who wants to 
 make money and have first class meat 
 for their table at all times of the year, 
 get a pair of New Zealands to start 
 with and see how well you can do. 
 New Zealands for me every time. 
 
 WHY NOT NEW ZEALAND REDS 
 By Fred M. Youngs 
 
 (Mr. Youngs is a Director of the New 
 Zealand Club and a pioneer breeder.) 
 
 As a lover of pets, we have kept 
 rabbits from boyhood. From a fancy 
 and fad it has developed into a com- 
 mercial sideline, which has added in- 
 terest to our hobby by making it a 
 paying pastime. We started with Bel- 
 gian hares, and, like most fanciers, we 
 became imbued with the frenzy to 
 produce the standard of perfection; to 
 get that desired slim, racy shape, deep 
 Rufus red coloring, etc., and we 
 thought we had attained some won- 
 derful results, and from that stand- 
 point we did, as have many other 
 breeders. But what have we pro- 
 duced? From my own experience I 
 have found that this system of fine 
 breeding has depreciated the com- 
 mercial value of this once famous Bel- 
 gian hare. From a hardy, prolific, 
 meat-producing stock they have de- 
 generated into a delicate, nervous, 
 dainty thing of beauty, for show pur- 
 poses only. 
 
 About six years ago we secured a 
 start in what has since become widely 
 known as the New Zealand Red. From 
 onr foregoing remarks we do not want 
 
 to be understood that we do not be- 
 lieve in improvement; we certainly 
 do, but on broad, general lines that 
 will enhance the commercial value as 
 well as the fancy, and we stop at no 
 expense in the selection of stock to 
 bring about this result. We have 
 found in the New Zealand a breed that 
 meets with all requirements. 
 
 Their own natural grace and beauty 
 make them an attraction in the show. 
 Today no pet stock show is complete 
 without them. They are a great ad- 
 vertisement for their exhibitors. At 
 every show where I have exhibited my 
 New Zealand stock I have received 
 tempting offers, far in excess of my 
 usual selling prices, and I know that 
 every exhibitor of these beauties has 
 completely sold out his surplus stock 
 shortly after each show season. Ev- 
 eryone who buys the New Zealands 
 is delighted with them, and finds how 
 true they breed to color. They im- 
 mediately become members of the 
 Boosters' Club in behalf of this favor- 
 ite. They will enthusiastically tell you 
 that they grow more rapidly than the 
 Belgians and are larger at maturity. 
 They are equal, if not superior, in fla- 
 vor to the meat of any other breed. 
 While the standard of perfection for 
 this breed is not so easy to attain, 
 the selected few always bring fancy 
 prices, and the balance maintain a 
 firm quotation as utility stock, which 
 is the staple end of the business. 
 
 The New Zealands are not shaped 
 like a race-horse or dachshund, but 
 are graceful and beautiful in both 
 color and shape. They are not ner- 
 vous and irritable, but domestic and 
 contented. They are prolific, the does 
 are good mothers and have large 
 litters. 
 
 The young develop quickly with 
 small loss in mortality. They certain- 
 ly meet all requirements, both in the 
 fancy and commercial utility, and 
 froni our experience we are convinced 
 that without the utility the business 
 of our rabbitry would not long sur- 
 vive. 
 
 A large per cent of those who buy 
 stock want good healthy, hardy utility 
 meat producers. They want good stock 
 
THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 19 
 
 suitable for that purpose. They buy 
 from a reputable oreeder whc adver- 
 tises such. It is a satisfaction to 
 please them and see them get results. 
 I advertise in pet stock and poultry 
 journals and good country weekly pa- 
 pers. When I first started to adver- 
 tise the New Zealand in connection 
 with other breeds I got some inquir- 
 ies, but sold few. To better intro- 
 duce them I offered one as a premium 
 to those who purchased a trio or more 
 of any breed. This proved very suc- 
 cessful, and in every instance I re- 
 ceived orders for more New Zealands. 
 
 bitry. The brooder house, which is 12 
 feet by 50 feet, has windows on one 
 side. We placed a row of hutches, 
 three tiers high, in the center, and 
 another row on the side, leaving a 
 passage-way between the two rows of 
 hutches, also between the center row 
 and the windows. These windows are 
 sliding and have wire in front so they 
 can be opened fcr ventilation if nec- 
 essary. The hutches are all wire ex- 
 cept partitions and floor, thus giving 
 plenty of light and air. My hutches 
 are 2% by SVo feet by 25 inches higli 
 and are so constructed that two can 
 
 THE FOUR GILMORE FARM NEW ZEALANDS 
 Winning all four first prizes and four silver cups for Best Display, Best Doe, Best Buck and Best 
 New Zealand in the show at the Great Los Angeles Show, January, 1917. They are "Lady Perfection' 
 "Qilmore's Pride," California Girl" and "Rangiteria." 
 
 During the past two years I have add- 
 ed to my breeding stock, but have 
 never accumulated a surplus, often 
 having orders booked ahead. Much Ol 
 my stock has been shipped to eastern 
 states. My profits have been greatly 
 increased since taking up the New 
 Zealand, and I am gradually working 
 out of other breeds and hope to soon 
 be an exclusive breeder of New 
 Zealands. 
 
 Before starting with rabbits com- 
 mercially I raised chickens. I learned 
 what it was tC' buy wheal and oth^i- 
 high-priced grains by that time, fight 
 pests, etc.. with much work and little 
 profit. From chickens we save our at- 
 tention to rabbits. We turned our 
 brooder and other houses into a rab- 
 
 be opened into one, or used separate- 
 ly. The floor slightly slopes to the 
 center, and in the center is an eight- 
 inch wide wire floor, so that water 
 or droppings will fall through from 
 each tier to a galvanized pan under- 
 neath. The other houses are simi- 
 larly equipped, and 1 find this style 
 of hutch sanitary and convenient. 
 
 1 water twice a day in summer, and 
 once in winter. In regard to prices 
 charged for stock, that depends large- 
 ly on the supply and demand, same 
 as any other commodity. A breeder 
 gives his time to the careful produc- 
 tirn. as good standard bred stock 
 should receive good prices. My prices 
 range from $2.50 to $12 each, accord- 
 ing to age and quality. I have stock 
 
20 THE NEW ZEALAND RED RABBIT 
 
 which I have refused $25 for. The a great deal more satisfaction in 
 
 best is none too good to breed from. ^°^,^. ^^°^\ ^ r, , ^ „ ,o 
 
 Why not the New Zealand Red? 
 for I find it more profitable and get They are the best. 
 
 A CORNER OF THE RABBIT DISPLAY 
 At the great Los Angeles Stiow, January, 1917 
 
 iFinalp 
 
 If this little book has awakened repaid. May it always be near at 
 
 your interest in more and better New hand, a ready and reliable guide, and 
 
 Zealand Reds it has accomplished with this wish I dedicate it to "The 
 
 much, if it has added to your stock of Friends of The New Zealand Red 
 
 knowledge of our favorites, 1 feel well Rabbit." 
 
LIBKHKY Oh CUNUKbbb 
 
 
 002 846 741 2