Weighed all the babies in George's and Ruby's litter today. Seven weeks and already an average of 4. 9 pounds. I do not think I will be able to keep this litter under the 5 pound max at 10 weeks for a meat pen.
Four does and one buck, and the buck is already sold as a fryer to a friend of my wife. My daughter and I will keep two does back for spring shows. First show for 2013 will be at Bakersfield on January 26, 2013.
I look forward to going to the show. I haven't shown rabbits since college. Some in my family think I'm nuts for building a rabbitry in the garage. The rabbits take time and energy to feed, clean, water, and keep cool in the hot San Joaquin Valley summers. It all may seem strange, but when life gets complicated, we all need a way to reduce stress. Each morning I look forward to opening the garage to the morning sun. The warmth radiating from Black Mountain warms the rabbits after a chilly night. Steinbeck wrote about morning's special serenity: "the hour of the pearl." I can relate: I enjoy sitting in the morning sun, holding the rabbits, looking at the snow on Black Mountain.
If only Dr. Louis Owens, my mentor, could have found joy in the simplicity of rabbits. Perhaps, we all have a little "Lennie" inside.
I guess, in my world, rabbits beat drinking, drugs, or the local psychologist: warmth, companionship, serenity, beauty. Not a bad way to begin the morning or this blog.
Let me know what you think.
