Questions about New Zealands

[TinysMom]

A few months ago, someone dropped off some adult rabbits at the feed store because they were moving out of state. One of the rabbits had babies that weekend before the folks came in.

Anyway - I was asked if I would consider taking these rabbits and I did - four were Californians and two were New Zealands (sisters I think).

I love the larger breed rabbits - like flemish and Californians and other than my NZ/flemish mix bucks Ske-doosh and Zeus - this is my first experience with NZ rabbits. (I am taking in another one next week as she needs to be rehomed).

My questions are sorta general - but I'm wondering what their personalities are like (especially the girls) and how big they get. Do they need more exercise (I find that the lops I have tend to need more exercise than the flemish) - or are they "couch potatoes" as far as running for a couple of minutes and then settling down.

I'm now trying to get my rabbits on a schedule for exercise so everyone gets "out of cage" time at least a couple of times per week.

One of the does - Rosita - was really aggressive and would bite me when I'd go to feed her....but I've been working with her and she's now pretty sweet.

Lily - her sister - is just an absolute sweetheart - but I took Lily out yesterday to play and was shocked to see how big she'd become. I mean - she was almost the size of my flemish (or so it felt).

I'm guessing she could be around 11 pounds....is that usual?

Also - what is the average life span?

Thanks for any help you can give - I really don't "need" these rabbits by any means but I will say that I always enjoy interacting with them when it is suppertime...

 

[majorv]

I always thought that New Zealands were a lot like Californians in temperament, etc. I have limited experience with NZs but the one I had reminded me very much of the Cals we had for 2 years. The young NZ buck I had was prettyskittish at first, but he got better the more I handled him.We never had a Cal that tried to bite. They would sometimes back into a corner and tense up though. I liked the breed, but they're justso big and heavy compared to what we have now!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Our male, Hoss, was 11 pounds and a real sweet boy. He was kind of a "couch potato" and not as active as our Dutch. He was 11 or close to it when he passed. Sure do miss him.

 

[CCWelch]

New Zealands are a lot like Cali's, they are really good moms and usually produce large litters. 11 pounds is the normal adult weight for a doe- they are 10-12 pounds. They are long lived like Cali's.

It is unusual that the one tried to bite you, I imagine it was because you were new to her and she was stressed, or maybe she was just ignored and needs work.

 

[TinysMom]

CCWelch wrote:

New Zealands are a lot like Cali's, they are really good moms and usually produce large litters. 11 pounds is the normal adult weight for a doe- they are 10-12 pounds. They are long lived like Cali's.

It is unusual that the one tried to bite you, I imagine it was because you were new to her and she was stressed, or maybe she was just ignored and needs work.

I think it was partly because she was in a new cage where the door opens in and she was upset by my hand coming into the cage.

I'm still a bit nervous whenever I go to feed her but I don't want to switch her cage because she's beside a buck and they are good friends....

She now grabs the cage door and tries to help me hold it and I reach in and pet her and grab her food bowl - and she's doing much better. Her sister is truly a sweetheart....

I never realized that this breed could be sweet also - I sorta saw them as "dumb livestock" type animals (duh)....but I really do enjoy these two and am dying to get my doe next week (her owner is going to college and the mom can't handle the doe cause she's a bit cage-aggressive).

 

[CCWelch]

Good luck with the 'Cage Aggressive" bunny. One of my friends had one that was so cage aggressive that they finally just let her roam free.

 

[TinysMom]

CCWelch wrote:

Good luck with the 'Cage Aggressive" bunny. One of my friends had one that was so cage aggressive that they finally just let her roam free.

I would do that by my flemish tend to roam free. I'm going to use a big dog kennel for her where she has lots of room and where the door is large for when I go to open it.

My biggest concern is she's used to living outside in a hutch and now she'll be inside in a cage...with other rabbits in the room.

I think we'll adjust...I sure hope so!

 

[majorv]

Can being cage aggressive work both ways? We had a Brit doe that was mean and attacked when I opened the cage door to feed or pet her. She was in a cage meant for medium breed rabbits. When we put her in a smaller cage she was okay.

We'dheard from other Brit breedersthat since Brits can be startledeasily, they have been known to break their backs if they were in a large cage when they freaked out, so we wanted to get her in a smaller cage anyway.