Why Are Rabbits Difficult To Source? - Top Quality Dog Food

Why Are Rabbits Difficult To Source?

 In Raw Blog

We know that many of your pets love to get their paws on rabbit meat and, as a pet parent, you may have found that it is not easy to come by. When we replenish our whole ground rabbit products, they sell out quickly and it is not always clear when we will be able to produce more. We believe in full transparency and want to explain the reasons behind the limited amount of rabbit and inform you of the various challenges in meat rabbit production. 

Keeping humane production a priority. 

Ultimately, the primary challenge with producing rabbit meat is the lack of humane large-scale production. Rabbit simply is not produced on the same scale as more common proteins such as beef, pork, or chicken due to our perceptions of rabbit as a food source in the USA. When purchasing from a pet food manufacturer with a continuous supply of rabbits, it is responsible to inquire about the source. Globally, the rabbit market is starting to increase, with 63% of rabbits being sourced from overseas.  However, it is much easier to ensure humane living conditions and dispatch practices in sources closer to home. With this in mind, we purchase domestic-raised rabbits only and ensure that we are sourcing them from farms that utilize humane dispatch practices without the use of CO2 which, when it comes to rabbits, is tricky and can cause suffering if not done correctly. If you are purchasing from a company that does not disclose information on their rabbit sourcing—or for any of their animal products, for that matter—we encourage you to reach out and ask. As a consumer, you can advocate for animals and fight against inhumane practices by supporting reputable and humane farms and processors. 

In addition to the difficulty of sourcing domestic-raised rabbits, an emerging disease also threatens rabbit populations across the United States.  

The virus is called Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease or RHDV2 and has proven highly contagious to wild and domestic rabbits. Thankfully, RHDV is not transmittable to dogs or cats. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this disease can be spread in rabbits through exposure to excretion or blood from an infected rabbit. It can survive through and be spread from the carcasses of infected animals as well as food, water, and any other materials that have been contaminated. People may spread the virus indirectly via their clothing and shoes. RHDV2 has shown to persist in the environment, making it difficult to control. Those of us involved with rabbits can do our part to help stop or slow down the spread of the disease. Biosecurity practices, such as thoroughly washing hands and changing into different shoes and clothes after coming into contact with either wild or domestic rabbits, should be adopted. Reporting cases to your local state wildlife officials helps to track the disease’s spread. Suspicious cases include groups of rabbits that have suddenly dropped dead or display blood around their noses. Again, this disease is not of concern to our dogs and cats, but it can affect our ability to source rabbit meat due to its ability to decimate a farmer’s domestic rabbit population.  

We hope to raise awareness of best practices in rabbit sourcing and of the challenges they face. When you support us, you support humane farming practices! We hope you will stay informed on the topic, support research and vaccines, and help to spread awareness. You can stay updated on the topic by joining the RHDV information page on Facebook. 

Disclaimer: This blog is intended for educational purposes only. You are responsible for your pet(s) health and safety. We encourage you to research topics further and to consult with your Veterinarian or Pet Nutritionist before modifying your pet(s) diet.

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