How much does it cost to raise Angora rabbits?
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Before adding a new animal to your homestead you always need to sit down and crunch the numbers. So how much does it cost to raise Angora rabbits?
Initial setup costs:
Rabbit Hutch or Cage $ – $$$$$
The sky is the limit here. You can pick up a used hutch on Craigslist or at a yard sale for as little as $20 or you can go crazy with custom builds and spend a thousand dollars. If you are handy, a good option might be to build one yourself. A good hutch is at least 6 feet long, 2 feet wide, and 2 feet tall. If you have the space to go bigger, your rabbit will thank you for it. This pre-built hutch can be ordered on Amazon. You could also convert a shed, barn, or spare bedroom to be used for the rabbit’s home.
Rabbit Exercise Yard $ – $$$$
Again this option is going to vary based on how deep your pockets are and how resourceful you can be with materials. If you have some hardware cloth wire & wood on hand you could build a simple, enclosed yard for cheap. For each rabbit, you should have at least 35 square feet of safe exercise area. If you have the room to go bigger, that is better. A quick online search for “rabbit exercise pen” will give you tons of options. Just keep in mind that if your rabbit will be using this unsupervised and outdoors you will need to be sure it is predator-proof (covered top, buried wire, or solid floor).
Misc Supplies $50-$100
You will need to purchase a grooming comb, brush, scissors & nail clippers, a hay manger, feed bin & metal container for extra feed, water bottle, and litter box
Rabbits $50-$250+
This cost can vary widely. You can check your local animal shelter or rabbit rescue where you are bound to find plenty of rabbits. If you have your heart set on getting an Angora though, you might have a hard time finding a rescued one. Your next avenue is to contact a local breeder. The cost is going to vary based on pedigree & quality. If you are serious about getting a quality harvest of wool from your rabbits, it is worthwhile to invest in good quality rabbits from a registered and respected breeder. If you just want a cuddly, fun companion pet, a rescue is certainly the way to go!
On Going Costs (per rabbit) – about $25 per month:
Pellet Feed about $3 month
Angoras need a good quality, high fiber, high protein feed to be healthy and to produce quality wool. You want to look for 18% protein in feed pellets. Avoid feed that mixes in “treats” with the feed. This may be hard to find at a pet store, a farm feed store usually has a much better selection of quality pellets. Each rabbit will only need about 1/2 cup of pellets each day. click here to read more about feeding wool rabbits
Timothy Hay about $3 month
Fiber is a really important part of an Angora’s diet. With all that fur they ingest during grooming, they need plenty of fiber to keep their digestive systems moving. An all-you-can-eat fresh hay buffet should be available to them every day. Expect them to go through a good size handful of hay per rabbit each day.
Fresh Greens/Vegetables/Fruits about $15 per month
Fresh veggies & greens are also needed in your rabbit’s diet. Expect to feed 1-2 cups of fresh greens per rabbit per day. If you grow your own, this cost can be cut down at least during the summer months. Generally, I give each of my rabbits half a head of romaine (I buy them in bulk at my local warehouse store) plus fresh herbs daily. A couple of times a week I will add chopped veggies, clover, dandelion, marigolds, or other tasty treats. Fruit is also good for rabbits, but should be used more sparingly because of its high natural sugar content (once a week or so).
Litter about $4 month
We buy paper pellet litter for the rabbit’s litter box. It doesn’t stick in their fur, it’s biodegradable, and is safe if the buns nibble on it.
Health Costs minimal
Generally, there should not be vet bills unless your rabbit has an illness or injury. The only “medication” we give our bunnies are papaya enzyme tablets to help ward off wool block. You can get a bottle of about 600 pills for $10. That will last a few years
Monetary Benefits of Angoras:
So how much money can you expect to raise with Angora rabbits?
Raw Fiber
If you are looking to just sell the raw fiber (simply brush the bunny and sell what comes off, no other processing involved) prices range from $6-$10 an ounce. My rabbits are English Angoras, the smallest of the Angora breeds but a good wool producer. I can expect about 20 oz of wool per year, per rabbit, which would work out to about $160 a year (or approx $13 per month) if I were to sell the wool raw.
Crafts
What do people do with all this raw fiber? They use it in a variety of fiber arts, from collages to needle felting to clothing or jewelry accents to spinning into yarn for knitting – there are a ton of options! If you have the equipment and talent to do any of these things, turning the raw wool into a usable end product will greatly increase your profits. I made these cute little needled felted rabbits with fibers from my angoras!
Compost
Rabbit manure is packed full of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, many minerals, lots of micro-nutrients, plus many other beneficial trace elements such as calcium, magnesium, boron, zinc, manganese, sulfur, copper, and cobalt just to name a few. Rabbit manure is considered “cold” manure, unlike chicken manure which is “hot” manure (hot manure has to compost for 6-8 months before you use it). Cold manure has no risk of burning even your tender seedlings. You could literally take the manure right from the hutch and dump it in your garden beds.
There are companies selling rabbit manure online charging $25 with shipping for a 1-pound box of poop! I don’t sell my rabbit manure, but I do use it to fertilize my veggie garden and sprinkle it around my flowers for gorgeous blooms. Not so much a monetary benefit, but it does save me from having to buy compost and increases the yields in my vegetable garden.
Conclusion:
Don’t expect to get rich selling raw rabbit fur unless you have many rabbits and can buy all your feed, supplies, etc wholesale. Get an Angora because they are cute and cuddly, entertaining, and lovable. If you are a crafter or enjoy knitting or spinning, definitely get an Angora. It will cut back on your craft supply costs and you will know exactly where the fiber comes from and that it was collected humanely.
If you sell your crafts, being able to advertise that you raise the wool with a cute picture of your bunny can be a great selling point. If you end up turning the raw wool into a usable end product you can expect to make back the cost of the rabbit upkeep plus some. There are not huge profits to be had from keeping a couple of Angoras, but they do pay for the majority of their care. When was the last time your dog did that?
So is the paper litter compostable? I’m still reading and learning, and hoping to get my bunnies in the spring. Can you just dump the litter box in its entirety in the compost bin? Thank you so much for all the great information!
Yes the paper litter is compostable and will help balance your compost so it isn’t all “green” sources. I just dump the entire box right in the compost bin 🙂
Where did you guys get your englisj angoras.?
We got our angoras from Evergreen Farm in Taunton, MA. She has some lovely rabbits!
hi Liz. if i want a form in pakistan can i use nipal angora breeds or how i can get english angora rabit
Hi Zaman, I am not sure the best way for you to find an english angora in Pakistan. I would start by googling english angora breeders in your area or asking at your local animal shelter. You can get wonderful fiber from any of the angora breeds though if you can’t find an english one 🙂
Which city of Pakistan you live in may be I can Help you. Email me at waqasalitek@gmail.com
Thank you for this great information. We just bought an English Angora bunny and we are waiting for her to be old enough to bring home. We would love to use her fur for crafting.
Yay! Good luck with your little one, they are really big sweethearts!
Me also want this Angora Rabbit how can I contact for buy this rabbit
I don’t breed or sell my rabbits, I only keep a few females
Check Facebook and WeMe for rabbitrys that have available bunnies. I’m in Tennessee so I know some people and Virginia now that have angoras, mini Rex’s, mini lops, lion heads, Holland lops ect.
Bush Mountain rabbitry in Virginia has a blue tort buck angora 9 weeks for sale on Facebook page.
I don’t have an angora rabbit, but you make me want to get some! Thanks for the tips and being honest about the costs to raise them.
Hi Liz,
I’m interested in starting Angora Rabbit farm in Sweden. Could you please Share your contact details? To my email id.
Thanks.
Kaiser.
Hi Kaiser, I will send you an email 🙂
We had ourselves a rabbit ranch in the past. I now have just one English Angora as an indoor pet with side benefits.interesting and helpful info on your website, but the Image of the felted rabbits you made doesn’t show up on the webpage.
Thank you Leslie! I’ll try re-downloading the picture and hopefully that will fix it 🙂
please tell how can i purchase Angora rabbits in Pakistan
Unfortunately I don’t have any contacts in Pakistan, I am sorry
Dear Liz:
Thanks for nice discussions. I just want to know that top fashioned brands approximately 220 brands producing angora rabbit fiber products has banned their products after intense pressure from animal activist NGO namely PETA in 2013-2014. Now where is the suitable market for angora rabbit fiber. I almost near to manage 500 kg of angora fiber, Now where should I sell it. Please respond.
You are right, many major labels won’t work with angora due to abuse in the system. But I am hopeful that will turn around in the coming years as humane farmers show that angora harvesting doesn’t need to cause pain to the animals. I don’t have any contacts for anything as large scale as what you are producing, I am sorry. I would suggest you contact your local agricultural council, they should have some suggestions and contacts for fiber buyers
Er, did I read this right, 35 sq.ft. per rabbit!!!!! Also, everything I know about rabbits diet suggests that lettuce should be fed sparingly if at all.
Hi David – yes for ideal health rabbits should have lots of space to run and jump. Keeping rabbits in a cage long term all the time isn’t good for their mental or physical health. Iceberg lettuce should be fed sparingly because it doesn’t really have any nutrients and can cause diarrhea. Dark lettuce like romaine is fine for rabbits, but for a well rounded diet, you should offer them varied veggies and greens daily
Honestly, just romaine lettuce suffices. Their diet should be 80% of hay. I do, however, change it up occasionally and feed my rabbit parsley and corriander. I am thinking about starting a rabbit farm because we would be in the countryside. However, I’d be turning it into yarn and textiles with a carding machine. The key is really to cut variable food costs by at least half per month which is possible. I appreciate your honesty. Would love to stay in contact.
Definitely. Anytime you start a business you need to try and cut costs where ever possible. Growing a garden for your rabbits can save a ton of money, and their manure provides great nutrients for the garden in turn. To keep it up year round you would likely need a greenhouse as part of your business set up budget, but it would pay for itself in no time
Well, thankfully I am studying accountancy to help with that. We pretty much have a family home in a French village next to many farms. There is already a garden plot, but it would only help a bit (we could grow coriander, basil, and parsley though). The idea is to start small, analyze the variable cost per unit (so one rabbit), and then determine how long it would take to cover fixed costs. Luckily, since we are right next to the source, we can simply buy hay in bulk or even get it for free. Could you provide me a more detailed look at your costs?
That is great! I just raise my rabbits as pets so I don’t keep detailed profit/loss sheets on them, sorry
can you suggest french angora rabbit breeders in Fl./ Alabama ? or should i go to a livestock show locally??
thanks
Unfortunately, I don’t know of any in that area to recommend. Livestock shows are a great place to start, especially if you can find a rabbit-specific show. Your local feed store might be a good lead as well. Good luck!