Rabbit fair makes a hit

Maltese rabbit breeders are currently producing about 2.5 million rabbits a year, Joseph Gauci Maistre, president of the Malta Rabbit Club said yesterday.

This means that Malta leads the league of nations in the consumption of rabbit meat per capita.

The Maltese eat about 10.3 kilograms of rabbit meat each, every year, which is double the amount consumed in Italy, second in the rabbit consumption league.

The information is based on figures issued by the World Rabbit Science Association, Mr Gauci Maistre said.

The consumption of rabbit meat has increased world-wide because of the meat's healthy qualities.

The club keeps data about the production of rabbits from the information provided by members and from the volume of feed manufactured and sold each year.

Answering questions about this year's edition of the rabbit fair held in Qormi, he said that an innovation this year was that visitors could buy the rabbits they fancied there and then.

"Going by feedback from previous editions, we have found out that buyers do not want to wait to buy the rabbit they prefer.

"Buying rabbits from the fair is a guarantee that the rabbit is in full health. Buyers are asked to put a price to their rabbits before they are judged so that having an entry judged in the first three positions does not allow the owner to ask for a higher price," Mr Gauci Maistre said.

Rabbit sales at the show were brisk.

One of the club's rules is that the price for a rabbit cannot go beyond Lm50. There were about 40 breeds exhibited at the fair.

The club has about 300 members and there are about 15,000 local breeders. A substantial number are backyard breeders.

About 50 years ago, most families used to keep in an internal yard or a cellar chickens, ducks and rabbits to have a regular supply of fresh meat.

Many people think rabbits can be bred as easily as chickens.

But rabbits need individual attention. A good breeder would understand the problems and pre-empt them.

"If when feeding, a rabbit does not approach the food, something is wrong with it. So you have to keep an eye on it, checking for diarrhea or a temperature and provide the cure.

"The problem is not that rabbits are susceptible to disease but because certain breeders do not know what to do to avoid such situations.

"It is true that the palate of rabbit meat will be improved if a breeder wants to take the trouble to vary the diet in addition to balanced feed, but this has to be done scientifically to check on the level of fibre, proteins and oils.

"But can one afford to put in so much effort when it will be only the gourmet, perhaps, who will be prepared to pay more for such meat?"

Rabbits are highly productive, thanks to a short gestation period, and can produce up to 40 offspring a year, compared to 0.8 and 1.4 for cattle or sheep.

Rabbits constitute a cheap source of protein. A female can produce up to 80 kg of meat per year, that is 2,900 to 3,000 per cent of its own weight in meat, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation.

Rabbits produce highly nutritious, low-fat, low-cholesterol meat rich in proteins and certain vitamins and minerals. Felix Farrugia, from Qormi, a breeder of German Lops who owns a rabbitry as a hobby, said the custom was spreading for people to get a rabbit for a pet. He has 35 does and in one month may have between 10 and 15 rabbits for sale.

German Lops are among the favourites as a pet because of the way their long ears hang down by the sides of their face, and because of their great resemblance to soft toys.

"If these rabbits are well cared for they can live up to seven years. Records in the UK and in France indicate that they can live up to 18 years".

Rabbit meat consumption in the Mediterranean goes back to 1,000 BC when Phoenicians are said to have discovered wild rabbits in North Africa and Spain.

The Romans spread them throughout their empire. In Europe, rabbit breeding began in the 16th century and was introduced to Australia and New Zealand through colonial expansion.

According to the Larousse Encyclopaedia, three pairs of rabbits were let loose in New South Wales and a few years later there were hundreds of millions. It has been calculated that one couple alone can have over 13 million descendants in three years.