Is Raising Rabbits Profitable? With Detailed Reference Calculations for Costs and Profits

There have always been people raising rabbits, but not everyone can make money at it, and every year quite a few lose money. So is raising rabbits profitable now? How are costs and profits calculated?

Is raising rabbits profitable?

Actually there is no standard answer, because everyone's breeding conditions differ, and the market is constantly changing. Many people believe that rabbit prices are cheap now, so the number of rabbits raised will certainly decline, and by then rabbit prices will surely rise somewhat, so entering the rabbit-raising business now is certain to make money. This analysis is not bad, but one point cannot be ignored, and that is how great the determination of current rabbit farmers to stick with it is, and how long they can hold on? If rabbit farmers all scale down now, then the number of commercial rabbits sent to market in autumn will certainly drop significantly, but if rabbit farmers hold on just a little, judging by the rabbit's reproduction rate, the number of commercial rabbits sent to market in autumn and winter will decline somewhat but not too noticeably.

Analysis of the costs and profits of raising rabbits (for reference only)

Using two groups of meat rabbits for the analysis, each group with one male and five females: 

1. Breeding stock cost. Buying 2.5 kg improved-breed rabbits at 100 yuan each, 12 rabbits cost 1200 yuan. The average service life of breeding rabbits is 2.5 years, so the annual amortization is 480 yuan. 

2. Feed cost. Each breeding rabbit consumes an average of 125 grams of mixed feed per day (the rest of the nutritional shortfall is supplemented with green grass and crop straw), consuming 45.6 kg of feed per year, and 12 rabbits consume 547 kg in total. Calculating the feed cost at 0.9 yuan per kg, the feed cost is 492.3 yuan; for young rabbits, counting from weaning at 1 month of age to marketing at 90 days of age, a total of 60 days, each rabbit consumes about 5 kg of feed. Calculating that each female rabbit provides an average of 35 commercial rabbits per year, 10 female rabbits provide 350 commercial rabbits per year, consuming 1750 kg of feed in total, with a feed cost of 1575 yuan. 

3. Epidemic prevention cost. The epidemic prevention cost is 2 yuan per breeding rabbit per year and 0.5 yuan per commercial rabbit, totaling 199 yuan. 

4. Cage and housing cost. Building cages and housing can use the family's old bricks and tiles, stones, adobe, cement and lime, etc., or an iron rod frame can be welded and the cages woven from iron wire. Calculating the investment per cage at 30 yuan, 12 breeding rabbit cages plus 20 fattening cages require 960 yuan. Calculating the service life of the cages at 8 years, the annual depreciation cost is 120 yuan. 

5. Total investment. 480 yuan + 492.3 yuan + 1575 yuan + 199 yuan + 120 yuan = 2866.3 yuan.

If calculated on the basis that one female meat rabbit breeds 6-8 litters per year, with 7-12 kits per litter and an average of about 8 per litter per year, the current market price of one rabbit is around 25 yuan, not including other products such as rabbit fur. Therefore the net profit is: 25×16×12=4800-2866.3=2111.7 yuan.

At present, farming still requires experience, and then with costs reasonably controlled, the subsequent profit margin is still very large.