Being generous, let's say the Germans give 12 ounces every 3 mo. (most don't meet this bar, 11.5 oz or 325 grams is the registration bar, and most don't meet that). Now, they won't give that unless then are on very high quality feed. Around here, King feed costs about $18.99/50 lbs. If I fed the Germans Manna Pro, they would not give that much fiber. A german will eat around 2.7 bags of it over a years time, so that is around $51. That means the fiber costs me about $1.06 per ounce. (One cup said to be 6 oz, X 365 =2190/year, 135 lbs, or 2.734 bags)

My English give 8 oz every 4 mo, so that is 24 ounces a year. (Mine probably outperform most, mine are from Betty.- Actually one doe gives over 9 oz in less than 4 mo, but the other one doesn't.) They only eat about 1/2 cup, or about 1.35 bags per year. But they produce that amount on less expensive feed, MannaPro, which is only $13.99 per bag around here. So the total cost is around $19.00 per year. (½ x 365 = 1085/year or 1.35 bags). That is around 78¢ per ounce! Even if they were not wonderful producers and only gave 5 oz every 4 mo (easily attainable), they'd still be in the same ballpark as Germans per ounce, just over a dollar per ounce.

My crosses also eat the less expensive feed, so I can figure the cost, but estimating production is much harder. I have a couple who give pure German type of numbers and a few that give English type of numbers. The larger ones eat more, but aren't necessarily the best producers. So I won't venture a guess, but since they eat less expensively, I'm guessing it is between the 2 above.

Both animals get the same treats, so I'm not counting that, but I suspect the ratios would be very similar. Hay is not measured, it would add to the cost. Also I add oats, some grains, and occasionally sunflower seeds to the mix. However, each (breed of) rabbit gets all of that, mixed into the feed.I was delighted to figure out that my favored fiber actually costs less to produce too!If anyone has numbers to offer on French or Satin, I'd be happy to add it here, for a true comparison of cost per ounce per breed of fiber.

There are other considerations, such as preventative meds (Ivomec) and the cost of cages and so on. The cost of Ivomectin cannot be included because unless you have a huge commercial operation, you are going to throw out unused Ivomec because it is out of date before you ever use it. So the cost remains the same, no matter how many rabbits you are treating.

Cage equipment, though must be considered if you are purchasing it new. Of course buying mroe cages will run the cost up. In my case, I had reduced the size of the rabbitry to the point that there were no additional cage costs. In fact, I gave very many of them away via Craigslist, just to have them off hte property. I now have a much smaller rabbitry than I did when I kept only Germans. I was forever breeding the Germans trying to improve upon them. Finally I realized there had been some rabbits I was totally satisfied with. They were English. And so I began to place all the Germans in good homes. It took 2 years, but I'm down to 8 angora rabbits now, and I'm far happier with the hobby than I was. I still have all the beautiful angora fiber anyone could ever want to spin, and I do sell a bit from time to time to help offset the cost of raising the rabbits.

I'm looking for more information on other breeds. Would anyone consider adding cost information for French or Satin angoras? I would happily add it here, and you could edit it at any time.

Cheers,
Donna