Rabbits in Revenue: Scientific Farming & Management for Fur & Meat in India

Rabbits, known as the Cinderella of the animal kingdom, have been mainly used for pyrogen testing and acute toxicity testing since the 1940s. However, the usage of rabbits as experimental animals compared to mice in the field of science is limited and approximately 2%. Further, Fur Animal Breeding Farm established at Garsa (Kullu Valley) in Himachal Pradesh was the first farm to import New Zealand White rabbits from U.K and Angora, White Giant, Grey Giant and Soviet Chinchilla from the former USSR in 1978-79 for production of fur and meat. Recently, cuniculture - the scientific rabbit farming mainly for meat production- is gaining popularity in India as an economical and sustainable alternative to traditional livestock farming, as they are prolific breeders with short gestation, and can be easily reared and bred in captivity. They tolerate the wide range of climatic conditions observed in India by remaining in burrows during extreme high temperatures and in hedgerows during wet and cold conditions. Currently, India has 0.592 million of rabbit population with Kerala being the number one state in rabbit production.