# Rabbits as food?



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

I am not familiar with eating rabbit. I have heard that you don't want to eat them at certain times of the year. Something to do with disease. Anyway, i was hoping some of you would share your knowledge of things to know for rabbit hunting ,preparing and eating.


----------



## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

shoot it ,skin it,any white spotting on the offal,chuck the whole thing away,cook it up ,end enjoy,mate.


----------



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

white spotting on the offal?


----------



## bj000 (Jul 21, 2011)

white spotting on the guts.


Beanflip said:


> white spotting on the offal?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offal


----------



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

So if its spotted in the guts then toss the whole rabbit?


----------



## bj000 (Jul 21, 2011)

I imagine throwing it all away, but i dont know


----------



## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

yea throw the lot,i personally wouldnt take the chance mate
COCCIDIOSIS

There are two types of Coccidiosis Intestinal and Live Form. The disease is caused by a protozoan parasite which attacks the bile duct or the intestinal tract. There are ten different species of the genus Eimeria which may infect the intestine. Generally these are not of much concern, unless a case of enteritis makes an apperance. This can lead to enterotoxemia and or Mucoid enteropathy, although enterotoxemia has been reported in rabbits which are free of Coccidiosis. Liver Coccidiosis is a problem as it causes white spots on the liver which renders the rabbit uneatable.


----------



## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

edited above young man


----------



## Henry the Hermit (Jun 2, 2010)

I moved this to the Hunting and Fishing with Slingshots Forum. Some of our members are sensitive to discussions about killing and eating wild game, so we have set aside this Forum for all such discussions.

I don't know about rabbits in Europe, but back home in Texas, tularemia was a problem.


----------



## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

Henry in Panama said:


> I moved this to the Hunting and Fishing with Slingshots Forum. Some of our members are sensitive to discussions about killing and eating wild game, so we have set aside this Forum for all such discussions.
> 
> I don't know about rabbits in Europe, but back home in Texas, tularemia was a problem.


ive heard of that henry,but apparantly dosnt happen to animals in the uk,seems weird if u think about it that way lol


----------



## AZshooter (May 1, 2011)

In the USA tularemea seems to be the big concern...When I lived in Missouri in th 70`s we hunted and ate rabbit all year long, and honestly, I never heard of the problem occuring...As everyone else recommends, white spotting on the liver will be the tip off if desease is present


----------



## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

We usually waited until cold weather for rabbit hunting. The theory I always heard was that cold weather killed off the unhealthy ones. That was also a reason given for using dogs for rabbit hunting ... if a rabbit can stay ahead of a beagle, then it can't be too sick. But as I said in another thread, if there were white spots in the guts, especially the liver, we did not eat it. And if we found warbles or blow fly larvae when we skinned it, we chucked the whole thing.

Cheers ........ Charles


----------



## mckee (Oct 28, 2010)

it needs to be ate with something else or it can make you even more hungry just it it on its own thats what i heard


----------



## Toddy (Oct 2, 2011)

Calories 300g (18% from Fat, 82% form protein & 0% from
Carbohydrate); Total Fat 4.1g (2.3g Lipid Fat, 0.7g Saturated Fat,
0.6g Monosaturated Fat, 0.4g polysaturated Fat & 86mg Cholesterol;
Sodium 40mg; Carbohydrate 0g; Dietary Fat 0g; Sugar 0;
Protien 41.9g, Calcium 12mg; Water 58.9; Ash 1.1; Alcohol &
Caffeine 0.
Nutritional Value of Edible Meats:
Rabbit (% Protein 20.8, % Fat 4.5, Calories/Ib 795)
Veal (% Protein 19.1, % Fat 12, Calories/Ib 840)
Chicken (% Protein 20.0, % Fat 17.9, Calories/Ib 810)
Turkey (% Protein 20.1, % Fat 20, Calories/Ib 1,190)
Lamb (% Protein 15.7, % Fat 27.7, Calories/Ib 1,420)
Beef (% Protein 16.3, % Fat 28.0, Calories/Ib 1,440)
Duck (% Protein 16.0, % Fat 28.6, Calories/Ib 1,015)
Pork (% Protein 11.9, % Fat 45, Calories/Ib 2,050)
The flavour of rabbit meat is what actually draws people to it. Its
organoleptic properties are tenderness, and juiceness. Its flavour
is not strong; it is comparable to the taste of turkey. Its is a
white meat and it has been found to provide good health and prevent
excess fat, heart diseases, high cholesterol, high blood pressure,
diabetics and cancer among those who eat it.

Copied from the net


----------



## bj000 (Jul 21, 2011)

Charles said:


> We usually waited until cold weather for rabbit hunting. The theory I always heard was that cold weather killed off the unhealthy ones. That was also a reason given for using dogs for rabbit hunting ... if a rabbit can stay ahead of a beagle, then it can't be too sick. But as I said in another thread, if there were white spots in the guts, especially the liver, we did not eat it. And if we found warbles or blow fly larvae when we skinned it, we chucked the whole thing.
> 
> Cheers ........ Charles


that is really smart, thanks for the tip


----------



## Nico (Sep 10, 2010)

Rabbits have no fat so you cant live on it alone in a survival situation or you will get protein poisoning, our bodies need some fat.

However I have eaten rabbits (wild rabbits) mostly cottontails from USA to Mexico many years and never been sick from eating rabbit, yet its always wise to inspect their liver for white spots as it would mean they are infected with tularemia.

This is rare and only in one case I left a rabbit lay as it was terribly infested with fleas and ticks and this is usually a serious chance of tularemia because they acquire this bacteria from Ticks, I offered a prayer and offered it to the local predators the coyotes, owls and bobcats. 

I dont believe in leaving lay my kills, I eat all of my game (with the exception of pests like Rats) and so if I wont eat it then it wont kill it. 

I love eating rabbits their flesh is white more akin to chicken than some wild fowl, unlike the pigeons and doves I eat which are more "similar" to red meat as their meat is even red. I guess thats cos of all the minerals that doves and pigeons get from the gravel they peck to help digest the seeds they eat.

Nico


----------



## Sarge (Dec 18, 2009)

If you thoroughly cook the rabbit you shouldn't have to worry about tularemia and wolves-warbles(bot fly larva) doesn't hurt the meat at all. I caught tularemia when I was 14 when I cut myself while cleaning a rabbit and that was in Dec with a foot of snow.


----------



## Nico (Sep 10, 2010)

Sarge said:


> If you thoroughly cook the rabbit you shouldn't have to worry about tularemia and wolves-warbles(bot fly larva) doesn't hurt the meat at all. I caught tularemia when I was 14 when I cut myself while cleaning a rabbit and that was in Dec with a foot of snow.


Thats correct! Fire does cook away all disease and maybe thats why as a kid nothing happend to us when we ate rabbits, they were always boiled first before cooked otherwise, must have been some handed down wisdom the elders inherited from generations of hunter gatherer experience.


----------



## Sarge (Dec 18, 2009)

I read somewhere that birds who fly long distances will have dark meat because of the increased blood flow to the muscles. The short flying birds like quail will have lighter meat. I don't know if that's true or not, but someone somewhere thought it was true enough to put it in print.


----------



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

Thanks everyone for your responses. If the opportunity arises I may have to give rabbit a try.


----------



## Frank_zhang (Sep 16, 2011)

It is more tasty in winter.

I think u should add more ginger and chilli pepper when cooking.


----------



## jskeen (Feb 7, 2011)

Here in Texas traditionally rabbit was only eaten after the first good cold snap, unless one is really hungry. Tularemia is the primary reason, as the tics that carry it are less active in cold weather. The other reason was to avoid taking females while they were rearing kits. Rabbits in general are fairly well balanced in their habitat in Texas, as their primary predators, coyote's proved difficult for ranchers to eradicate as long as the human population was relatively sparse. Now that urbanitis has taken over, bunnies and coyote's both have to deal with loss of prime habitat, and so remain relatively well in balance, neither too scarce to hunt, nor so overpopulated as to cause enough problems to necessitate severe control methods.

In other areas, without adequate predation, such as Australia, their rapid birth rate causes periodic population booms that result in overgrazing and starvation, or brings about intervention from people. They are a serious problem in some areas from what I understand.

As for cooking, I like to marinade the meat in italian dressing or buttermilk, then flour and pan fry with salt and pepper. Remove the meat and use the pan drippings to make either a brown or cream gravy, then put the meat back in, cover and either bake at low temp or add some coals to the top of the dutch oven and move to the edges of the coal bed of your fire for about a half hour. Season to taste and serve over rice. Brown gravy (or roux) is the cajun method and is often quite spicy with garlic and dried tobasco peppers added. Cream gravy is the cowboy standby, and is usually only seasoned with black pepper.

Best enjoyed with ice cold beer after a long day of hunting!


----------



## Batman21 (Dec 13, 2011)

Rabbits are great to eat


----------



## lobodog2 (Nov 10, 2010)

I agree with Batman21...Rabbits taste good.


----------



## fishjunkie (Sep 10, 2011)

you hunt and eat rabbits in the month that have r in it that is the old saying


----------



## Classic Slingshot (Apr 27, 2011)

Well i neve have eat a rabbit


----------



## ZDP-189 (Mar 14, 2010)

It goes well with alcohol and strong flavours. My flatmate used to make a great rabbit and guiness pie. I prefer other meats if available.


----------



## Pro-Shot (UK) Catapults (Apr 21, 2010)

We only take rabbits in the winter time from mid november to 1st march dont know why? just what we did with my dad.
Nothing like a good rabbit stew with a loaf of new bread?


----------



## harpersgrace (Jan 28, 2010)

*My Father only shot rabbits after the first frost and before the spring thaw......never said why and you didn't ask....I never liked the taste but I was alone in the family....of course I didn't like duck, goose or squirrel either....but I did like BBQ **** go figure







*


----------



## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

You can find a couple of my favorite recipes here:

http://slingshotforum.com/topic/11428-gamekeeper-pie-ha-ha/

Cheers ...... Charles


----------



## rubberpower (Aug 16, 2011)

I am impressed with the knowledge you all have on rabbits. I Wyoming we only ate them after the first hard freeze or hard long snow. For those of you that wonder why the extreme cold will kill them. We always checked the liver for white spots. I have only found one that was infected. We rolled the meat in flower and fried it then served it with mashed potatoes and white gravy. Great thread.


----------



## novex (Jan 7, 2012)

registered not quite just for this but cant miss a chance to link some QI goodness






funny as **** as usual but also explains that you cant live only on rabbit.


----------



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

No all rabbit diet for me.


----------



## smitty (Dec 17, 2009)

Hunt for your rabbits during the cold weather months, they are easiest to spot with snow on the ground, watching for small black dots in thick cover, (eyes), when you see the black dots pause and the rest of the rabbit will magically take shape. Move slowly and quietly, to keep from alarming the prey from too far out. The rabbit will always spot you first, so you aren't really trying to sneak up on them, you are just attempting to get close enough to see them hiding for a shot. Sometimes they will kinda play hide and seek with you, by just moving from cover to cover. Be patient and don't move more than a few steps at a time, while scanning cover. Don't get so focused on one rabbit that is too far out, playing hide and seek, and end up not spotting several that would have been close enough to shoot. For me, twenty yards out is as far as I want to shoot. Here are a few pictures I took after one hunt.






...ready to clean.






...marinade in white wine and salt over night.






...simmering in the pot for a rabbit pie.






...all ready to eat...yummmm!


----------



## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

Good advice! And great looking chow ....

Cheers ........ Charles


----------



## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

Awesome Smitty!


----------



## Deltaboy1984 (Jun 14, 2011)

Growing up in Arkansas we ate Rabbit from first frost till the end of the season. In my part of the country we soaked the rabbit over night in butttermilk coated with seasoned flour and fried it in a pan till golden brown. I have also had it baked and in stews.


----------

