Response to Angora rabbits

Hi Suzy, I raised French angoras for years. My last buck died of old age at 9 years. He was a sweet pet. They (angoras) are high maintenance, and are also prone to snuffles and hairballs. I discovered that constant grooming and a never-ending supply of clean rough hay (not good alfalfa but clean horse hay) kept their systems moving. They only got a little alfalfa each day , with rabbit pellets and a handful of sunflower seeds. The thing I like about them is that you don't have to butcher the animal for the fiber. Spinners much prefer the plucked fiber-it's longer and has no blunt ends. But it's very time consuming to do. You have to learn when the hair is "ripe", that is, ready to pull out easily. Some people just shear them. If you have a fiber arts guild in your area and not many angora raisers you may have a market for the wool. Keep in mind, however that any garment made with angora is extremely warm so that limits the items that can be worn comfortably. If you live in the south the market for angora sweaters is probably pretty slim. That's just a guess, though. All in all, they are delightful animals and if you are already used to rabbits and have the time, Go for it.

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