Rawhide Ranch & Rabbitry

10/09/2026

Same rabbit, different stages! 🐰 The first photo is her as a junior, at roughly 12–13 weeks, compared with now as a young senior.

This is why it is so important to know your lines and understand how they mature. As a junior, she was overly compact, peaked a little early, and was very rounded through the topline. There were things I liked about her, but I was definitely on the fence about keeping her.

Now, as a young senior, she is still rounder over the topline than I would ideally like, but her peak has moved back and become more defined. Her body has also lengthened, giving her a better overall balance and bringing her closer to the Silver Fox commercial type I am working toward. She is still a firm bodied animal with good depth, which was true as a junior as well.

Just as important as knowing your lines is being consistent in how you evaluate them. Looking at your juniors at similar ages, using consistent posing techniques, and keeping notes and comparison photos gives you something to look back on as they develop. What did you see at 12 weeks? What changed by 16 weeks? And how did that rabbit eventually finish out?

Over time, those observations become a useful tool. You start recognizing which traits tend to improve with maturity in your lines, which tend to stick around, and which early strengths actually hold up. That history can help you make more informed decisions about who to keep, who to move along, and who deserves a little more time - and with learning your lines these decisions can more reliably be made at a younger age.

That does not mean every questionable junior will grow into what you hoped for, or that you should overlook faults and assume they will disappear. But a junior evaluation is a snapshot of a rabbit that is still developing. The more consistently you evaluate and follow that development, the better equipped you are to predict how your rabbits may finish out.

This girl still has things I would like to improve, but she has also made changes that I might have missed out on seeing if I had sold her based on that early evaluation.

I was on the fence about her as a junior, but I sure am glad I kept her! 😊 (Bonus: shes a tort, choc, abd blue carrier!)

10/09/2026

"Free range your chickens," they said.

"It'll be fun," they said.

Now I'm here trying to find creative ways to grab the eggs they laid between the tree and the fence, with no entrance large enough to reach through or even send the dogs through 🤦🏼‍♀️

And, of course, because of the heat wave, these 5 eggs are ALL that my chickens laid yesterday. Guess its another week of no egg sales and free loading chickens 🙄

10/08/2026

Friends, I have a few (mostly Jr) rabbits who are NOT going to convention who can leave this weekend.

Please PM me if interested - Lower end show quality and meat breeding quality, all come DQ free and pedigrees on most! Priced to move, need growout space 😬

10/08/2026

I'm sure some of you have seen posts of the Graduation certificates and pins from the NSFRC floating around! Just a reminder of how amazing of an accomplishment this was 🖤

While no longer considered a rare breed, Silver Fox will always be a true American made Heritage Breed 🇺🇲 Go Team Fox!

Why it matters: Every rare breed carries unique genetics, traits, and history that could be lost forever if its population disappears. Conserving these breeds helps protect the genetic diversity agriculture may need for generations to come.

The Livestock Conservancy works to protect nearly 200 rare livestock and poultry breeds through our Conservation Priority List and other conservation programs. And that work makes a difference: this year, the Belgian horse and Silver Fox rabbit graduated from the list!

Are you ready to join us? Follow the link in the comments!

10/08/2026

Always in awe that I get to live the life I dreamed about as a kid 💕

10/08/2026

Meet my second entry for the NSFRC auction at Convention! 🐇

This junior buck is a possible tort and chocolate carrier, and he’s a son of RRR Belus, who is also entered in the auction!

His mom is Circe, one of my personal favorite does. She showed very well, has been a great mom, and is one of the friendliest rabbits in my barn ❤️

Excited to see everyone in Reno! 😊

10/07/2026

She knows.

10/06/2026

ARBA Convention 2026 entries went in last night! 19 Silver Fox entered, my biggest convention entry yet! 😅

10/03/2026

Young tort doe who will be staying for the next gen of torts 🤞🏻

She needs to grow into herself, but she'll get her own cage and another look in a few months before getting bred. Building a few more grow out pens this weekend to have a little extra space over the breeding season too!