The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1900-10-26
VOL 81.
BELGIAN HARES,
Kept "n the Farm In an Everyday
Way For Home Use.

Kept "n the Fnrm III an Everyday
Way For Home Use.
There has been n good deal said in
the papers about Belgian hares. and
there is more and more interest de-
Veloped in their breeding, which is
largely by those who are Interested in
selling stock at fancy prices: but there
has been almost nothing from the
everyday side of the business. accord
ing to II. Z. Van Deman, who pro-
ceeds to supply this omission by the
following in Rural New Yorker:
We have been keeping Belgian hares
at our farm for several years Just as
any other animals are kept. and almost
entirely for home use. We have tried
to keep up the blood and think we have
some good stock, hut we have none
that we are foolis' enough to ask or
pay hundreds Of Collars for, Or. any
other eXorbitant rice; although we
have had some toll weigh from eight to
nine pounds each and of good STYLE
and color We kill and eat them at
any time of year just as we do chick
ems or any other farm stock. and wv.
have never kept anything that has Civ
en- less trouble and more profit. The
old ones are too strongly favored to be
very good in summer and we use them
only in winter, but the young ones are
excellent at any time
They will eat almost anything that
is good for Il COW and some things that
she would not touch. Many kinds of
weeds seem to suit their taste exactly
We give our rabbits the tops and
scraps of garden vegetables, potatoes.
sweet potatoes, apple parings, cores
and almost any refuse fruits. They
like grains and ground feed and fatten
on it. In winter we give them prun-
ingS from the fruit trees, which they
relish, and these doubtless act as a
tonic, If not food. Hay and fodder
they like. but we have never tried 81
lage. Perhaps it would be to their
taste. One source of food that occur
red to me is lot of Carolina poplar
trees that line the streets of the vii
lagc. in the outskirts of which we live
had known Of the fonlness of cattle
and Indian ponies for cottonwood bark
and leaves in the west, ANA so | tried
the rabbits on the tops of this tree
which is close relative of the western
cottonwood. They ate every leaf and
peeled branches as clean of bark as if
it had been done with knives. We feed
them chiefly on this food during the
growing season and have thus turned
nf u ;D+
good, tender meat and gave them much
needed pruning. The manager of the
town company talked Of paying us for
the job, but never did it, They Will
also eat the tops of silver poplar. Balm
of Gilcad aspen, sassafras and many
y}other trees and shrubs There is no
danger of poisoning them, their in
stinct being a safe guide as to what
they should eat, unless they are starry
ed into eating what is not good for
them.
There is no need of a special house
for hares although this would perhaps
often be as cheap way to arrange for
them as any other Let the boys and
girls have chance to keep a few.
ny " III illiNl SOIllC DlsiNC III lltlll,
but remember that cats and rats must
be kept out. Inch mesh wire netting
will keep them out and the young rab-
bits in. If kept on the ground they
will dig like gophers, and the wire
fence must be set two feet deep. The
old bucks must be kept shut up, and the
breeding does kept in separate pens. \
pen by I gives ample room for doe
and her young. -Four litters can easily
be raised in a year.
We have had very little disease
among our hares. Dysentery from Civ
ing too much food of one kind has been
the principal trouble. l like rabbit
hunting, and have done much of it,
but it is very handy to be able to go
out any day and get nice FRY" with
out having to chase Brother Cotton
tall for miles.