When rabbits were first kept by men, it was more of a loose relationship. They were kept in large warrens, and allowed to breed freely. This, of course, didn't allow for much selection - the warrener didn't have much say in which buck was bred to which doe, and therefore the warrener couldn't breed for certain traits easily, and domestic rabbits generally looked like wild rabbits. A good old story says that in 1807, Napoleon was to go hunting rabbits. To make sure that he had a successful hunt, his men stocked his lands with domestic rabbits (most likely taken from a warren, since at that time, that is how they were commonly kept). When Napoleon arrived, the rabbits didn't see him as a threat, and instead approached him for food, chasing him back into his carriage. While this is not only a funny tale, it does serve as an example of my point - before the mid 19th century, most domestic rabbits were practically indistinguishable from a wild rabbit in appearance. The structural and color variations we see today are only possible with more confined methods of keeping rabbits - like rabbit courts, one of the earliest means of housing rabbits. While variations exist on the rabbit court, the main structure of them all is very much the same: a small courtyard (usually between two buildings or walls), the center of which is left open for rabbits to frolick around in, and the sides of which have rows of hutches, for the rabbits to return to for rest. The floor of the rabbit court was solid - often flagstone, or paved with a cement-like material. This floor was usually covered - some authors recommended straw or sawdust, while another advocated for sand. Feed and water would provided in the center, for all rabbits to share, and nests would be made in the hutches, which were left open during the day. Most rabbit courts were shaded (or at least the best of them were), and often a pile of dirt was added (some keepers put the dirt in the center, while others wanted the pile in the corner). Some breeders kept the bucks in there, replacing them every few months and removing young bucks early to prevent inbreeding - other kept bucks in separate hutches, allowing them in only for breeding, which provided the advantage of knowing when the does were due. Rabbit courts had their advantages and disadvantages: Advantages: They were much less space consuming than warrens or rabbit pits, and thus were popular in cities. They provided quick production, and easily allowed for table scraps to be distributed to the rabbits, making rabbit courts popular for meat productions. Disadvantages: They were not suitable for the less hardy breeds - on author recommends to not keep himalayans or silver-greys (what today is known in the US as black silvers), and only keep common rabbits, or patagonians (one of the first giant breeds, a possible ancestor to the flemish giant), as they were hardier. All authors agreed to avoid keeping fancy rabbits or lops in rabbit courts, and to avoid fur rabbits too, as a rabbit court could not produce enough to compete with larger producers. Eventually, even rabbit courts fell out of favor, replaced a hutch rabbitry system very similar to that which we see today. As the rabbit fancy grew in favor over the meat purposes, and cities grew so that rabbit courts may not as easily fit into an urban landscape, rabbit courts practically disppeared entirely. Publications before 1860 talk of rabbit courts as the cutting edge of technology - as "a practical realization, on a small scale, of Olivier De Serres' grand idea." (Bement, 1857), but before the turn of the century, it was already almost completely replaced. In the 1891 book, The Practical Rabbit Keeper, in contrast to the praise given in Bement's book, rabbit courts are introduced with "Before coming to the more usual ways of keeping rabbits, we will refer briefly to the rabbit-court," (Cuniculus, 1891). Rabbit courts were an important chapter of rabbit history, but they could not outcompete hutches. Nowadays, as almost a revitalization of the rabbit court concept, rabbit colonies are gaining favor, though colonies are much more open, instead of enclosed, and the neat row of hutches found in rabbit courts have been replaced by often a motley variety of shelters, hiding spots, and, indeed, hutches. I often wonder if modern colonies could not be improved by taking some influence from rabbit courts. References:
Bement, C. N. The rabbit fancier: a treatise upon the breeding, rearing, feeding, and general management of rabbits, with remarks upon their diseases and remedies, drawn from authentic sources and personal observation: to which are added full directions for the construction of hutches, rabbitries, etc. together with recipes for cooking and dressing for the table. New York: C.M. Saxton, 1857. Print. Rayson, Charles. Rabbits for prizes and profit. London: The Bazaar, 1879. Print. Reilly, Lucas. "The Time Napoleon Was Attacked by Rabbits." Mental Floss. N.p., 26 June 2013. Web. 20 Dec. 2016. Cuniculus. The practical rabbit keeper. New York: Orange Judd Company, 1891. Print. Referencing the 1891 US publication, instead of the original 1880 one, published in London. Whitman, Bob D. Domestic Rabbits & Their Histories: Breeds of the World. Leawood, KS: Leathers Pub., 2004. Print.
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