Culling to eat is different to me, or even culling unstandard once their big enough to eat aswell, but culling babies as soon as you can see they aren't the right markings is a waste of life, and culling so that it takes less energy, condition and everything out of the mum to allow more regular breeding is not responsible to me either, its really like playing God, and wasting so many little lives, and for what, so you have a higher chance of having a good rabbit on the (show) table, and boosting your own ego, no matter how many deaths have happened for that outcome?

As a buyer of pedigree rabbits yourself. Can you explain why you choose to do this when you disagree with the practice that commonly takes place within this type of breeding.

I went to breeders who allow all to live, I went to responsible breeders, and still speak to and get advise from one, and Harmony was a self who stayed at her breeders till she was six months old, a bit different to the breeders I don't like, and Drew the spotted was actually, well a rescue I suppose, was brought from a pet shop, and became unwanted, I got him as the owners were told you couldn't get chocolate English, but I traced his breeder, looking for freeads of the same colours that were being sold from pets at home and he was from a BRC who started out I was told rescueing dumped rabbits before the farmer shot them, don't know her ethics now, but have seen Charlies, but I don't go in a lot, or do I know how she got from rescueing to breeding, but I never gave her money, and I wouldn't give money to those who cull such young animals for no reason, in English it doesn't even allow for there being bad stock breed from them, as theres more to a rabbit then its pattern, and a self or charlie thats well bred could bred a show qaulity rabbit.

Havent read the whole thread but why couldnt they be sold or given to pet stores? Many local pet stores and even PAH sometimes take or pay for unwanted litters of young rabbits?
Or are they too old to do this to? I dont see why anything under 12 weeks couldnt be given to pet stores - kinder than killing them IMO - at least offering them a chance..

Rabbits and pet shops are very rarely a match made in heaven!

So what you are saying is because the breeder you bought from "allowed to live" then that justifies your decision to support the others that choose not to. They are all in the same game, yes? So obviously they all know what goes on.

On that thought you support all the bad in the dog world, you've got dogs from breeders so you support bad breeding, you support those who don't health test, you support those who cheat in dog shows, and the judges who allow politics to influence the outcome, you show, you buy dogs from breeders, and you know what can happen, and according to you they (people who show and breed) can all be judged together, the same as me getting a rabbit from Wales means that I support people who cull rabbits, you getting dogs from breeders and showing means that you support breeders who don't health test, and cheaters, or how about no, thats a straw man arguement, unless you want all dog showing and breeding thought of the same, or can reconigise that there are good and bad, and by going to the good don't mean you support the bad, unless you do support bad breeders etc? Or is it totally different for rabbits and dogs in your mind?

Do you really think is kinder to offload young onto a pet shop who , probably don't 1) understand the husbandry, (the rabbits could spend mths in an open cage being frightened by all the groping they have to endure, 2) don't care who they sell to.

Pets at home don't often keep their rabbits for months, at least not the ones round here, it has got better with the adoption system, but I've heard of a few that people who work their have taken home rabbits as they were to be pts as they weren't at the cutsy stage anymore, but it can be hard to find a responsible breeder of rabbits, I got offered one this week, brother sister mating, accidental mating (two previous planned matings), French Lop X Lionhead X summat else, they say Albino, but Albino what? They live very close, I could of got one, but if I wanted another rabbit and wasn't looking just for a English I would go to rescue, but theres a reason why in both cases where I brought rabbits from breeders I travelled so far, Harmony was close, just over two hours each way, although one from the same breeder that I found online ended up at Yorkshire, and Nancy came from South Wales, and if I want another English I will go to Wales again, a responsible breeder who takes good care of her rabbits, and see's them as pets first, show rabbits after, doesn't cull, and kept a black self from when Nancy was born because she could appreiate her for her, and loves her still.

You can get any breed of rabbit in rescue. If you are not looking to show or breed I don't understand why anyone would go to a breeder. My English is a rescue. I struggle to find any ethical rabbit breeder personally. I can honestly say I think I have come across one. If your English was from the breeder I think, I have a friend who has her buns from there too. Lovely woman I believe but all the rabbits I have heard of from there have either died very young or are now very ill. My friend has spent hundreds on vet bills. Are all her rabbits in appropriate size hutches? (I don't know I'm just asking lol) I don't agree with the culling to go back to the original question but then the rabbit world really needs to get it's act together, it is a disgrace at the moment. Probably culling them is better than the torment of years alone in a 3ft hutch, uncomfortable as I find the idea.