Feeding North Korea with Giant Rabbits

It is well known that North Korea has a severe problem with food shortages. Recently the North Koreans have reached out to an East German man who has been breeding rabbits the size of dogs. They hope to begin breeding these giant rabbits, which can feed up to eight people, to help with their food shortages.

"Karl Szmolinsky, a 67 year old, East German pensioner that has bred rabbits the size of dogs for 47 years was asked by North Korea's ambassador whether he might be willing to sell some rabbits to set up a breeding farm in North Korea." Source - Spiegel

I wonder though, if they are having a food shortage, what will they feed the giant rabbits with?

Here is a link with more on the story including pictures: Giant Rabbits

I bet we will also see some giant rabbit fur clothing coming soon from the North Koreans. Now all we need is Giant Carrots?

For those that think it is a hoax here is a link to a Fox News post on the subject:
Fox News

Food is necessary for life.
If you're eating giant rabbits, giant bulls, giant fish or giant chickens....what's the difference? It's food and it keeps you alive.
The only time the line should be drawn is when humans are eating other humans.

Giant Rabbits? Meat? That shows how dumb the NK gov. is.

If you have a food shortage, then you have a malnutrition surge on your hands. You need foods high in fiber (vegetables), energy (grains), and protein (nuts and legumes). There's no nutrition in meat. They should be trying to get more veggies and rice from China. Rabbits will do nothing bu cause disease and more malnutrition.

That is one big, scary-looking rabbit?

I've never seen a rabbit that big. Kinda cute, kinda scary.
Sad that they end up stew. Oh well, what are you gonna do?

Originally posted by Arcane Demesne
There's no nutrition in meat.

You're wrong. I'm a weightlifter and meat is full of protein.

Here is some nutritional informationon Rabbit in comparison with other common meats:


"Nutritional Value of Rabbit Meat
by Robert Oni


Average Nutritional Content of Rabbit meat is:

Calories – 300g (18% from Fat, 82% form protein & 0% from
Carbohydrate);

Total Fat – 4.1g (2.3g Lipid Fat, 0.7g

Saturated Fat, 0.6g Monosaturated Fat, 0.4g polysaturated Fat
& 86mg Cholesterol;

Sodium – 40mg; Carbohydrate – 0g; Dietary Fat – 0g; Sugar – 0;

Protien – 41.9g,
Calcium – 12mg;
Water – 58.9;
Ash – 1.1;
Alcohol & Caffeine – 0.

Nutritional Value of Edible Meats:

Rabbit (% Protein – 20.8, % Fat – 4.5, Calories/Ib – 795)
Veal (% Protein – 19.1, % Fat – 12, Calories/Ib – 840)
Chicken (% Protein – 20.0, % Fat – 17.9, Calories/Ib – 810)
Turkey (% Protein – 20.1, % Fat – 20, Calories/Ib – 1,190)
Lamb (% Protein – 15.7, % Fat – 27.7, Calories/Ib – 1,420)
Beef (% Protein – 16.3, % Fat – 28.0, Calories/Ib – 1,440)
Duck (% Protein – 16.0, % Fat – 28.6, Calories/Ib – 1,015)
Pork (% Protein – 11.9, % Fat – 45, Calories/Ib – 2,050)"


Notice that Rabbit is higher in protein and lower in fat than all the others.

[edit on 13-1-2007 by Terapin]

Feeling hungry? Here are some very tasty recipes you might enjoy. Remember, rabbits are near the bottom of the food chain and multiply like, ... well,... like rabbits. Rabbit Recipes, Rabbit Hunting Online

i hate to be a pest but the last thread is closed. These rabbits are big but the pictures are tricking you. The perspective makes the rabbit look freaking HUUUGE like 80 pounds. The largest rabbit is said to be 10.5 kg. That equals around 28 pounds. The camera trick makes the rabbit look alot larger than that.
So in closing i will say yes those rabbits are very large, but they arent the size of
st. bernards.

www.tobeasian.com...

breds rabbits the size of dogs

?

Why would North Korea need rabbits the size of dogs when they have.....dogs.

They already eat dogs. Heck, South Koreans eat dogs too, so why mess with rabbits?

Rabbits are a notoriously poor food, people that are in a survival situation, and only have rabbit to eat, will get 'rabbit starvation', because the rabbits are very low in fats, and the body starts working off of protein only, which is not prefered.

Of course, these are giant FAT rabbits, so I guess that doesn't come into play.

So, again, why wouldn't north korea just be asking for dogs? Especially since so many other countries have a surplus of stray dogs that are going to be destroyed anyway?

Think about it Nygdan... what to rabbits eat and what do dogs eat. Rabbits are lower on the food chain. Dogs need to eat rabbits and such while rabbits eat grass. The lower on the food chain the less resources you need in order to raise them.

It would be far better for NK to pay more attention to its agricultural practices, but as an alternative food source, rabbits are fine.

Originally posted by Terapin
Dogs need to eat rabbits and such.......

They do?

Last I checked it was Alpo.

no friken way. thats not a rabbit. its a fat cat with really big ears.

Originally posted by rocknroll

Originally posted by Arcane Demesne
There's no nutrition in meat.

You're wrong. I'm a weightlifter and meat is full of protein.

That's obvious. But other than Protein and B-vitamins, meat has no nutritional value. And the cholesterol and fat of meat is appalling. You can get more protein in legumes and grains than in meat, trust me.

I understand that meat is a 'quick' protein fix...but its downsides quickly outwiegh its good sides...to someone who cares about longterm health. And don't make the assumption I think meant is horrible for you, I realize genetics takes a huge toll. But generally, in my experience, the asian populace eat MUCH less meat than the Western world. That's slowly changing, but they're much better off eating more veggies and grains.

Remember, the N Koreans are MALNUTRITIONED...meat won't help their immune system. It'll give them some extra protein and a tiny boost in energy. But without carbohydrates, tht protein just gets eaten up and never stays on the body.

Originally posted by Terapin
Think about it Nygdan... what to rabbits eat and what do dogs eat. Rabbits are lower on the food chain. Dogs need to eat rabbits and such while rabbits eat grass.

Seems like they'd be better off growing and eating rice and wheat then, if they're that desperate that they need to pay attention to the economics of trophic levels in such a way.

The lower on the food chain the less resources you need in order to raise them.

The koreans already have dog farms, so if they're that desperate, they could just eat whatever they've been giving to the dog farms.

arcane demesne
meat won't help their immune system

The NK government doesn't care about the immune system of their serfs. They just want to make sure that they have enough food to be able to till the fields of their feudal lords, to support the military elite that runs the country.

Originally posted by Arcane Demesne
...to someone who cares about longterm health. And don't make the assumption I think meat is horrible for you, I realize genetics takes a huge toll. But generally, in my experience, the asian populace eat MUCH less meat than the Western world. That's slowly changing, but they're much better off eating more veggies and grains.

Well, to be honest I don't eat much meat.
Poultry is more my speed.
And rabbit meat...I've tried it.
Blech!


[edit on 13-1-2007 by rocknroll]

Originally posted by Nygdan

www.tobeasian.com...

breds rabbits the size of dogs

?

Why would North Korea need rabbits the size of dogs when they have.....dogs.

They already eat dogs. Heck, South Koreans eat dogs too, so why mess with rabbits?

Rabbits are a notoriously poor food, people that are in a survival situation, and only have rabbit to eat, will get 'rabbit starvation', because the rabbits are very low in fats, and the body starts working off of protein only, which is not prefered.

Hmmm... I didn't know about the rabbit starvation. I will keep that in mind for later :-) Although my grandparents had a rabbit farm in the basement of their apartment building during WW2 and the nazis never took them away as confiscated rations.


Now, dogs eat the same stuff we humans do, so you can't breed them, but rabbits eat grass and everything that is green, and humans can't metabolise grass and stuff like that. Plus, everyone needs meat for proteins and calsium and phosphorous and other trace substances.
Even sheep attack and kill brooding birds in the shetlands and faeroes, and chew them up with blood and feathers and guts, because of low calsium on the islands.

Good initiative on the dogs though ;-) But I suspect even giving them dogs would classify as breaking the trade blockade.


later people

Originally posted by Arcane Demesne
That's obvious. But other than Protein and B-vitamins, meat has no nutritional value. And the cholesterol and fat of meat is appalling. You can get more protein in legumes and grains than in meat, trust me.

You can't only eat vegetables or grain, there are amino acids needed in the human body that can only be found in animal protein.

I believe the images taken of the rabbits are a gross exageration of the actual size of the rabbits. View the images in slightly larger format here:

www.tobeasian.com...

www.tobeasian.com...

Notice the distortion of the images at photo's edges. One can clearly see the image is 'stretched' and shows light aberrations commonly asociated with the edges of photos taken with a 'fisheye' lens (en.wikipedia.org...), or a very wide angle lens. Such lenses 'pull' light from as close to 180 degrees as possible and squash it into a square size image. The refraction of light entering a lens at, say 160-170 degrees becomes distorted as you can see in the images. The rabbits head in the second image, which is at the edge of the lens' range, is grossly dispropportionate to the rest of its body which is more to the center of the image and is thus less affected by the distortion of the lens.

Nevertheless, the pictures are intersting

There are multiple sources on the validity of these giant rabbits. While the photos presented may very well be shot to enhance the apparent size for typical reporters hype, the fact still remains that rabbits than can feed eight people do indeed exist. If you look online you will find breeders clubs for giant rabbits in a number of countries, much like kennel clubs for dogs. There are also breeders clubs for mineature horses. None of this is all that unusual.