How To Clean And Store A Rabbit?

I normally soak in a brine solution with a little lemon juice and place in the fridge and then rinse and vaccum pack and freeze.

The brine is to draw out any blood in the meat which can give that "gamey" flavor. Alot of times when the animal is head shot and there is no tissue damage or blood to clean, I just rinse good under running cold water, bag, and freeze. I have never not rinsed off any animal I am preparing to either cook or freeze. That is basically how I do squirrel, rabbit, deer, and fish since I was a young kid.

I pick up the rabbit by the back legs. Loosely grab it around the neck at the base of the skull. Give a good snap and the head goes flying. Take my knife and stick it in the chest cavity at the base of the sternum. slit the rib cavity to the neck. Swing the rabbit around in a circle accelerating the motion as you approach the bottom. All the innards go splat on the ground. This whole process takes 15 seconds. Slip your fingers under the skin at the loin. Peal the skin off in both directions at once. This is another 30 seconds or so. The carcass should be dry as you have not used any water. Go over the carcass with the flame of a propane tourch to singe off any hair from the skinning process.

Now wash the carcass, chop it up, rinse the parts, pat dry with paper towel put in a freezer bag and freeze.

If you want zero wild game flavor in you final recipe just par boil your rabbit (or squirrel) pieces for a couple of minutes in some water with some vinigar in it before cooking. 

As a microbiologist holding several certifications from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection (WDATCP) I would NEVER hang game for any time before processing.

I was going to ask about that (hanging). I'm a fairly new Hunter (last two years or so) and have never hung any squirrels or rabbits, and was wondering if I was not doing something I should. I know large animals (cows, etc) are often hung in a refrigerated room for some amount of time, though I really don't know why.

They are hung to "age" this is how you obtain prime cuts of meat. Sounds nasty, but allowing to hang actually starts the process of decay which makes for tender prime cuts of meat. Not something I do, but it is a very common practice for butchers in my area.

Not sure why you would hang a rabbit or other small game, but to each his own.

Thanks for explaining BitFrost. Hanging "aging" is a wonderful process and I had never thought about hanging small game, but I might try that this year and see if it makes a difference. Customs vary from region to region so what is common for you is not for us here in America.

Rabbits are by far the easiest things to clean I can think of. I firmly grasp the fur in the middle of the back with both hands and pull in opposite directions, the fur will tear easily and come completely off like a pair of socks. Look for parasites under the skin, usually a spiral dark worm, then take a sharp knife and cut head and feet off at the joints, pull entrails out, depending on cooking technique, separate the sections, loins & rear haunches, front legs, discard ribs unless you're cooking whole or want them for stock. In a survival scenario you can just use your hands and leave the skin attached at the head and feet, push a stick through the skin for a handy hanger over heat.
I store them after brief washing with clean water in a vacuum freezer bag, for really long term freezing, I fill the bag completely with lightly salted water to cover all the meat to prevent freezer burn. I don't use dry aging for white meat, only red, it does tenderize and give the meat a nice flavor. 
Salt & pepper, dredge in flour, brown in a little olive oil, add diced onion, carrot and celery, a few spices and stock, cover and simmer til fork tender. It can be deep fried southern style, just don't overcook. Rabbit is good food. 

I raise rabbits for meat and all I do is once I butcher them just rinse off the meat put it in the fridge over night in a zip lock bag and the next day put some milk in with the meat. The milk will help tenderize the meat and help with flavor.

Bitfrost. Here is absolutely all you need to know about handling a rabbit/hare.
Sorry guys, the info is in Norwegian: http://www.njff.no/jakt/Last%20nedsider%20for%20jakt%20skyting%20og%20hund/Last%20ned%20jakt/Harejakthefte.pdf
By the way. A pick from last month hare hunt at Skjåk (shotgun).

You laid that beautiful shotgun on a rock!!!!

"ezerhoden14"You laid that beautiful shotgun on a rock!!!!

Click to expand...

This is one of my "every day shotguns" ezer. Climbing mountains high and low in tough terrain and all weather conditions. Can't be too caring...
My collectable shotguns on the other hand....... Over 50 years old Gebruder Merkels they also, stored in a dark, medium low temperate room - and never been fired. Brand new looking........ Then we talk handle with care. (But way off this post I am afraid).

Very nice place to hunt ,,,i like the rabbit hunting,,, especially in that attractive place ,,, 

Hemn ,M 
Kurdistan-Iraq 

Gunnertrones: that's a rabbit?!? You sure you didn't shoot a pony by mistake?!?

Maybe a little off subject, but way back the old timers used to hang waterfowl "till their high". That length of time referred to however long it took for the feathers to actually just slip off the critter.
Here is a link that tells a little about that process with pheasants. I hope it is not against forum rules to link to this. http://corksoutdoors.com/blog/pheasants-hang-em-high/

Not about rabbits, but read the paragraphs starting below the picture. Just a wee bit of trivia. 
I spent some time in Shanghai, China a few years ago. Saw ducks hanging on power pole guy wires that looked like they were quite a little bit past prime condition for my liking..