When and How to Wean Baby Rabbits
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- It is time to wean the baby rabbits and move them to a grow out pen. I often get asked about when and how to do this so I thought I would share a quick video on the process.
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Chris , you're so informative we're running out of questions!! lol ;) love the channel!
Thank you so much for the kind comments.
What happens if you don’t wean the baby from the mom?
You run the risk of them getting sick and dying. The chances of that happening aren't that high but its still a possibility
What is your butcher weight? I usually wait to long I think, mine push 6#'s or so,..... but then I breed mine to show at county fair and they need to be 5-5.5# so I have to wait.
I will pick 2 or 3 of the smallest of the litter and if they are at least 5lbs I process the lot. Of course I just breed to sell and for meat.
I generally butcher at around 5 pounds. I find that weight works well for me.
How to increase the size of the weaned rabbit?
That is mostly related to genetics. You would really need to look for new breeding stock that can produce rabbits that grow at a faster rate.
So one of my does has some seven day old kits, and the father of those kits broke into her cage today and bred her again. Luckily he didn’t hurt any of the babies but now if she has babies in four weeks how will I wean her first litter? I went ahead and bred my other doe who weaned off some kits 2 weeks ago in case I needed to foster any. I’ve only ever had 2 litters so I’m pretty new to breeding but I’m just trying to figure this out. Also I’m really trying to afford some new cages. Hopefully before the new litters come. But anyways please give me any tips. Thanks In advance, God bless!
Curious on what happened.
Well I still have 2 of the babies but 2 of them passed away and one of them just disappeared/escaped from the cage and I never found her. I just weaned them off at 4 weeks but she never had the second litter and her and the other doe passed away the same day and I’m not sure what happened but I’m guessing the heat. Now I’m done breeding because I don’t have any more does and I don’t want my rabbits outside anymore and I’m trying to find homes for 3 of my rabbits and I’m keeping one in my room.
@@BlessedWithPets i hope you stop breeding. There are way too many rabbits needing homes. It can also cause many health issues for the mother. And this guy should not be breeding rabbits! They shouldn't be kept in cages! Especially like this! Disgusting!
I breed for meat. It’s more efficient than cattle per lb to feed. I get 100lb of clean organic meat for my family every year per mating pair.. for very little money. If everyone raised rabbits. No one would be hungry in the world.
@@tamielynne7374 you should stop giving idiot opinions
Hi Chris, you videos have been invaluable to me. We have a litter of 7 kits, they are 5 wks today and all thriving. I was thinking of taking Mum out of hutch at 7 weeks so I can watch them for a week before they go to their new homes, will this be alright? Or would you move Mum out but keep her with the 3 girls for a bit first? (I have 3 girls 4 boys.)Not sure how to do it, I kust wantvthe best for them xx
I am paranoid about them breeding again, I am worried to leave them together much past 8 weeks.
My bunny’s mom wasn’t a good mom so I have had to hold her down and feed her babies twice a day since they have been born. How do I wean them? They are 6 weeks now. Should I feed them just once a day now? Whenever I bring the mom they are always so hungry and drink up the milk it seems weird to not let them. Someone please help!! Idk what to do!!
Do baby bunnies need alfalfa or can I just give them Timothy hay and nature wise performance rabbit feed with 18% protein pellets? The alfalfa hay will not be good for the mother's calcium levels and I have a feeling she will eat it all before the baby bunnies. I've been feeding the baby bunnies and mother Timothy hay And pellets with 18% protein fresh grass and dandelions. Any advice?
I give all mine cheap field hay. They love it
Timothy is the best balanced hay unless you are packing on meat rabbits or milking does. Alfalfa has higher protein (around 22%), and calcium, which is better for pregnancy and milk production. A minimal of 16% calcium and protein are needed for proper production. But Timothy is well balanced at 18/18.
I wean all my babies at 4 weeks. I rarely have any problems at all. But I have over 40 breeders in 8 different breeds. I keep a very tight breeding schedule. My mommas have babies pretty much every 6 weeks.
Wow, that is very early to ween but if it is working well for you no reason to change it. It sounds like you do much more intensive breeding than I do for sure.
Mine start eating pellets at three weeks and by four there totally weened. I take mom out around 4-5 weeks
Same, 6 weeks would be ridiculous for mine, mini rex lionhead mix.
I don’t like people grabbing the neck area on a rabbit. But the way you did it they didn’t seem like they were hurting at all.
What if I don't have a cage to move the kits in to? Will they be okay with the mother?
How do you treat the diarrhea if it happens? Does Apple cider vinegar work?
It can be tricky to treat. The best thing do do is to move them to an all hay diet (they need the high fiber) and make sure they have lots of fluids. You can also get medications from a veternarian or some farm supply stores.
Thanks for your Channel. It's very informative.
Best tshirt ever. Appreciate all the know how Chris keep it up.
Thank you so much for the kind comments.
Hi Chris, I’m wanting to start breeding rabbits again. I’m curious what are the dimensions of your cages?
My cages are 36 by 30 inches and 18 inches tall.
Slightly Rednecked great, thanks!
Honestly my baby bunnies done it by themselves! They’ve been eaten greens and pellets and drinking since 2 weeks old, never had problems.
That is pretty common. But even though they are eating pellets and what not, they are still nursing and should be left with the mother to nurse until they are at least 6 weeks old.
Slightly Rednecked 100%, id say 2 months honestly. Luckily I get to keep all my litter (:
You said in a previous video that you feed your grow outs 20% protein pellets to get them up to butcher weight in 8 weeks. The highest percentage I can find at my local feed store is 16% unless I buy Calf Manna at 25% protein in 10 lb bags, which is outrageously expensive.
I am lucky that I have a feed store that carries 19%. I had to ask them about it and they special order it in for me. But 16% should work just fine. The grow out rate really has more to do with genetics anyway. You may have to just invest in different rabbits to get a faster grow out rate.
Hey!
I need some help.
My new buck (7 months old) I have just started to try to breed him but he is incredibly aggressive with my does and he is not a normal buck aggression it’s a lot extra (he is 100% a buck) do you have any tips to help breeding him?
He has really nice type and personality and was quite expensive so I don’t want to move him on without getting some babies from him.
Thanks Imogen
That is strange. I don't think I have ever seen a buck that is aggressive with the doe when she is brought to him. I am not sure I have any advice for you. You might try having a separate cage that you use just for breeding. Bring the male in first and then bring the doe so it is "neutral" ground so to speak. That might help.
When can the 2 weeks old babies rabbits start drinking water? I have 6 babies and they are drinking water of mom’s water container! Thanks.. Edit: not 2 weeks they are 19 days old 🥴 i just looked at my notes!
Thank you Chris for all your help,info, videos.You have truly helped me Sooo much in my time of need for my Critters.I ALWAYS check for one of your videos b4 searching anywhere else.
Thank you so much for the kind comments. I am so glad to hear that my videos have been helpful for you.
Just bred a doe with a good buck. No matter which way the buck turned her she never took her eyes off me. Four falloffs and she never broke her glare with me. I took the buck to his cage then the doe to hers. I went out to feed an hour later and she hit me like a buzz saw when I reached in her cage. She’s mellowed a bit in last couple days but still will go after my hand After I’ve tended her cage. She waits til I’m done, smart bunny. I’ll never forget her look of betrayal though. I’m not some softy don’t get me wrong, I’m noticing the does are rather upset with me once the buck leaves the cage.
I have a doe that gets supper aggressive when she has the babies but not after being bred. Some does are just a little on the crazy side. I hope she gets over it quickly.
Thick work gloves. Carhartt. Teeth won’t go through them.
Yes, I can't find any feed higher than 16% - what do you feed the grow outs?
I feed all of my rabbits a 19% pellet that I have my feed store special order in for me. But 16% will work just fine if you can't get a higher protein pellet.
The cages 😣☹️
These are meat rabbits, not pets.
@@maryluwhittle6366 still sad 😞
Thanks for the shearing Mr Chris good bless you and your family
Thank you for watching. God bless you too.
Something wrong with the sound. It cut out after like 3 seconds into the video.
Oh no, I don't know what would have caused that. Worse yet, I don't know how to fix it. Sorry about that.
Nice video. Could you please spell that "Weaning enterio..." what?
I am sorry, I am not sure what you are asking exactly.
Enteritis.
I just separated my 5 week old from their mama 🥲🥲🥲 I felt so bad lol
Don't feel too bad. I am sure she is relieved to have a break.
Can u feed quail pumpkin seeds and almonds?
Sure they can. I don't know if they will or not and you will need to make sure they have some grit available to them. But they are safe foods.
Hi bro how ru..karimulla from INDIA ...42 days bunnies size very good size bro how it is possible fast grow
That really has more to do with genetics than anything else. if you have good breeding stock the babies will grow out faster. The feed can make a difference as well but the genetics of the breeding stock is more important.
@@Slightlyrednecked thank u bro
no problem.
So i just had a group of baby rabbits be born on the 14th of this month I need to know I little bit more about how to take care of them ????
Check on them in the nest daily to make sure all are alive, remove any that have passed away. Momma bunny will do the rest, just make sure she has plenty of food and water. I free feed mine that are nursing kits.
Sounds like Debra Barnett pretty much answered this one. There isn't much you have to do. As long as all of the babies are in the nest box and none of them have passed and need to be removed the mother will do everything else. Just keep the feeder and water full.
I have been doing that and they all have been moving around but they don’t want to be covered up though
Hi Chris so I have a baby rabbit right now that is not looking so good like it is every skinny and I am worried about it it is feeding and everything but idk if it is going to live .. can u help me ??
I am so sorry to hear that. If the rabbit is very young and not with the mother you can try to supplement it with kitten milk replacement or goat milk replacement. I hope that helps and I hope it makes it.
Well it has been eating off the mother but it is so small and I have tried to give it goats milk it has been drinking that but had not gotten any bigger like it is still super skinny
It sounds like you are doing all that you can do. I wish I had other advice for you but you may just have to wait and see how it goes unfortunately.
Hey we live in nw arkansas! Please contact me we would love to meet up and possibly get some jumbos from you if you have them!
I don't have any right now (not extras anyway) but i will soon. If you plan on being in the Joplin area just let me know and if I have some available I will be happy to work something out.
@@Slightlyrednecked awesome! We had our first hatch this week but it wasnt super successful. (20% hatch rate) Hoping the next batch will be better following your tips
Do you happen to have any eggs like 1-2 dozen to hatch?
I can probably come up with close to that many. If you plan on being in joplin give me about a week heads up and I can start collecting eggs for you.
Love your videos :)
Thank you!
Another great video Chris. My Californians start nibbling solid food around 4 weeks. They are eating a lot of solid food around 5 weeks. I will move some of the bigger ones out around then. Then move the rest out a couple at a time over the course of a week. Around 9-10 weeks the ones that haven't sold get processed. I rebreed the doe a few days after the last baby is removed.
Sounds like you have a pretty good system going.
So you could sell them at 6 weeks old