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At around five to six weeks of age, the babies are eating and drinking well. Mom bunny is probably not nursing them much if at all. To wean the litter, it's best to leave the babies in the original cage and move the doe to another. This limits the stress put upon the litter so they're less likely to have complications.
Make sure that they have lots of grass hay and water. Mixing some rolled oats into their feed is also a good precaution to help safeguard their digestive systems during this critical time. Continue to do daily "bottom checks". Enteritis is the leading cause of death in young rabbits, and the first few weeks after weaning is when it's most likely to occur. This is why we take every opportunity to limit the stress on the babies and keep a very close eye on them for any signs of diarrhea.
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| When the babies are 7 to 8 weeks old they
should be separated and placed in individual cages. If left together too long,
the bucks may begin to annoy the does and one or more of them may begin chewing
on one another due to overcrowding. When you separate them, it's a good time to
check them over and look for good and bad qualities, as well as identify any
disqualifications such as light nails, wrong eye color, etc. I feel comfortable
selling or finding homes for babies after 8 to 10 weeks of age. This is also a good time to tattoo the babies. Limit your tattoo to three letters or numbers and you won't have any trouble fitting it into a junior's ear. We use a system that identifies the sire, dam, and number of the litter. That way we have only to look in the ear to know what the bloodlines are of any bunny.
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Possible Complications:
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