Hey Seasoned Rabbit-ers!!

[DutchBunny03]

Geez, I was under the impression they never had more than 8........ They all seem healthy and lively so I'll let mama do her thing.

Rabbits can have HUGE litters. You may want to foster off a couple of the kits if she has over 8, because the smallest or weakest may not survive(rabbits only have 8 nipples). To foster, just put rabbits of similar age in with another litter or rabbits of similar age(within a day or two). You may want to run a little vanilla extract on the doe's nose, but that is not usually neccessary.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

So Bessie, (my doe) had her litter of kits a couple days ago. While going through and making sure they all seemed to be doing well, I realized that she had 9. Now, I'm no biologist but I'm pretty sure she only has 8 nipples. (?). Should I remove a kit and hand feed it, or should I see how it plays out? They all seem lively and healthy, I just don't want the "runt" to die if I can help it. TIA

After having a doe have a litter of 11 with a runt that couldn't compete to nurse, I try to time it so two does kindle at the same time just in case I need to foster kits to the other doe. It's saved several kits' lives to date.

 

[Bunnylady]

Quote: The babies will sort this for themselves. The largest litter any rabbit of mine ever had was 14. I farmed some of the extras out on other does; I breed does in sets so I can do that if necessary

Apparently, rabbit does only produce a certain amount of milk, regardless of the litter size. I read about a study that found that the litter as a whole gains the same amount of weight, regardless of the number of kits in the litter. Kits that are born in numerically small litters grow faster than those born in large litters until they get to the age where they start eating solid food. Based on this information, the general opinion was that the optimum size of the litter is about 6.

It may sound heartless, but IME, most bunnies that are significantly smaller than their littermates are smaller for a reason. You may expend an awful lot of energy on a runt, just to have it die anyway. I'd just leave them together. With only 9, any bunny that can't compete probably won't make it anyway.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Hey Seasoned Rabbit-ers! I'm very new to the whole rabbit thing... i currently have 2 purebred Flemish Giants and i love them!!
So, i was wondering if some of you ol' pros can give us newbies some tips? feeding, care, breeding, etc...
first topic: PASTURED RABBITS!! GO!! 

I raise several breeds of rabbits, and they're pastured in tractors. They eat the salad bar provided by the pastures, supplemented with rabbit pellets from the local feed mill. Right now, they're also enjoying the fallen leaves. Does about to kindle are brought inside and raise their kits inside until they're about 6 weeks old, when they're generally weaned by the doe. The does are fed greens from the pastures before they kindle, after they kindle while the kits are nursing, and the kits start eating greens in addition to the pellets and alfalfa hay when they're a few weeks old. By the time they're weaned, they transition to the tractor and foraging without problem (they're also fed supplemental pellets). My rabbits are healthy, active, and enjoy fresh air and sunshine in their tractors...and they mow the lawn.

 

[DutchBunny03]

Nice!! Do you ever have problems with them digging out?

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Nice!! Do you ever have problems with them digging out?

I've heard from people who use the wood slats on the bottom that they've had escapes - our tractor bottoms are covered in 2"x4" wire. They can still eat grass through it (and dig to a limited extent), but there have been zero escapes and no attempts by predators. An escapee out here would be unlikely to survive for long.

 

[TroyerGal]

Dutchbunny, look up Daniel salatin online... He's Joel salatins sdon, and he raises rabbits that he developed that are resistant to diarrhea. He uses tractors with slatted bottoms.

Forgive the typos... I'm typing on a mobile device

 

[DutchBunny03]

Slatted bottoms should work, as long as the slats are durable. Diarrhea resistant rabbits? Woah. Sign me up!!

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I believe they're only resistant in that they are raised in tractors regularly. I always tell people that the breed of rabbit you get matters less than how it's raised. If you take a rabbit that eats nothing but pellets (especially from a line several generations back of eating nothing but pellets) they can be the biggest, best, fastest growing rabbits in the world and they will be scrawny, sickly animals if you put them on pasture. The opposite is also true, a rabbit bred to grow ideally on pasture will do terribly if you put them on rich, processed pellets. Gently transition your rabbits on pasture for two generations and you'll get the same resistance. It's not hard to develop, especially since it's largely about gut bacteria which passes down from mother to offspring through cecal pellet exposure.

None of my rabbits have problems with pasture ever. I have just been raising them with mixed greens in their diet for a few years.

 

[TroyerGal]

You actually can buy them from him, dutchbunny
Chocolate mouse. Seriously look him up!! He's been raising rabbits since he was 12.. And they are indeed, diarrhea resistant.

http://www.polyfacefarms.com/speaking-protocol/daniels-bio/