Kits old enough to eat food pellets?

[Galadriel]

Pearl's kits are 19 days old, but they have discovered a way to crawl into Pearl's elevated food bowl! Funny to watch, but are they old enough to start eating regular food pellets? Should we elevate Pearl's food bowl a little more?

 

[ladysown]

if they are munching away, I wouldn't worry about them.

 

[Anntann]

The colony kits are eating pellets or whatever food moms have as soon as they can crawl out. They still get milk, but they sit in the pans and just munch away happily. Wait until you give mom a leaf of romaine or a carrot and they try to figure out WHY she's eating that! ewwww...icky.... and then "hmm...well....not too bad..."

 

[MaggieJ]

I used to worry and agonize about this for the first few litters... but I've never seen a popple do itself any harm by eating momma's food. Usually the very young ones like yours just nibble a little here and a little there at first... gives them a long s-l-o-w transition to solids... which is good because it is much safer than a sudden change.

 

[Miss M]

That's great to hear! I got a good look at one of them a little while ago, and it was sitting in the food dish with a pellet in its mouth, turning it over and over and around and around, as if it was thinking, "It smells good, but how do you go about eating such a thing?" :lol:

That makes a lot of sense, Maggie... after all the cases of enteritis we've heard about!

I'll tell Ilovebunnies she's got responses!

 

[Truckinguy]

Pellets are always available to the does so when the kits start eating them I figure they're ready. I"ve never had it do them any harm and they waste most of the pellets for the first week anyway. It looks funny when the little ones are trying pellets for the first time, it sticks out of their mouth like a tiny cigar!

 

[Galadriel]

It looks funny when the little ones are trying pellets for the first time, it sticks out of their mouth like a tiny cigar!

Haven't seen that yet, but if they keep up with it then I guess I will. :lol: Those mischievous little poofballs! Thank you all!

 

[miranda123]

also you can put soom food in a corner of the nesting box or anyware and they will munch on it also one question what type of miteral is in the nesting box if shavings you might whant to put a hand full of grass hay and a hand full of your food

 

[MaggieJ]

I agree, Miranda. Grass hay in the nest box gets the kits off to a great start. It is, after all, their natural first solid food.

(BTW, welcome to RabbitTalk! )