Suggested age to wean???

[WyoBunnies]

I have Holland lop kits. What age is ok to start selling them? I know the doe still nurses them once in a while. Will she wean them on her own? They were born Oct 10th. Will they be ok to sell at 6 weeks or is 8 weeks best? They are eating pellets, oatmeal, hay and drinking water. I have not started them on greens, yet.

 

[Nymphadora]

Will they be ok to sell at 6 weeks or is 8 weeks best?

My personal preferance for selling kits is later than sooner... my reasoning is that they've been on "adult" food for longer and will likely have fewer problems if they need to transition feed.

That said, it's also a good idea to check your local laws. Where I live it's illegal to sell before 8 weeks.

 

[MaggieJ]

I agree with Nymph -- eight weeks is just about the youngest I would sell rabbits. If they are still nursing, even just occasionally, they are not ready.

One factor people overlook when selling young rabbits is stress. Even if they are eating solid foods well, they undergo considerable stress being separated from mom and siblings, and it can precipitate other health crises.

Regarding greens: Baby rabbits that have access to greens from the beginning, while they are still just learning to nibble, naturally develop the gut flora they need to digest them. Since your kits have not yet had greens, you will need to be very cautious introducing them.

 

[WyoBunnies]

Thank you! I have somebody being very pushy about me selling kits at 6 weeks. They have nibbled here and there on moms greens, but she wasn't a very good sharer. Lol so i highly doubt they have had hardly any.

 

[akane]

Weaning and selling are 2 different things. Some of mine bred back to back part of the year and were weaning at 4 weeks. I have frequently separated kits out at 6weeks when necessary.

When selling I never send anything to a home right after separating from the mother. I wait 1-2weeks for rabbits, chinchillas, degus, etc... if they are already old enough. Usually 8weeks minimum for rabbits. I frequently end up explaining to people wanting chinchillas that they "tame" the same at 3months or 6months as at 2 or less. I've even had people decide to get an 8week old from a pet store because they thought my livingroom raised 4month olds might not become tame enough. My animals are better off going to someone else and I'll cut the price in half to keep chinchillas longer rather than sell them sooner. Unfortunately with few rabbits selling over $10-20 here it just wasn't often worth breeding them to sell as pets.

 

[SableSteel]

I like to wait at least two weeks after weaning to sell.
Sometimes I wean at 6 weeks and sell at 8 weeks, and sometimes I wean at 8 weeks and sell at 10 weeks.