"Storm's" First Kindling...Growing out kits from start to finish.
Storm's First Litter of Kits
We love our bunnies especially the little one, he really enjoys "Ryan." Had to show off what a good daddy Ryan is since he IS the kits father!
(Direct Link to video: https://youtu.be/CfZcuz4z6Xc )
(Meet all our Rabbits HERE)
"Storm" is our first pregnant doe that we have had here at Aisling Farms! She is usually very sweet and even tempered and doesn't mind cuddles but pregnant...she is one hormonal rabbit!
(Direct Link to video: https://youtu.be/o5iNqf_hqO0 )
Day Before Delivery:
This is one major belly bulge! No wonder shew as so cranky ha!
Day 1:
Was crazy when I opened up that cage and saw all the fur and babies all tucked away in the nest box! I am amazed at how fast they prep by pulling the fur and delivering the babies all in one night! She wasn't a huge prepper so never saw any sign really that she was going to deliver besides her bulging belly shown above and her temperament. I was almost a tad worried she wasn't actually pregnant!
Nest box was packed with fur but was more all in the front so I did move them back towards the farther back of the box instead and there were 8 baby kits alive and well!
Below is a picture of a one day old kit aka baby bunny!
ONE DAY OLD KIT
They are squirmy little things and their eyes aren't even open yet! They snuggle up in the fur their mama left for them and get fed 1-2 times a day so I never see her in the box with them at this point so I check bellies and growth daily. I did scoot her nest more to the back of the nest box cause they weren't as far back as they needed to be to keep warm. I also am making sure they are all still alive and well each day. Crazy things can occur with babies so I am glad she has been a good mama and tending to them.
Day 2:
By the second day she is now back to her old self again! Sweet and loves being petted.
(Direct Link to video: https://youtu.be/d8m5KrLHyB0 )
They were all snuggled up and ready for a group photo. Notice one is black too which is funny. Will be curious to see the colors as they get their fur in.
Day 6:
They didn't make a huge change til about this 6th day. They are starting to get more of their fur color in rather than just skin.
Day 7:
Only one is this other color but sure is pretty! Most of them look like their daddy with a hit of the mama's lighter tan coloring that is mainly on her belly.
Day 9:
So close to opening their eyes!
Day 10:
Eyes Opening on most of them when they want to have them open...they sleep alot!
Day 14:
Eyes open in all of them and jumping out of the nest box! Once they start jumping out you can either turn the box on its side or remove it and this is about the time they start exploring some of the rabbit feed so make sure you adjust the feeders and water accordingly.
Checking out the fodder...
Starting to look like baby bunnies instead of baby hippos. They are very calm since we handle them often.
Day 16:
On cooler days I leave them a little "hay" corner if they wish to snuggle on it or eat it.
They are such snugglers!
As they grew older we allowed them to have bits from the garden. As you can see they are getting big fast!
3 Weeks Old:
Babies are still with mama. We went five weeks before weaning.
Growing out 4-8 weeks:
We finished growing them out and at 6 weeks we did separate the boys and the girls. We also at this time removed mama and rebred her at 5 weeks. They also joined another litter I was raising.
They got fed daily greens from the garden due to the heat and some plants bolting. They got radish tops, lettuce, kale, pea vines etc. If you do this start slow to adjust their tummies to the greens. We also free feed pellets from 2 weeks on.
Little grass eating play time...these baby cages work great for a day of fun in the sun.
Once we grew them out to 4-5lbs live weight we butchered them. I have built a seperate blog to show a how to on how we butcher. (This blog post is in progress and will update once it is posted)
Let me know if you have any questions!
Happy Farming!
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