baby buns!

[bunnylova123]

My friend found 7 baby bunnies in her rabbit hutch over the weekend! They have fur and their eyes are open so they are about 2 weeks old. Can you tell me about sexing them, and how old they should be to go and other things like that. She didn’t breed them intentionally, she had a pair of ‘girls’ that turned out to be a boy and a girl  I HATE THE WAY PET SHOPS ARE RUBBISH AT SEXING RABBITS!!!!! ( she will get the boy neutered ) Also how do I tell her about bunnies without her getting really annoyed? 

[Sarita]

Well, first I would make sure she has separated the male and the female.

It is very difficult to sex baby bunnies and most vets do it at 6 to 8 weeks old and my best advice is to have a vet sex them at that age.

Well, I would just suggest to her to join BinkyBunny and to look at the House Rabbit Society if you feel she will be annoyed with you.

[Sarita]

Although I have to say if they have been together that she is probably already pregnant again so be prepared for another litter as that is probably going to happen.

[bunnylova123]

I have told her about getting them sexed at the vets, but she said it would be too expensive.

[Sarita]

It may not, has she even called to find out how much it would be? Sexing babies as you can tell since the pet store incorrectly sexed them is difficult. Also look for some area rabbit rescues to see if they have someone who can help sex them.

[bunnylova123]

Right, I will tell her tomorrow.

[jerseygirl]

If your friend plans to get the male desexed, let her know she’ll need to keep him seperated for at least 4 weeks after. 6 weeks ideally. They are still fertile after neuter for a period of time. Vets dont always tell people this. I dont know why…

[Hazel]

Is she dead set on only having one of them fixed? Really she should have both done, but if she’s only willing to pay for one, it should be the female. If she stays intact she will have an above 80% chance of developing cancer by the time she’s 3 or 4. Additionally, it would take care of a second litter (if done right now), since like Sarita said, she’s most likely already pregnant again if they haven’t been separated.

[Sarita]

I agree with Hazel about getting the female spayed if she is only having one altered (which is odd to me).

[bunnylova123]

I did tell her that, but she has two females, and one male, so she only really wants to spend the least

[Sarita]

So she has 2 females and 1 male – were they all housed together?

[Hazel]

That’s too bad, poor bunnies.

[bunnylova123]

I’m not totally sure, I think the female and the male live together, and the other girl lives on her own, but they do play together in her garden.

[Sarita]

Well then it’s highly likely she is not only going to have 1 more litter by the female that he was housed with but she could possibly be looking at a third due to a romp in the garden with the other female.

She would “save” more money by getting the females spayed if this is the case.

[AshleyLovesBunnies]

I have to agree with Sarita here, getting the females spayed will save more money. First, because they both are most likely pregnant so getting a spay will get rid of that problem. Also, in a few years if females develope cancer it will be another vet expense.

Honestly your friend should have not put them together till she knew the sex for sure. She needs to get the two females spayed quite quickly before they have any more litters. Please keep us updated on this situation.

[AshleyLovesBunnies]

Forgot to add that the best way to tell her about the proper care of rabbits is to show her this site, and it would be best to show her this post. Hopefully she’ll understand.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

From what I understand – baby buns can be given away at 8 weeks. Some do so at 6 weeks – but I understand that could be too soon for the baby’s health.

And sexing rabbits is challenging. I thought our rabbit was a girl – because he has large dewlaps (folds of skin under the neck) which is more common among girl bunnies and no testicles @ 4 months. We had him examined by our vet – to schedule her spray. The vet confirmed we had a girl bunny during the exam – but during the surgery, discovered testicles. I guess boy buns when scared can retract their testicles! Who knew?

Good luck handling this with your friend.

[Deleted User]

Legally you can give buns away at 8 weeks of age. You do not want to give them away at any younger. I had actually gotten my Skipper at too young of an age. And I can definitely see the difference in her G.I. track versus my other buns. Her stomach is a lot more sensitive than my other buns. I firmly believe it’s because she didn’t have enough time with mom and mom’s milk.

[Sarita]

I’m not really sure of any legality in the UK and in the US it’s only for those covered under the USDA but definitely best to separate at 8 weeks.

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