Solid foods

[dainerra]

ok.. how do you go about giving them access to regular food and water? I'm afraid that if they get out of the nest box they won't be able to get back in.

My nest box is literally a nest. It is plywood, 24" x 16", about 3 inches off the ground. my husband is in the process of making some steps so they can get in and out.
So, what do I do? Just put in the steps and trust them to find their own way in and out? Put them in the small "dog house" in the exercise yard and make them a new nest in there?

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

I'm not understanding your cage setup. But the nest box sounds extra large, and put a small food bowel in there with them.

 

[dainerra]

I'll try to get a pic of it later. The "hutch" is actually a 56" square exercise yard, planted with grass. Then there is a sleeping box attached to the outside, which is where she of course made her nest.
I put an extra small wooden dog house inside, just in case she didn't want to go into the big sleeping area where the nest was. Wanted to make sure that she had a place to sleep - though she just made her a big nest outside in the yard lol

Do I also need to put some water in there for the babies? Now you see why I am nervous about them getting lost in all that space! lol

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

I would personally be scared having them on the ground, but that's me. But put a small bowl of water and small bowl of food. I always notice the food nibbling comes first.

 

[majorv]

What are you using for the perimeter of the exercise yard? I don't know about all breeds but we've had some babies who were pretty good escape artists and managed to get out of the cage area bysqueezing through holes.When they're very young and just getting mobile (sometimes with their eyes stillclosed) I feel more comfortable keeping mine in a small area, but that's just me.

 

[Nela]

I don't understand the setup myself but when I had babies, they just learnt everything from their momma. Usually the babies were able to hop in and out of the nest on their own so I wasn't very concerned really. You could always add more hay so they can hop out and put something in front so they could hop back in. I hope others will be able to help you out more.

 

[PickleJuice]

Never wean early. They can get cecal dysbiosis from solids because they are denied the proper bacterial resistors that they would normally get from their mothers milk.

 

[dainerra]

oh I'm not planning to wean them. just didn't know when I was supposed to have the food offered to them.