# What is the youngest Rabbit you can buy?



## ukbondraider (Mar 28, 2007)

Hi all,

I am looking to buy 2 baby rabbits in the next few months and wanted to ask what the youngest age rabbit I can buy.

My girlfriend and I am paticularly keen to get 2 rabbits the size of this cute chap as seen on you tube.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHABT2Adee0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHABT2Adee0[/ame]

We are particularly keen on bringing up our pets right from theearliest age they can be safely handled, just as if they were ourbabies.

Does anyone know where the best place is to buy baby rabbits in the UK.

Regarding breed we ideally want a small breed so areconsideringeitherthe breedsdwarf lop,mini lop or netherland dwarf. Any pros and cons to thesebreeds?

What do you think is the cutest breed?



Thanks


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## maherwoman (Mar 28, 2007)

Hi! Welcome to Rabbits Only! 

Well, unfortunately, I will tell you one thing: the bunny in that videois WAY too young for someone to purchase. I'm not terriblysure about the weaning age of bunnies, but I can tell you that thebunny in the video may be as young as a few weeks of age. Icurrently have set aside a bunny (for me to bring home) from anothermember here on the forum, that is about to start the weaning process,and she'll be six weeks old tomorrow. I'm not sure how longweaning takes, but I would recommend getting a bunny NO YOUNGER thaneight weeks of age. 

It's actually illegal here in California to sell any animal under theage of eight weeks, due to the amount of health problems the animalmight have from being weaned at too young an age (if weaned at all).

So, there you have it.

As far as breed, the personality and temperament really depends on theindividual bunny. People say that dwarf bunnies are hyper andcrazy, but I've heard of dwarf buns that really aren't...so it dependson each individual bun.

Hope that helps! 

Rosie*


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## TinysMom (Mar 28, 2007)

As a breeder, I will tell you that is HORRIBLEthat a baby that young isn't with its mother. Hopefully those peoplehave the mama and they are just having some playtime with the baby.

I have let babies go as young as 6 weeks - but it was on a case by casebasis as some litters just mature quicker than others and some mamaswean the babies younger. However, I can probably count on onehand the ones that I allowed to go at 6 weeks.

The majority of my babies leave her at 8 weeks. They have to be awayfrom mama for 2 weeks and eating and drinking on their own and no signsof any illness.

An 8 week old baby is PLENTY YOUNG ENOUGH to adapt to a human and get attached to it.

Peg

P.S. edited to add - the two times I let younger rabbits go -they were going to a new home along with an other slightly older (by afew days) rabbit they had gone through the weaning process with.....andthey were going to someone who already had rabbits and bred rabbits andknew what to watch out for!


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## Michaela (Mar 28, 2007)

7-8 weeks is the minimum age baby rabbits canleave their mums. That baby is a lot younger than that, it isn't evenhopping yet, I don't know exactly how old it is, hopefully someone elsewill be able to tell you that.

You cannot really tell what a rabbit will be like from the breed, everyrabbit is different and the personality could even change as the rabbitgets older. The most important thing when looking for a rabbit ispersonality, not how cute it is,if you want a friendly rabbitthen you may be better getting an adult, buns going through the "teen"stage can be a nightmare.

There are many options for getting a rabbit in the UK, pet shop(perhaps not the best route, they will probably sex them wrong),breeder (a breeder with a good reputation that is) or a rescue, checkout Rabbit rehome to see ifthere are any bunnies in your area.


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## NZminilops (Mar 28, 2007)

Hi there ,

that bunny is very cute! However it's much too young, I would guessaround 14 days old? To get a bunny is good health you want one that isaround the 8 week old mark. Very young bunnies have sensitive digestivesystems and can easily get sick or die if taken from the mother rabbitat a very young age.

Some bunnies are fine when rehomed around the 6 week age; others don'thandle the stress of suddenly leaving the mother rabbit and it's littermates and wont thrive and can even die. The mothers milk provides goodnutrition and is important for proper growth and health.

And 8 week old bunny is still VERY cute, and will be small enough andyoung enough to really bond well with you. If you are buying from abreeder, try and look for baby bunnies that come running up to sniffyour hands and appear confident around humans. Keeping bunnies indoorsallows them to really get used to you.

Minilops make very adorable pets, I have a couple of my own. One I gotat 7 weeks, the other at 9, both were still very adorable. I reccomend8 weeks as the best age to get a bunny.

Michelle


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## polly (Mar 28, 2007)

Ok first off dwarf lops are not small they getquite big so a mini lop or a netherland dwarf the bunny on the link isa netherland dwarf approx 3 weeks.

Any good breeders will not sell a bunny until it is at least 8 weeksold in the uk as they need to be fully weaned and sexed before leaving.

Bunnies like to be paired up ideally male female though until they werespayed you would need to keep them separate sometimes you can getsisters and they will be ok but not always and don't get 2 males asthey will fight. If you get 2 they will be best pals and you can comesecond best so they will not be as affectionate towards you.

And finally where are you in the uk as i breed netherlands and couldfind you a breeder close to you through my contacts just remember theyneed a lot of exercise and care. not trying to be funny just i haveseen a lot af abandoned buns and people who get bored of them


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## NZminilops (Mar 28, 2007)

I don't mean to argue, but no way that bunny is5 weeks old. I'm sure Peg will agree (wont you, Peg? ). My babieslooked just like that at 2 weeks old, and they were little dwarf/minicrosses.

Dwarf lops weigh around 2kg, they are a small breed. A minilop should be about 1.5kg.


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## polly (Mar 28, 2007)

Nah not paying attention to what buttons i ampushing need my bed had to much sleepless nights dealing with babies iam doung more deleting than right button pressing am useless really!


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## TinysMom (Mar 28, 2007)

That baby is 2 - 2.5 weeks old - maybe 3 weeksat most. But it isn't used to crawling around enough to really be 3weeks old....I lean more towards about 15 days old...

Way way too young..

Peg*

minilops wrote: *


> I don't mean to argue, butno way that bunny is 5 weeks old. I'm sure Peg will agree (wont you,Peg? ).


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## ukbondraider (Mar 28, 2007)

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies. Yep I somehow thought that the cute little chap in my link would be too small to take home

I am based in Kent in England so would appreciate any details of breeders near me.

:toastingbuns


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## jil101ca (Mar 28, 2007)

That baby looks and hops just like mine who are 16 days.


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## polly (Mar 28, 2007)

Gosh the dwarf lops over here are bigger than 2kg my nethies are between 1.3 and about 1.8 for my big doesmy sister in law has 2 dwarf lops and they are at least 3 and quitelong i am 5,2" and if newbie sits with his back legs down where my hipsare he can put his front paws over my shoulders is that about thelength of your dwarf lops minilop? oraresherlylsreally big?


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## Pipp (Mar 28, 2007)

You should try Rabbit Rehome. I seethey have a seven week old baby on their front page, added today, andI'm sure they'll have more babies. 

http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/

Also keep in mind there's no guaranteeing the eventual temperament of ababy, no matter how much they're handled. (Just ask Saffyabout Benji!) Sometimes it's better to take in a bunny who'spast puberty,over six months old or so, to know for sure whatpersonality you're getting. Most (if not all) bunnies gothrough some pretty drastic changes around thattime.So many of us have had our sweet littlecuddlebugs turn into furballs from h*ll almost overnight once thosehormones kicked in.  

Spaying/neutering will usually correct the problem straight away,luckily. But you won't alwaysend up with exactlythe same bunny. 

Good luck, and so glad you'll be joining usbunny slaves! Best thing I've ever done!



sas


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## NZminilops (Mar 28, 2007)

Wow Polly! You have some big dwarf lops there. Idon't know about British standards but here in New Zealand they shouldbe between 1.8kg and 2.04kg (something like that). Minilops should be1.3kg-1.5kg, maximum 1.6kg, and a netherland dwarf would be more like1.1kg-1.3kg. I am 4'11" and the tallest that my mini lops can stretchtheir noses too is maybe 18 inches high? They aren't really lap bunniesso I don't know about the lap thing.*

polly wrote: *


> Gosh the dwarf lops over hereare bigger than 2 kg my nethies are between 1.3 and about 1.8for my big does my sister in law has 2 dwarf lops and theyare at least 3 and quite long i am 5,2" and if newbie sits with hisback legs down where my hips are he can put his front paws over myshoulders is that about the length of your dwarf lops minilop? oraresherlylsreally big?


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## undergunfire (Mar 28, 2007)

That baby is so tiny, it makes me cry!

I wish we had a rabbit rehome site here in the US. I just clicked thelink for the UK one and it looks so neat and easy to find a bun.



_- Amy (Mallory, Morgan, and Madilyn-Mae):hearts_


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## pamnock (Mar 28, 2007)

The younger the rabbit is when purchased, thehigher the mortality rate. It's better to wait until thebunny is as old as possible (12 weeks is a good age).

Pam


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## redwing (Mar 28, 2007)

The comments under that video from the poster says they have the mom


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## Bunnys_rule63 (Mar 29, 2007)

Personally I don't think you shouldbelooking for the cutest breed ( I mean all bunnies arecute!) but just a nice, friendly, low maintenance breed, especiallyif this is your first bun. You can never go wrong with a nice hardymixed-breed bun.I'd say look around rabbit rehome, thereare loads of rescue bunnies of all ages looking for new homes.


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## bluebird (Mar 29, 2007)

That baby is 2 or three weeks old.buying a babythat age is illegal in my state and for good reason.rabbits are notchickens,baby chickens imprint and are tamer if raised by people fromthe time they hatch out.this does not apply too rabbits, rabbits are notamer if purchased younger.the younger they are the more chance theywil die.I think people get this from the fact that parrots are handraised too make them tamer.bluebird


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## Michaela (Mar 29, 2007)

*undergunfire wrote:*


> I wish we had a rabbit rehome site here in the US. I justclicked the link for the UK one and it looks so neat and easy to find abun.
> 
> 
> 
> _- Amy (Mallory, Morgan, and Madilyn-Mae):hearts_


It really is amazing...what a shame they don't have NI bunnies on it though


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## undergunfire (Mar 29, 2007)

I know, Michaela, it stinks. I really hope you find another cutie soon!



_- Amy (Mallory, Morgan, and Madilyn-Mae):hearts_


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## polly (Mar 30, 2007)

You can also try the petplan breeder link as infor animal insurance as they are meant to have a link to breeders fordogs cats and rabbits


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