when to feed baby bunnies & when to come out nest?

Hi,

our baby rabbits are 16 days old now, fully fured, eyes open and quite active.

When can they eat pellets/veg? I have seen them eat hay and thought I saw mum rabbit take pellets into their nest, is this usual for them to do this?

Going to let them out the nest this week when they are 3 wks old, been told various things from don't touch the baby rabbits until they are 3 wks old and others have told me let them out the nest now as they have fur, confused!

Thanks

If mom is used to your smell and used to you handeling her, you could have been holding her babies from day one and chances are really high that she wouldn't care. One of my momas always wanted to smell her baby as you took it out of the nest and when you returned it but otherwise didn't care. The other one got jelous of her babies so we had to sneak them out, but she never hurt them.
All of my babies have come out of the nest on their own by 2 weeks. I had a few who got out before they could see. That is too young. The nest should be totally removed from the cage by the time they are 3 weeks because they can use it as a bathroom and then lay in it and get eye infections.
At 3 or 4 weeks they will start nibbling on pellets but they still need momas milk at least until they are 6 weeks, 8 is better.
Do not let them eat veggies untill they are 3 months or older. The process of switching from milk to food and being weaned is stressfull for their bellies and veggies can cause bacteria imballances that result in diaria.

Can't the bunnies exit the nest themselves?
Baby rabbits start straying from the nest at about 2-3 weeks of age (I think it depends on how much milk their mother has...perhaps if the mother doesn't have enough they'll come out sooner but I've seen 2 week old rabbits taking a stroll around the cage before going back to "bed"), and this is also the age they start nibbling on their mother's food. (But keep in mind they are not fully weaned before they are 8 weeks old )
Be careful about vegetables as youngsters have a very sensitive stomach, and a diarrhea could be fatal for a small bun. If mom has been given veggies through pregnancy/nursing however the babies should be used to it through her milk.