Questions about my soon to get mini lop pair

Hello,

I am new to this site and was wondering if one of you rabbit experts could answer one or any of my questions.

I live in Massachusetts (cold winters) and am getting 2 mini lop rabbits the first week of dec. They will be about 8 weeks old. I was wondering what is best based on temerment, behavior, bonding (between each other and with their owner), and their actions. 2 unfixed does or 2 unfixed males. And why. Also which is better 2 fixed males, 2 unfixed does , or 1 unfixed male and 1 unfixed doe. Also how young can bunnies have babies and can (and will)they have them in cold weather(New England winter) i am tryig to advoid
re-introducing them. Because if I get a male and female then based on your answer to how soon they can have babies I would have to sepperate them untill I could get them fixed. How young can you get them fixed?

...I was originaly going to get two females. Would this work fixed and or not fixed?

The breeder I am getting my bunnies from said that she lets people take them home as young as 6-7 weeks old. Is this too young? Also the breeder says that it will not be hard to introduce a 8 and 9 week old. Is this true? I dont want them not to get along, this is why I wanted them to come from the same litter however if there arnt the sex I want in the same litter she said the bonding wouldn't be difficult.

How much should I handle them when I fist get them. And anything you think I should do to my them feel at home.

I am going to keep them in a cage under my enclosed deck during the winter. I was wondering if it would be too much of a temp. change if I took them inside during the winter for a few hours. Also can they play in the snow?

Should I get straw to keep them warm during the winter or can I just get hay for them to eat and for bedding. What kind of hay and pellets should I get and how much do I feed them daily. Do I feed twice a day? Do I need shavings? How much fruits and veggies should I feed them daily? Any foods young rabbits shouldnt have and when can they start having them.?

Is it possible and if so how can I introduce my cat( about 4 1/2-5yrs.) to my rabbits. I know I should not leave them un-supervised.

I think that is all for now, thanks for all your help. I know I have alot of questions but I want to make a good home for these animals. Thanks so much!

~Erin~

gooly erin you dont want to know much do you! :shock: :lol: :lol: :lol:

the best age to get a bun is after it is eight weeks old as this is when they are fully weaned and anythng earlier than that i would stay away from, it would show normally that the breeder is not a very good one as they should know when a rabbit is fully weaned!

if they are from the same litter two girls would work well, two boys can work but you would need to castrated at the earliest opertunaty at about 4/5 months or when the testicles have dropped,

a m,ale and female would work better but you would need to split at about 10/12 weeks of age until he has be castrated and has waited his 6 weeks clearance time!

but none of these are 100% as any bunny can decide they dont like there partner and start to fight!

a pellet is better than a mix as it stops selective feeding but as you are american i cant real advise on a brand!

hay is for eating and straw is for bedding, rabbits cope very well in cold weather as long as they have someewhere to go to get out of the way of the elements and are free from dralfts.

i will have to go back now and see what else you wanted to know as i have now forgotten and maybe someone else will help out in the mean time

welcome to the forum and hope you enjoy your stay!

Eve x

foods. there is a sticky at the top on the rabbit care page it has good articles on food, but you should feed ab lib (as much as they want) until they are fully grown but i would leave that to about a rabbit boul fully as day between the two, so that they are still abit hungry that they will get into the habbit of eating hay as this is very important for there digestive system and teeth.

unless they have been brought up on veg i would avoid it until they are a liitle older as it can cause gut problems if they are not used to it, that also goes for lawn grass.

i have no idea about the cat as i have never has one, but would say caution at all times untill you are very sure.

yes rabbits can go out in the snow!

Eve x

My rabbits have never had a problem with cats, if anything the cats are a bit scared of the rabbits, but you do have to be a little careful. I'd introduce them firstly with the rabbits safely in cages/hutches, so the cat gets used to seeing them but is unable to swipe them. That way he should get over his initial fascination. Mind you, even with mine being 18, he will still try and take a swipe at them if they get in his way, so you really do have to be very careful, just one swipe with claws out could catch a bunny in the eye. I think you'll just have to see how your cat reacts when you first introduce them in a way that he can't get to them, before deciding whether you think you may be able to allow them out in the room together.

My rabbits really enjoy playing in the snow, but my only comment would be that here it rarely gets below -5 and is often only just below freezing when the snow is on the ground. I'm not sure if this would be ok if your minus temperatures are a lot lower! I'd also suggest not bringing them indoors for a few hours in the cold weather, that will not be good for them.

I would handle them often. Remember that rabbits are prey animals and generally hate being picked up and will panic if grabbed. I tend to put food in my lap and let them come to me. That way they associate me with nice things. When they come to eat, I stroke them and play with their ears and gently lift them a little. This gets them to trust that I'm not going to grab them, and also gets them used to having their ears looked at etc for when you need to do so. Whenever you do have to pick them up, do so very slowly and make sure they can see you coming, or they will panic and struggle. Make sure you hold them very firmly and don't leave their feet dangling. I don't carry mine often, I usually coax them into a pet carrier if I need to take them anywhere.

Hope that helps a bit - look forward to seeing your pictures

The only time i wouldnt trust the cat is while there little adult rabbits are ok with cats
. I would use wood chips as they are absorbant.Tricky one about brining them in in the winter as they are going out again so dont make it too long indoors,should think 2 hrs is ok any longer and the tempreture change is going to be a bit hard on them. Plenty of straw for bedding in the winter. Feed dry food once a day and hay add lib. Handle as much as possable. val

thanks

thanks for all you guys help. hope more people have just as good responces.

erin

when bob gets his free range time, the cats pretty much ignore him, except for one of them. they love to run after each other and chase each other and play. i'm glad that's the case because at this point i can only have one bunny, and that gives him a bit of companionship. generally it's the bunny chasing the kitty, not the other way around.
i'm also going to start growing an herb garden to give hima little bit of variety in his dinner. usually he eats about a half of a small fistful of hay everyday, and i give him just a little bit of mix. he is a dwarf, so how much you feed them really will depend on the size.
i also give him a good bit of romaine (seems to be the only greens he really likes of what i've tried to give him) a few times a week.
i think that the consensus on here seem to be that as long as they are provided with unlimited hay, they will never go hungry.

thanks for all the help. lots of info on the rabbit and cat quesiton any more info on the sex of pairs and hay type for 8 week old bunnies of course. :bunny:

believe timothy is the absolute best for hay -- not sure about ages on this