Every day here on the farm we learn something new. Something that no amount of book reading can teach. There really is no substitute for hands-on-learning.

Did you know that young bunnies have a rather dangerously fearless sense of curiosity and adventure?

We have a litter of 8 which just turned 5 weeks old on the 1st of August. We wean all but 1 kit from the doe at 4 weeks, the last kit at 5 weeks. A little trial and error has taught us that all kits do better if we wean them into one cage, then separate them out into pairs about week 7 or so. This means that the current cage of kits looks like this:

I don’t know how well you can see it, but three sides and top are currently covered. Why, do you ask? Not because of cold drafts or privacy, or creating a den-like environment. No, three sides and the top are covered because the kits like to go walkabout whenever they get bored.

Those little balls of fluff somehow manage to fit through the rectangles in the cage (which, by the way, happen to be 2.5″ x 5″). Just to emphasize how impossible this should be, here is a better shot of the cute little terrors next to the cage mesh:

They manage to squeeze themselves out. And it’s not just one. One morning we had three out. One went back to visit mama. One decided to test the great outdoors. But came back just in time to be put home for breakfast. The other decided the neighbors must be more interesting. And so moved over a cage or two. All with the sides and top coverings in place.

Every time we pass the cage we count to make sure they’re all there. In about another week they magically won’t fit through the mesh. But until then? They’re adventure scouts looking for a good time. Or greener grass.

Not a single ‘raising rabbit’ book mentioned anything like this. Not one.