Rabbit Life Cycle

If you have recently owned a rabbit and not really sure of how to take good care of the rabbit, the first things that you need to know perhaps is about the various stages of a rabbit's life. It will help you take care of the rabbit from the beginning as the need of the rabbit changes as it grows older. As an owner it is important to know the various stages of a rabbit's life and the developments and complications that are associated with each stage.

Life Span of Rabbits:

Generally rabbits have a life span of 6 years but if you can take really good care of the rabbits and if they are nurtured at the right time they can live up to the age of 10 years. Starting from the food habit to the reproductive system – you need to know everything about the rabbit if you want to take proper care of the rabbit so that your pet leads a healthy and a long life. Rabbits are inexpensive to maintain as pets and need little care to grow. It takes about 6 to 8 months for a rabbit to grow fully since the birth. Here we are providing the necessary information on the various stages of a rabbit's life that will help you in nurturing your rabbit.

Newly born Rabbits:

The newly born rabbits especially those breeds that are kept as domestic pet are deaf, blind and do not have hair on their body. The mother builds a nest with the hair pulled from her own body to provide warmth and protection of the newborns. The eyes of these rabbits start to open when the babies are about 14 days older. At this stage when they are still on their mother’s milk, start to explore the world outside the nest.

Growth of Rabbits:

When the rabbits are about four to six weeks older they start eating solid food and drink water but they still try to have mother’s milk if she lets them. During this period they like to spend most of the time out of the confinement of the nest or the cages that are built for them. Generally rabbits reach the maturity at the age of 6 to 10 months. In fact this time span depends largely on the breed of the rabbit but it is seen that rabbits of smaller breeds reach maturity quickly than the larger breeds.

If you are looking forward to buy a rabbit you should never buy a rabbit that is not at least 6 weeks older. It should not be let to eat any fresh vegetables like carrots or broccoli until it is six months old. When the rabbits are below the age of 6 months they have rapid growth and hence you should give them sufficient food. It will be wrong to presume that they will eat less only because they are small in size. But make sure that you have control over the amount of food that you give it because the bunnies will keep eating till there is food in the bowl. As they grow older and attain full growth you can start giving them fresh vegetables and fruits to eat.