Weaning

[Hoovershounds]

My hoglets are almost 5 weeks old & I had read somewhere that this would be a good time to wean. Is this correct? How old should they be before they can be seperated & allowed to go to new homes?
Thanks for the help
Amy

[Nancy]

I've got 4 that turned 5 weeks today and 5 that turn 5 weeks on Thursday. They are all starting to eat kibble but are still nursing from mom on occasion. In another few days I will be starting to give the boys a few hours away from mom to wean them away from her. I only move them away once I have watched them eating kibble and drinking water on their own. I have a boy from each litter and a girl from the one that I have seen repeatedly eating kibble and drinking and I haven't seen them with mom.

By 6 or 6.5 weeks the boys will be away from mom and I'll start weaning them away from each other until they are totally on their own. Then I monitor each one for at least a week to make sure they are eating and gaining well and they go to their new homes at 8 or 9 weeks.

[hedgehog69]

when I see the babies eating and drinking own their own I will then seperate them and keep an eye on them for a minimum of a week to make sure that they are eating and drinking own their own alright then thay may go to their new homes as they are ready sometimes others may mature and wean faster than the rest of the litter and some may be a little slower so its kinda a judgement call on how they gain weight and how they are adjusting to their new food and how their stool are.

[Hoovershounds]

Okay, what I had planned to do is similar to the advice given. I have noticed all three sampling dry kibble, so I thought that this upcoming week I would start seperating the group from mom (into a seperate cage) for a couple of hours a day untill hopefully by the end of the week they are completely away from her, then the following week seperate each hoglet into its own cage & if that goes well allow them to go to their new homes the following week.
Thanks
Amy