Are cecotropes smelly?

I have been doing a little reading up on these cecotropes as I have seen a few now in Nibbles' cage.. first of all UGH!!! but I understand her reason to eat them. But I am now thinking those are what could be making the smell in her cage.

Anyone else experience smelling cecotropes with their little buns?

As far as I remember uneaten cecotrops could be a sign that her diet is too rich.

They do smell when squashed, but there shouldn't be so much that the cage stinks.

Preitler said:

As far as I remember uneaten cecotrops could be a sign that her diet is too rich.

They do smell when squashed, but there shouldn't be so much that the cage stinks.

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How can I "enrich" her diet? Right now I feed her hay and her hard food pellets.

I am very new to being a bunny Mom, so learning as I go.

Yes, they stink a lot. But you should never see one. Preitler is right, her diet is too rich. My bet is that she has a lot too much pellets and/or that the pellets are not a good brand (too fat, probably). What are you giving and how much? How old is your bunny and how much does she weight?

My vet says veggies and hay are all they need. Ours get a small amount of pellets as a treat only.

We are the same! Hay and veggies. My female gets a few pellets every day to keep her weight up (she's not to skinny, she's just an ideal weight and when she molts she doesn't eat enough to maintain that) and as treats! On very special occasions (e.g. birthdays, trips to the vet) they will get a store bought baked treat (oxbow brand).

If you are in the US, the two most common 'good' brands for pellets are Sherwood and Oxbow.

I removed the pellets completely from her cage last night and she had hay only. I also took some of the hay from her manger and placed it near when she does her business. The smell seems to have subsided a lot when I got up this morning. I am making her a little breakfast now of romaine lettuce, basil and parsley (from my own garden) and some celery.

I am going to my local farm/market not far from where I live to see if I can get some carrot tops and beet tops and some cilantro and other veggies for little Miss. NO MORE store bought treats for this girl either!

Wish me luck! I will post a photo of her very soon!

Thanks so much for everyone's comments, suggestions and recommendations!!! They are TRULY truly appreciated!

That's good, she should do better on vegetables - be sure to watch her poops and to introduce new vegetables carefully if you notice softening poos. Kudos to you for doing the effort to look for the informations and to better your bunny's life - she's lucky to have you ^^. We will be waiting for the picture, don't hesitate to ask if you've got other questions.

Aki said:

That's good, she should do better on vegetables - be sure to watch her poops and to introduce new vegetables carefully if you notice softening poos. Kudos to you for doing the effort to look for the informations and to better your bunny's life - she's lucky to have you ^^. We will be waiting for the picture, don't hesitate to ask if you've got other questions.

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Thank Aki!
She is our sweet girl and I do have a TON to learn! Hence this where where all you lovely people who have a lot more experience I have on bunnies comes in!!! LOL I appreciate all the help given! I plan to post a photo of her shortly...Stay tuned!

Just wanted to get some clarification on Nibbles age. On another post, you stated that you got her 3 months ago. She was 8 weeks when you got her. That means she is at least 5 months of age.

Knowing the age is critical when discussing diet. If she is just over 5 months of age, then alfalfa-based pellets may very well be too rich (as Prietler was explaining). Only young growing bunnies should be getting that rich, alfalfa-based pellet food. If Nibbles has been getting alfalfa-based pellets and/or alfalfa hay, that could be causing the diet issue.

In this case, it isn't necessary to do away with pellets completely. It just means getting the right (adult) version of pellets that are not so rich. A plain, timothy-based pellet and timothy hay is ideal.

Also, remember to go easy on these greens!! Only give her one new type at a time. She should only try a new green once every 5-7 days. Otherwise you may send her into GI stress.

I'm going to attach a video (sorry, it's from Christmas) that shows what it looks like when a rabbit eats his cecotropes. What you'll notice is how un-noticable it really is. They do not just lick them off the floor. They take them directly from their body.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tN8RR4c4d4A[/ame]