Picky Eaters

[Richard0600]

Dumbo and Latte are both about a year and a couple months old now. I live in
Australia and I've been feeding them a food brand that has a RSPCA stamp of
approval on it called "Peters Multigrain Plus".

The multigrain consists of many types of grains that would make up a healthy bunnies
diet. Well up untill recently we've been feeding them whenever the food bowl was
empty. Which led to them being a bit overweight, They are both mini lops and weigh
around 2.4 kg. So we placed them on a regular feeding schedule that consisted of 3
cups(1.5 cups/bunny) between the two of them a day (3 intervals of 3/4 cups a day).
It appeared to be working quite well they both seemed to have lost some weight
and look skinnier.

Well anyways 1 week ago we decided to remove the cage from our living room and
replace it with a large litter tray and the cover of a shoe box to put their food bowl
in. We did this because the cage was a really large one that took up a lot of space,
and since they were house trained and spayed there really wasnt the need for a
cage given that they already have adequet hiding places around the apartment.

Now that the food bowl is out of the cage and off the bedding ive noticed that they
ONLY eat the alfalfa pellets in the multi grain..the rest of the grains just get dug
outta the bowl while they search for alfalfa pellets.. I always knew they dug the food
out to search for the alfalfa pellets (cause it's their favorite) but since the food use to
blend in with the bedding i never realise that so much of the food was actually not
eaten and wasted.

Are my bunnies losing weight from their diet? or just starving? Should I change to
another brand of food (they've been eating this brand since we got them about
14 months ago)? ><! I can use some advice...

*sorry about the long post*

 

[mouse_chalk]

Ok, it sounds like what your buns are doing is called 'selective eating'- they pick out the bits that they like, and leave the rest, which means that they don't get the full nutritional value from their food. For this reason, it's widely recommended to feed a complete pellet, rather than a mix, so that they bunny will get the full nutritional value of their food...

For weighing 2.4kg, which is about 5.3 pounds, 1.5 cups of food per day sounds like an AWFUL lot of food... My 6 pound bunnies get 1/4 cup of pellets all day, along with unlimited hay and 2 servings of fresh veggies, and this is more than enough for them...

Do your buns get hay, and veggies?

I don't know about what foods are available over in Australia, but I would definately consider switching them over to a complete pellet, that's high in fibre rather than the mix, and cutting down gradually the amount that they are fed- if they have access to unlimited hay, they wont go hungry. They may try and look like they are, but they wont!

Also, if you do switch their food, remember that any change should be done gradually over a period of a few weeks so as not to upset their digestive systems...

Here are the links to our articles about feeding and pellets etc in our Library section:


Feeding: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

Pellets: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12160&forum_id=17

Hay: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12059&forum_id=17

Vegetables: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=13618&forum_id=17

Hope that helps!

 

[Richard0600]

the 1.5 cups a day was based off the back of the box, it states:

Daily Requirement:
Rabbit: 120-200 grams (1 to 1.5 cups)

and our rabbits are 220-240 grams.. I figured since RSPCA stamped their logo on the
box that the pellet mixture couldnt have been bad for our bunnies..

I dont want to make it seem like we are over feeding our rabbits, because there is a
great mixture of different things in the mix... but i've looked at some of the websites
and im considering changing to alfalfa pellets only...1/4 cup a day per rabbit?

and yes they do get unlimited timothy hay, along with weekly fresh veggies.

 

[mouse_chalk]

Richard0600 wrote:

hmm ive read a couple of the websites and it seems majority of them recommend
alfalfa pellets(1/8 cup -1/4 cup per day)..with unlimited hay.. plus fresh veggies?
correct me if im wrong cause its a lot of websites ><!

That's about right- it's what mine get- a quarter cup of pellets per day with unlimited hay and a good amount fresh veggies The only thing is that at over a year old they don't really need to be on the alfalfa pellets as such- they're more recommended for growing bunnies, so yours could probably be switched over to a timothy-based pellet, but it all depends on how they are at the moment- do they have healthy looking poops? Do they ever get excess cecals?

Here's another article I found with tons of helpful info in it

Feeding your rabbit Q&A

 

[Richard0600]

thank you so much for your time in helping me do the research..it's greatly
appreciated. I was a bit naive i suppose and trusted the back of the box, instead of
doing the research myself. I live in the city, and i'm a student and i dont own a car
so i'm limited to only 2 pet stores within walking distance in the city. Of those 2 stores
only one of them sell rabbit food (i currently get my RSPCA stamped..rabbit mixture
from my local super market (safeway)) Anyways, i know that the pet store sells rabbit
pellets, but it doesnt exactly state whats in it. They look like regular alfalfa pellets but
i suppose i can ask them whats in it. Thanks for all the help.

 

[mouse_chalk]

No problem! I don't know about the bag saying 1.5 cups a day, I've not come across that food before, but I have heard of feeds recommending a lot more food than is necessary before....

I don't know if there are any pet supply websites that you could order pellets from if you can't find much in your area? It's frustrating for us as well- we have to order ours online and the food is shipped over from the US lol... Expensive! :shock:

 

[Richard0600]

i was just wondering whether it's okay to feed adult rabbits alfafa pellets as oppose
to timothy pellets? From the websites you've given me i've come to the understanding
that adult rabbits need timothy pellets.. but i just cant find timothy pellets.. i;m
already feeding them timothy hay and was just wondering if it was ok for them to eat alfalfa pellets..

 

[ilovetoeatchocolate]

I am not sure in Australia but in Canada and the U.S it will list the ingredients of the pellets in order. Some of the ingredient lists can be hard to find so you will have to look hard. Or if you cannot find the ingredient listing there try to contact the company who makes it via the internet. Most pet food manufacturers will have a website. Or even a 1-800 number on the package. In Canada a timothy based pellet is pretty easy to find. Also, I have talked to my pet store here and they are willing to order the specific brand and type of food that I want. So you may want to talk to your pet stores to see if they do that. Mine does not charge extra for that. Some brands that you can take a look for are Oxbow and Zupreem.

Hope that helps,

Shannon

 

[mouse_chalk]

Ok, don't quote me on this, as I am by far no expert, but from what I've read, including the articles/links I've given you, alfalfa pellets are better for younger growing bunnies (and even 'senior' buns), due to the higher protein and calcium content. A fully grown bunny doesn't need so much protein and calcium, hence it's recommended to feed a timothy-based pellet, as it has lower amounts of these.

I must admit I'm not sure on the effects etc of feeding adult rabbits consistently alfalfa-based food, although the timothy hay you're giving them now is great

 

[Maureen Las]

Like mousechalk already stated an adult rabbit does not need the increased protein and calcium in an alfalfa pellet. .a timothy pellet is better..however you are feeding them WAY too much so any pellet in that amount is bad.

The problem with the kind of rabbit set-up you have is that the food just falls through the wires and most of it is wasted.
Maybe you could take them out of the cage and place them in an exercise area to eat their pellets. They should be getting all different kinds of hay (timothy, orchard grass, meadow hay, brome ,oat hay etc (no alfalfa hay). hay should be available all the time for their teeth and digestive tracts.The pellets should only make out a very small percentage of the diet. They should be eating hay and greens and very small amount of pellets. For an overweight rabbit maybe 1/8-1/4 th cup per day and that is a small amount. Now before you change anything please let us know if you are able to get hay and greens for your rabbits.

If you are going to make changes don't cut them offtheir routine amount daily but cut it back slowly so that they won't be stressed by dietary changes.
I have adopted adult rabbits from shelters that would not eat timothy pellets because they were so used to eating the alfalfa ones . I slowly transitioned them over to timothy pellets by making a mixture of the 2 kinds

When you decrease the amount of the pellets you also decrease the problems caused by them. If you cannot find a timothy pellet make sure the alfalfa pellet has th identifiable ingredients listed on the back. If the ingredientts list things like forage products , wheat middlings, animal fat and other ? ingredients look for ones that at leastidentify alfalfa as a primary ingredient. You also want a plain pellet and nothing containing cereal looking things, seeds etc. just plain pellets.You want a pellet that is as low in fat and protein as you can find and as high in fiber as you can find. The do vary in alfalfa pellets also


This probably seems like an overload of info but it's a start of getting you rabbits health on the right track.