Advice needed on baby bunny care!

[BrownieAndBunbun]

Hello, I’m new to rabbits. We got two baby Holland Lop bunnies on Christmas Eve. They’re the sweetest little creatures. I want to make sure we’re taking the best care of them and I’m a little lost (especially because almost everything I read about rabbits is about adult rabbits.)

I was told the bunnies were 8 weeks old when I picked them up on Christmas Eve, but I just got their info today and they were actually only 6 weeks and 7 weeks when I picked them up)… Anyway, so as of today, Brownie is 9 weeks 2 days and BunBun is 8 weeks 3 days… I was told to give them unlimited access to food pellets and hay, so they always have a bowl of pellets, fresh water and hay…. One of them (I think Brownie- the larger “blue” bunny) is having A LOT of strange poops that look like blackberries. It’s been going on for days. I read on Google that if a rabbit is having those blackberry poops that means they need less food pellets and more hay, I also read that they are actually supposed to ingest those blackberry poops (mine are not eating them)… The food pellets and hay I’ve been feeding them are from the woman who I got the bunnies from, so I don’t know what brands they are, but it’s the same stuff they’ve been used to (although I’m starting to run low on both). So my questions:

1. Should I restrict food pellets in some way even though they’re so young? Or should I be adding something to their diet?
2. Should I be concerned that those blackberry poops are not being ingested? Should I be concerned enough to take her to the vet? (She seems super happy in general)
3. Any recommendations for baby bunny food/ hay (as I’ll need to buy more soon - the woman who I got the bunnies from sells her own, but she’s a couple hours away from me, so that’s not a realistic option.)
4. I was given a “salt rock” for them to lick - they don’t lick it - do I need to give them salt in some other form?
5. Any general baby bunny tips welcome

Thanks for reading this long post. I’ll attach some poop pics - one pic from the morning before I swept the pen so you can see the amount of strange poops and some close-ups…

I have questions about my set-up too- which I’ll post to a separate thread.

Thanks!!

 

[Preitler]

Well, excess cecotropes normally are a sign of a too rich diet. Pellets are kinda fast food, rich, and formulated so that rabbits love to eat a lot of it. Great if your goal is to get them to butcher weight asap, but not all rabbits have the ability to make use of the extra protein (that's something good meat rabbits get bred for). Otherwise, I would reduce the pellets. No need to feed those unlimited. Fresh grass hay should always be available, way more than they can possible eat.
I wouldn't introduce new stuff now, when somethung is a little off anyway, and at that age after weaning their digestion system is rather vulnurable, some rabbits more than others. I would wait with new stuff like veggies until they are 3-4 months old, and then introduce very gradually over 1-2 weeks, starting with thumbnail sized bits.

 

[BrownieAndBunbun]

Well, excess cecotropes normally are a sign of a too rich diet. Pellets are kinda fast food, rich, and formulated so that rabbits love to eat a lot of it. Great if your goal is to get them to butcher weight asap, but not all rabbits have the ability to make use of the extra protein (that's something good meat rabbits get bred for). Otherwise, I would reduce the pellets. No need to feed those unlimited. Fresh grass hay should always be available, way more than they can possible eat.
I wouldn't introduce new stuff now, when somethung is a little off anyway, and at that age after weaning their digestion system is rather vulnurable, some rabbits more than others. I would wait with new stuff like veggies until they are 3-4 months old, and then introduce very gradually over 1-2 weeks, starting with thumbnail sized bits.

Ok - so maybe I’ll just put out some pellets in the morning and some more in the evening instead of making sure the bowl is full all day. Thank you!

 

[Blue eyes]

If you are running low on your pellet food, then you need to buy new stuff now -- especially since you don't know what kind/brand you currently have. It is not advised to just switch them suddenly to a different pellet brand. They should be transitioned slowly over time.

So figure out what brand/type you prefer and then, whenever you feed them pellets, mix some of the new pellets in with your current pellets. I explain the transition process in more detail at the following page of my website. That page also provides info on various pellet brands:
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/pellet-food.html
No salt lick. They don't need it since they get enough in the pellets.

 

[JBun]

Some good pet rabbit pellet brands are Oxbow, Sherwood, and Science Select junior rabbit food. I would say sherwood is the better of the three, if cost isn't an issue for you, as it is the more expensive option.

You'll need enough of their current pellets to make a switch to whatever pellet you want to change to, over at least 2 weeks time. If you don't have enough then you'll need to contact the person you got the rabbits from and buy the exact same type and brand of pellets to be able to transition to another type/brand. It's almost always better to never make sudden changes in a rabbits diet(with the exceoption of giving grass hay), as it can upset the balance of microflora and lead to digestive issues, some very serious, especially in baby rabbits. The exception would be when a rabbits current diet is causing serious health issues and sudden diet changes have to be made because of this.

Having uneaten normally formed cecotropes with baby rabbits, can just be a matter of them being babies and getting easily distracted from eating the cecals when they're supposed to. It can also be from being in a new home. Everything being new and them trying to adjust can also cause uneaten cecals from getting distracted. This will generally clear up in a few weeks as the rabbits mature and settle in.

However if it doesn't clear up, then uneaten normally formed cecals can be from a diet too rich in protein, from too many pellets or if a rabbit is also being fed alfalfa hay, as this is a very rich hay. This is if the cecals are coming out fully formed looking like blackberry clusters, and not coming out pasty and mushy looking(before they get smooshed by the rabbit), which would be a different issue causing the uneaten cecals.

https://bunssb.org/bunnies/guide-bunny-poops/
Is their hay grass hay or alfalfa? And can you tell for sure exactly how much hay is being consumed by them? Are they eating a pile of hay the size of their body, per day? If they aren't, then pellet amounts would probably need reducing some. I found the best balance for my baby rabbits, when feeding twice a day(every 12 hours), was to feed enough pellets to last 8 hours with grass hay always available. Then those last 4 hours before the next pellet feeding they would snack on their hay.

Less pellets than that can be fed, but only if the hay you're feeding is at least a semi leafy hay and not too coarse, as coarse hay is too devoid of nutrients. It's all about finding the right balance of protein and nutrient rich food needed for growth and health, and the fiber needed to help maintain good gut health and motility.

With any diet changes it's a good idea to monitor the rabbits weight and body condition, to make sure they're maintaining a healthy body condition with the diet changes, and with baby rabbits, that they're continuing to gain weight and grow.

Monitoring your rabbits weight

 

[NorthernNevadaHollandLops]

Cute bunnies! They may be eating some of the blackberry poops (called cecotropes or caecotrophs) directly from their bum as that is what adult rabbits do. Too many left around, as others have said, is an indication their diet is too "rich" and not fibrous enough. I use oxbow garden select young rabbit food for the babies, Sherwood is a great option, but expensive, and when given an option my rabbits won't eat it. You'll want enough of their old pellets to be able to follow something like this: week 1 - 1/4 new pellets mixed with 3/4 old pellets, week 2 - 1/2 new pellets and 1/2 old pellets, week 3 - 3/4 new pellets and 1/4 old pellets, week 4 - all new pellets.

My baby rabbits aren't super picky about the brand of hay, but you'll want to make sure it's a "second cutting" to get the "leafier" parts if you can.

Someone with more experience can chime in on this, but I also give babies just a pinch of rolled oats when their poops are too soft, so maybe that could help....start small like 2-3 oats! It's unfortunate they left their mama so young. They learn so much by watching her and eat her cecotropes at the beginning. If their poop becomes liquid or they stop pooping, take them to a vet asap.

Do you know how old they were weaned?

 

[BrownieAndBunbun]

If you are running low on your pellet food, then you need to buy new stuff now -- especially since you don't know what kind/brand you currently have. It is not advised to just switch them suddenly to a different pellet brand. They should be transitioned slowly over time.

So figure out what brand/type you prefer and then, whenever you feed them pellets, mix some of the new pellets in with your current pellets. I explain the transition process in more detail at the following page of my website. That page also provides info on various pellet brands:
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/pellet-food.html
No salt lick. They don't need it since they get enough in the pellets.

Ah, yes, of course - that makes a lot of sense (I don’t know why I didn’t think of that)! I will definitely do that. Thanks for all the info!

 

[BrownieAndBunbun]

Some good pet rabbit pellet brands are Oxbow, Sherwood, and Science Select junior rabbit food. I would say sherwood is the better of the three, if cost isn't an issue for you, as it is the more expensive option.

You'll need enough of their current pellets to make a switch to whatever pellet you want to change to, over at least 2 weeks time. If you don't have enough then you'll need to contact the person you got the rabbits from and buy the exact same type and brand of pellets to be able to transition to another type/brand. It's almost always better to never make sudden changes in a rabbits diet(with the exceoption of giving grass hay), as it can upset the balance of microflora and lead to digestive issues, some very serious, especially in baby rabbits. The exception would be when a rabbits current diet is causing serious health issues and sudden diet changes have to be made because of this.

Having uneaten normally formed cecotropes with baby rabbits, can just be a matter of them being babies and getting easily distracted from eating the cecals when they're supposed to. It can also be from being in a new home. Everything being new and them trying to adjust can also cause uneaten cecals from getting distracted. This will generally clear up in a few weeks as the rabbits mature and settle in.

However if it doesn't clear up, then uneaten normally formed cecals can be from a diet too rich in protein, from too many pellets or if a rabbit is also being fed alfalfa hay, as this is a very rich hay. This is if the cecals are coming out fully formed looking like blackberry clusters, and not coming out pasty and mushy looking(before they get smooshed by the rabbit), which would be a different issue causing the uneaten cecals.

https://bunssb.org/bunnies/guide-bunny-poops/
Is their hay grass hay or alfalfa? And can you tell for sure exactly how much hay is being consumed by them? Are they eating a pile of hay the size of their body, per day? If they aren't, then pellet amounts would probably need reducing some. I found the best balance for my baby rabbits, when feeding twice a day(every 12 hours), was to feed enough pellets to last 8 hours with grass hay always available. Then those last 4 hours before the next pellet feeding they would snack on their hay.

Less pellets than that can be fed, but only if the hay you're feeding is at least a semi leafy hay and not too coarse, as coarse hay is too devoid of nutrients. It's all about finding the right balance of protein and nutrient rich food needed for growth and health, and the fiber needed to help maintain good gut health and motility.

With any diet changes it's a good idea to monitor the rabbits weight and body condition, to make sure they're maintaining a healthy body condition with the diet changes, and with baby rabbits, that they're continuing to gain weight and grow.

Monitoring your rabbits weight

Thank you so much for all of the info! Very helpful! I was told the hay was “Timothy hay” - they eat it, but I don’t have a sense of exactly how much they eat (because I have so much out in so many places)… I’ll try to monitor their hay consumption more closely. I’ll start to weigh them as well. Thank you!!

 

[BrownieAndBunbun]

Cute bunnies! They may be eating some of the blackberry poops (called cecotropes or caecotrophs) directly from their bum as that is what adult rabbits do. Too many left around, as others have said, is an indication their diet is too "rich" and not fibrous enough. I use oxbow garden select young rabbit food for the babies, Sherwood is a great option, but expensive, and when given an option my rabbits won't eat it. You'll want enough of their old pellets to be able to follow something like this: week 1 - 1/4 new pellets mixed with 3/4 old pellets, week 2 - 1/2 new pellets and 1/2 old pellets, week 3 - 3/4 new pellets and 1/4 old pellets, week 4 - all new pellets.

My baby rabbits aren't super picky about the brand of hay, but you'll want to make sure it's a "second cutting" to get the "leafier" parts if you can.

Someone with more experience can chime in on this, but I also give babies just a pinch of rolled oats when their poops are too soft, so maybe that could help....start small like 2-3 oats! It's unfortunate they left their mama so young. They learn so much by watching her and eat her cecotropes at the beginning. If their poop becomes liquid or they stop pooping, take them to a vet asap.

Do you know how old they were weaned?

Thank you so much for all the info! I don’t know how old they were when they were weaned - they might’ve been with their mamas until I got them at 6 weeks and 7 weeks (but I don’t know - they were out of their cages when I arrived). Makes me sad if they were taken from their moms too soon. I found “Timothy hay” in a pet store, I’ll see if I can find one that says “second cutting on it.” Thank you for all the info!