Baby bun with runny stool

[luna21]

So i started Hendrix ( my 3-5 mnth old new zealand) on alfafa pellets and today when i cleaned his pen i noticed runny stool. It was not diarrhea but not completely formed and mushy. So i decided to withdraw the alfafa pellet for now and continue on the timothy pellet. Im wondering shouldi pull back the pellets all together just for a day or so? He still has a huge appetite and is drinking well.

 

[whiskylollipop]

Alfalfa foods need to be introduced slowly. If he's dropping cecal poop, it's either a sign that too much alfalfa is upsetting his gut, or he's been eating too much pellets and not enough hay regardless. I believe bunnies are recommended to be kept on a 70% hay diet. How much pellets have you been feeding him?

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We had to keep a couple of ours on Timothy only--any with alfalfa gave them the messy poopers and a cleanup was needed. No alfalfa in the pellet equaled no problem with the poopers.

 

[luna21]

Ive been feeding him 1 cup of timothy pellets and introduced alfafa pellet yesterday. I did 1/2 alfafa and 1/2 timothy,
i may have introduced too much alfafa pellet too fast. My question is should i bother with the alfafa pellet or should i try introducing 1 tbsp per week and see how he does ? Hes been fine on the timothy pellet since i got him. He was getting only timothy pellets at the shelter. He has also been a very good hay eater i top him off morning and night

 

[whiskylollipop]

It's excellent that he's a good hay eater. The challenge is keeping things in proportion - if he is eating a cup of pellets a day, just make sure he is eating at least twice that amount of hay, or he won't have enough fibre and his poop will be mushy.

I agree that you introduced the alfalfa much too fast. Alfalfa is very high in nutrients compared to timothy, and while a full cup of timothy pellets a day is fine for a growing bun, substituting half a cup for alfalfa is a pretty sudden nutrient overload. No wonder he's dropping cecals! If he's doing fine and keeping a good weight on timothy pellets, you don't really need the alfalfa. But since you've got them anyway, you can always try mixing a tiny bit in with his daily pellets until you've finished it all up.