cat food

[zednon]

okay I walked in my kitchen and I found my bunny eat the cat food.
one of my cats is allergy to most foods to the point her fur falls out and
is very icy. so the only food she can eat is... rabbit. basically my
rabbit is dinning on rabbit. when he does this he has his food out too
and has had his salad. i feed high end petels that are made at a farm.

my question is well this hurt him?

what should I do to stop this behaver?

 

[undergunfire]

Your rabbit should definitely not be eating cat food. I'd put the cat food up higher so that he can't eat it.

 

[pocketsizedrhino]

You need to keep the cat food out of reach at absolutely all times. Rabbits are strictly herbivores--that means no animal proteins. Such a spike in protein could cause some serious life threatening G.I. tract upset. Cats and rabbits have nearly opposite nutritional needs.

 

[jcottonl02]

Well I don't know the specifics of this, but rabbits actually can and do digest meat products and protein. Pamnock will be able to give more info on this. There is something in the library being currently worked on about it. But in the wild there have been studies on rabbits chasing and catching bugs to eat, and occasionally certain rabbits that will eat the remains of dead animals in times of nutritional hardship.

However, I would most definately keep the cat food away from your rabbit. I'm not sure a mouthful would be particularly damaging, but you never know with certain cat foods- the chemicals and gravy and all that. You definately don't want to risk it- move it away for good.

Or when you feed your cat, do it when you are in the kitchen, or while your bun is occupied somewhere else. Once the cat finishes, move the bowl somewhere else.

Keep a close eye on your bunny- any change in diet, whatever it may be, can cause an upset stomach, so watch her output for a few days.


Jen

 

[kirbyultra]

Sorry, this is a few days late. I have heard of someone whose bunny accidentally devouring her cat's canned wet food. It was alarming and she never puts cat food in reach anymore, but her bunny ended up being just fine.

Definitely keep a close watch for any output changes. I would take her to a vet quickly if you find the bun stops eating following this event.

 

[jamesedwardwaller]

zednon wrote:

okay I walked in my kitchen and I found my bunny eat the cat food.
one of my cats is allergy to most foods to the point her fur falls out and
is very icy. so the only food she can eat is... rabbit. basically my
rabbit is dinning on rabbit. when he does this he has his food out too
and has had his salad. i feed high end petels that are made at a farm.

my question is well this hurt him?

what should I do to stop this behaver?

dry-cat food,,consumed by a hind gut fermenter-(rabbit)-can and will lead to severe gi-stasis,,this is difficult to treat hence severe-gistasis,,hydration,,hay,,critical care--perhaps even antibiotics will be required--with over a month of very close supervision--weight monitoring is mandatory..,i am speaking from experience-our house rabbit did this and the figure is around $1200.--we now keep the cat food up out of reach of the rabbit--a very expensive lesson..pm-me is necessary...sincerely james wallerthis is not a one time sitting/eating-it required people-(i call the opposition)-with sloppy habits..

 

[missyscove]

He'll probably be okay after a small, one time event, but I'd keep an eye on his feed intake and fecal output for the time being.

In the future though, definitely put the cat food somewhere the kitty can get it but the bun can't. It's definitely not behavior you'd want to encourage.