Cutting out greens to help with tummy upset?

[ancoal7]

Hi everyone, I posted yesterday about my rabbit (Stella) -- see post "GI/Tummy issues EVERY few weeks -- PLEASE HELP (depserate)"

I have decided to cut out her pellets at the recommendation of a lot of you and see if that helps. Stella is pooping fine now and eating (after a scare yesterday morning where she became a bit sluggish and stopped eating/pooping for a few hours), but now she is still not eating as much as I would like (which indicates tummy upset to me).

My question is about cutting out greens -- many of you suggested I cut out both greens and pellets and then slowly re-introduce greens to see how Stella does, as it seems she has a reoccurring tummy issue (see my original post). However, I just wanted to ask if this is definitely okay to do. If Stella is ONLY eating hay won't she become deficient in nutrients? I am new to bunny ownership, but everything I have read indicates that the reason for leafy greens is for nutrients. So, I just want to verify with you more experienced owners that it is, in fact, safe for me to cut greens out for a week or so and only give her hay, and then to slowly re-introduce the greens.

Thank you all again for your help, this forum has been so amazingly helpful!

 

[Imbrium]

it's been vet-recommended on occasion to deal with tummy troubles... would only be for a week or so anyway in your case so it should be fine.

if in doubt, you can call your vet and ask their opinion on cutting them out for a week to see how she does

 

[JBun]

If you are too worried about her not having greens, you could just start with cutting out the pellets first and see how that goes, and then after a week or so of no pellets, if she still isn't doing well, you could try cutting out the greens too.

 

[tamsin]

In the short term, eg a week or two, hay only is fine. It's only longer term that you need to worry about nutrient deficiency. If you are concerned you could add vitamins or a probiotic/vitamin mix - either powdered or in her water.

 

[Geoff]

Actually nutrient deficiencies are very unlikely on hay only diets, but just in case there is something missing, feeding fresh leafy greens is recommended. I have found that leafy greens do more to help GI problems rather than hurt them, so cutting them out does not make any sense to me. They add needed water to the diet, possible micronutrient supplementation and some fiber at least. They also tend to taste good and therefore are often eaten more readily by bunnies that may not be feeling all that well and somewhat reluctant to eat hay (or have been spoiled by having been fed higher calorie, better tasting foods in the past).

 

[Ape337]

Geoff wrote:

Actually nutrient deficiencies are very unlikely on hay only diets, but just in case there is something missing, feeding fresh leafy greens is recommended. I have found that leafy greens do more to help GI problems rather than hurt them, so cutting them out does not make any sense to me. They add needed water to the diet, possible micronutrient supplementation and some fiber at least. They also tend to taste good and therefore are often eaten more readily by bunnies that may not be feeling all that well and somewhat reluctant to eat hay (or have been spoiled by having been fed higher calorie, better tasting foods in the past).

I am so glad to see a vet on this forum. And you are the 3rd vet I've seen confirm for me that rabbits don't need pellets, and that it's not going to be a huge trial to analyze the nutrient content of every green to find the proper nutrient balance. So thanks!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Hay and greens are the way to go. We had to cut the veggies down with only a couple as they had a "poopy butt" problem.