general constructive criticism :)

[therabbitrookie]

[align=center]hey guys, so i just need some suggestions/comments on generally.. well almost everything to do with my rabbits! i am rather new at keeping rabbits and so ANY general advice is great. i read up on them as much as possible so i know quite a bit but advice never hurt anyone! ^^ so if you see anything that needs improvement, dont be afraid to tell me! and maybe other users can use this as a reference in the future?

** oh and really sorry for the HUGEfile size on the photos!!



DIET:

morning feed - 1 cup timothy pellets.



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[align=center]-unlimited timothy hay-[/align]



[align=center]night feed - 1/2 cup timothy pellets.[/align]



[align=center]they also get 1 - 2 cups of veggies every day [/align]



[align=center]the brand i feed them is usually Oxbow or Living World Healthy Timothy. I think I'm going to stop using the Healthy Timothy formula because it seems to have a too high protein.[/align]



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[align=center]nutrition facts:[/align]



[align=center]Crude protein - 16%[/align]



[align=center]Crude fibre - 23% (min) - 28% (max)[/align]



[align=center]Moisture - 12%[/align]



[align=center]Calcium - 0.7 - 1.0%[/align]



[align=center]Salt - 0.38 - 0.60 %[/align]



[align=center]it also says it contains 35% timothy hay, dried alfalfa meal, oatmeal, canola meal, grund flaxseed, ground canola seed, dried field peas, dicalcium phosphate, lignin sulfonate pellet binder, dried beet pulp, salt, dried parsley, dried carrots, dried cauliflower, dried leeks, dried spinach, dried chicory root. [/align]



[align=center]The buns seem to like it a lot.. the bowls always licked clean. but im afraid all the dried vegetables (it doesnt say the %) aren't very good for them.. any advice? :?keep it or lose it? xD[/align]



[align=center]so at first this video was to show their pen but since i've made it bigger and taken and added stuff its not really accurate besides the toys, so these are the toys i have for them. im constantly trying to add and change up the toys.[/align]
[align=center]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-U7Fx3tL5s]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-U7Fx3tL5s[/ame]

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[align=center]i have so far in their cage: [/align]



[align=center]- wooden blocks[/align]



[align=center]- rope toss[/align]



[align=center]- rubber ring[/align]



[align=center]- baby toy toss toy thing (not quite sure what to call it)[/align]



[align=center]but anyway.. heres the video. kind of a waste of time now but whatever lol[/align]



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[align=center]i looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooove getting suggestions on toys. i also love making toys and i find that toys from petsmart ect. are wayyyy too overpriced and they're really cheaply made for what their worth, and making homemade toys is so much more fun GO DOLLAR STORE!!!! [/align]



[align=center]heres some updated pics of their cage i did today:[/align]



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[align=center]there ya go! so please, if you seeANYTHING that could use the slighest improvement, please, dont be afraid to say it! also the buns get out for around 3 - 7 hours each day and we occasionally let them run around at night (in their area, its 100% rabbitproofed and blocked off away from the rest of the house) [/align]



[align=center][/align]



[align=center]thanks in advance!![/align]



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[align=center]- mackenzie[/align]

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Some more info on your rabbits would be helpful. Age, breed, sex (spayed/neutered), activity level and any other info would be good.

One thing I see is the amount of pellets. 1.5 cups per day for 2 rabbits (assuming the amount of for both) is a lot. My bonded pair get about 1/2 cup between them a day. Adult rabbits don't need a ton of pellets a day. The general recommendation is about 1/4 cup per 5 pounds of body weight for adults. I divide the pellets into 2 feeding for my rabbits.
Oxbow is a good pellet. I don't have any experience with the Living world timothy pellets, so can't really comment on them. If you want to just give the oxbow, it is fine. If you do switch pellets, remember to do it slowly so your rabbits can adjust to the new stuff. If you are current'y feeding a mix of the 2, slowly decrease the amount of the pellet you are stopping until you just have the 1 type.
The dried veggies in the pellets should be fine as long as they are in the pellet and not just pieces mixed in. They can't use fresh veggies, so anything they do use has to be dried before they can add it to the pellet mix. There probably isn't much of them in the pellets anyway, so I would not worry about it if you do continue to feed the pellets.
The hay is good for them. If you wanted to give other hay like brome, orchard grass or oat hay, you can. A variety of hay is good as each one does require slightly different chewing which helps wear down the teeth better.
The veggies are also good, but can't comment more unless you post what kind of veggies. As long as the ones you feed are on the safe lists, it should be fine.

The cage/pen looks good. Some more toys would be nice though. I would also have a blanket or something to cover the floor a bit more. I do like the house. I would make the area they have bigger if you can, but if you provide lots of out of cage time it should be fine.

 

[Momto3boys]

Alot of people free feed their pellets, I am one of those people and there's nothing in this world that would change my mind about free feeding. 1.5 cups of food is fine

I love their house, what a neat idea!

 

[Momto3boys]

Oh yah something about the video, it's too fast to read everything, LOL and Im a fast reader but you have to be a spedd reader to catch it all the first time through, haha

 

[jcottonl02]

I personally wouldn't free-feed rabbits, or any pets really! This means you just have no idea how much food they are consuming and could lead to obesity without you even realising. And that is hard to backpedal from and can lead to so many awful problems that are so easy to avoid. Also perhaps most importantly (!!) free feeding pellets might mean the rabbits eat little to no hay, because they have yummy pellets to fill up on. Hay should make up 70-80% of their diet, but if they have unlimited pellets, their hay intake may be minimal to none, which isn't fabulous.

This is the recommendation from the house rabbit society for adults:

What quantities of food should I feed mature adults? (1 to 5 years)

* Unlimited timothy, grass hay, oat hay, straw
* 1/4 to 1/2 cup pellets per 6 lbs. body weight (depending on metabolism and/or proportionate to veggies)
* Minimum 2 cups chopped vegetables per 6 lbs. body weight
* fruit daily ration no more than 2 oz. (2 TBL) per 6 lbs. body weight.

Of coures this can be tweaked to what you think is best for your bun- every bun is different, of course.

Did you say dried vegetables? Where are you getting these from? I would definately switch to fresh veggies . I don't think there's much 'wrong' with dried vegetables but I wonder whether drying them could make them less nutritious, or are there any preservatives added? Also, with fresh veggies your buns are getting water too.

Okay good points: GORGEOUS bunnies. They really are beautiful and look very happy! I read everything on the slides (it was quite quick but I did manage to get everything) and sounds like you've done a lot of thinking!
The toys look great- maybe a few more they could destroy would be nice? Like a yellow pages or some toilet rolls stuffed with hay to shred and chew .

I agree maybe a few towells or mats on the floor would be nice- somewhere comfy to sit/sleep. I love the hidey box.

Great with the unlimited timothy hay- that's brilliant. I might up the veggies a little (that's purely my own preference, as mine adore veggies) but you have to make sure that is right for your buns- some buns can't take too many veggies without getting diarreah.

Looks great to me! A few tweaks and it will be eveeeen better

Jen

 

[Rabbit Hero]

I use The living world Timothy Formula as well, the dried veggies are part of the ingredients for the pellet. So they are ground up inside, not separate little chunks.

 

[jcottonl02]

I see!!! So those cups of veggie are fresh? Oh that is good, I thought you meant cups of dried veggies!! My bad

Yes 16% protein is a little high. You should be looking at between 12-14% for a house bunny.

I've never heard of these pellets so I don't really know how good/bad the dried veggies etc. are in them but I doubt they would do much harm.


Jen

 

[SydneyNova]

Strange suggestion... but have you thought about using a heavy ceramic bowl for water instead of the bottle? I think its more natural of a position for them to drink from... but that's only my opinion.

Also, I don't know about free feeding them pellets or giving them more than a cup-cup1/2 of fresh veggies a day (green veggies!); limit fruits to treats cause of the sugar. Might get some chubby bunnies

Oh! give them a cardboard box with holes cut into them. Mine loves chewing and shredding the box to pieces. definitely a cheap and inexpensive item for them to play and interact with. Throw in a couple towels too for them to lay on and rearrange.

Beautiful bunnies! Your lion head makes me laugh. I love his/her coloring!