FloppyHoppy
New Member
Hi, this is my first post here. Hope I can get some info about feeding in alternative circumstances.
I live in a very remote area. I grow our own food but this is currently limited and trips to the shops are few and far between. I have 2 house rabbits. The male is larger and has had dental issues before I got him, he came to me without front teeth but does seem to cope quite well with long stem hay. They have unlimited access to hay and get a meal of greens and a measure of pellets daily. The boy has trouble holding his weight and does drop off over winter (now). I have tried increasing the pellets but this does not agree with his little tummy and the girl bun gets obese (and naughty when I seperate them for his extra feed). I have tried every single type of pellet I can get my hands on and finally found one that doesn't give him the runs, but it will if fed above the measured amount.
I have over 20 years experience with horses and wondered if the bunnies diet could be supplemented in a similar way to horses over the cooler months. Just for the boy, he didn't like the idea of a rug much
. I had already added some oats for him which did seem to work until I ran out, but I worry about an overkill of oats as they primarily eat oaten hay. I have a few questions before I add things to his diet. The soil is poor where I live so it is likely they are not receiving the best balance of vitamins and minerals.
I was thinking of trying him on a small amount of barely. That way I could give him a couple daily without the girl catching on. What does this forum think?
Do rabbits benefit from warm bran mash at all or is this harmful? It gets very cold and wondered if this could be a treat?
I have fed him almonds and sunflower seeds in the past but these have not really increased his weight - what is the maximum safe amount I can feed in order to get his weight up a bit?
Any other ideas or suggestions to get his weight up (without the girl feeling left out) are very welcome Thanks for taking the time to read.
I live in a very remote area. I grow our own food but this is currently limited and trips to the shops are few and far between. I have 2 house rabbits. The male is larger and has had dental issues before I got him, he came to me without front teeth but does seem to cope quite well with long stem hay. They have unlimited access to hay and get a meal of greens and a measure of pellets daily. The boy has trouble holding his weight and does drop off over winter (now). I have tried increasing the pellets but this does not agree with his little tummy and the girl bun gets obese (and naughty when I seperate them for his extra feed). I have tried every single type of pellet I can get my hands on and finally found one that doesn't give him the runs, but it will if fed above the measured amount.
I have over 20 years experience with horses and wondered if the bunnies diet could be supplemented in a similar way to horses over the cooler months. Just for the boy, he didn't like the idea of a rug much
. I had already added some oats for him which did seem to work until I ran out, but I worry about an overkill of oats as they primarily eat oaten hay. I have a few questions before I add things to his diet. The soil is poor where I live so it is likely they are not receiving the best balance of vitamins and minerals. I was thinking of trying him on a small amount of barely. That way I could give him a couple daily without the girl catching on. What does this forum think?
Do rabbits benefit from warm bran mash at all or is this harmful? It gets very cold and wondered if this could be a treat?
I have fed him almonds and sunflower seeds in the past but these have not really increased his weight - what is the maximum safe amount I can feed in order to get his weight up a bit?
Any other ideas or suggestions to get his weight up (without the girl feeling left out) are very welcome
Thanks for taking the time to read.
