Hay and Veggie only Diet

[BusyBunny]

Hey all.

I have a 3lb full grown rabbit. I'm currently attempting to get him completely off pellets as I feed all my pets a completely natural diet and the rabbit is no exception. I have a question for anyone that feeds a hay and veggie only diet.

I've read about what nuturion they need and all that, as well as what veggies to get. The question I had is that while I do limit the "special" foods - carrots, broccoli, a little bit of fruit - that won't be good for him in excess how should I feed his "staple" foods? Since in the wild rabbits forage all day should I just give him an endless supply of these vegtables and let him graze through out the day - much like I give hay? Or should I give a measured amount and feed him in the morning and the night time?

I know that might not be completely clear - so ask questions and I can clarify if need be. I guess I could have said it easier if I said with a hay and veggie diet should the vegetables (minus the "special" ones I mentioned earlier) be given in free feed style?

Thanks ahead of time for any answers.

Jeremy

 

[Amy27]

My buns only get veggies and hay per their vet. I make sure they have lots of hay to eat during the day and then I give all of their veggies to them at night. I have done this for about 2 1/2 years now and they don't seem to mind only gettingveggies at night. They eat lots of hay during the day. I also try to give them a variety of different kinds of hay. If I gave my buns endless supply of veggies that is all they would eat. They love their veggies. I would like to get it so I am feeding veggies in the morning and at night. But right now they just get them at night. It is part of their bedtime routine. Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[BusyBunny]

I should add - he gets a mixture of 4 kinds of hay. Mostly Timothy with some oat hay, meadow hay and brome(?) hay added. Are these okay - I've seen that he shouldn't get alfalfa because he is an adult but are the other 4 alright?

 

[Pipp]

LOL! The answer here may be that rabbits don't seem to have a veggie capacity, or at least they don't in my house.

I have a non-hay eater, and I know that she can and will eat her weight (2.5 lbs) in veggies daily. I have to give her pellets as a supplement, but only a pinch. (Actually, all indoor bunnies should still get a pinch, just to keep them in vitamins they normally get outdoors).

She just gets one mega salad every night. She munches some of it right away and then has another session very earlier in the morning, and finishes off the lettuce 'filler' a few hours later after giving up on getting more 'good stuff'.

My other bunnies also get as huge amounts as I can muster, but it doesn't seem like that much to them. They also get daily salads, and 12 hours later they get their meager bowls of pellets. They get a TON of hay they munch on all day, I throw fresh stuff on top once or twice a day.

The key is variety on both hay and veggies. I make sure they have a cross section from the various veggie families, most often a base of lettuce (I switch varieties because their tastes are varied, but on a nutrients level, red leaf, green leaf, romaine, etc, are all pretty much the same), carrot tops, herbs, cabbages/kales, beet greens, oddball stuff like raddiccio (?) and peppers... they all get a ton.

There is nothing more helpful than making friends with your grocery store produce manager, produce distributer, a high end or vegetarian restaurant manager/chef... they can all supply you with stuff. If they have rules about giving away expired 'produce', remind them you're looking for fresh 'compost' -- the stems, outer leaves, inedible (for humans) parts, etc. Feeding rabbits can be very cheap! (Albeit time consuming).

Hope this helps!


sas :bunnydance:

 

[Amy27]

I feed those types of hay to my buns also.I also feed bermuda hay sometimes. Mostly they get timothy. I don't feed alfalfa hay except as a treat. Here are some good articles about hay.

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12059&forum_id=17

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

 

[BusyBunny]

Thank you. He is a cow with his veggies he chows them down - but he eats a lot of hay too - up until now I have been feeding him in 2 cup "meals" and when everything in that was gone I'd give him another meal. I figured this way he is eating everything (since I got the nutrients down right in each meal) and I'm worried he will be hungry.

He usually eats about 6-8 cups a day... which is probably too much, huh? He eats a pile of veggies about as big as he is - because I read in an article that is what he should eat.


Edit: And the price isn't too bad because I only have one rabbit. It compares nothing to feeding the dog and cat an all natural / raw diet! :shock:

 

[naturestee]

If he eats a pile his size in a day, that's a good amount providing he is still eating hay. I'd break it up into two feedings, one in the morning and one in the evening. That's when they're most active and hungry anyway.

Since you're not feeding pellets, I'd feed a small amount of fruit once a day to help make sure he gets enough vitamins. Cranberries are an excellent choice. Put the whole bag in the freezer and feed one or two at a time. My buns will eat them frozen. Blueberries are another great healthy fruit that is conveniently sized.

Carrots, broccoli, kohlrabi, etc. I usually feed a few times a week.

Make sure to feed some veggies with a good amount of calcium! Some people are scared off by the fear of bladder sludge/stones but calcium itself is not usually the root cause of this. Rabbits, like all animals, need at least some calcium for normal body functions. Kale and collard greens are especially popular in my house.

Do keep a close eye on your bun as some can't keep their weight up without pellets. Sometimes adding a small amount of healthy fats, such as in sunflower or flax seeds, can help.

Oh, and you can use alfalfa as a treat for adult buns provided that they aren't sensitive to the protein.

On Pipp's suggestion about veggies from different families- I agree. Here's a breakdown list I made to help with that:
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=26541&forum_id=48

There's a lot more info in our Library too.

 

[BusyBunny]

I really appreciate everyone taking the time to answer.

Naturestee - thank you for that link - that is very helpful! And the good news is that it looks like I'm already feeding food from 5 of the families on a regular basis!

He does get some cranberries a day (they are dried - he won't touch fresh fruit for some reason) and he gets some broccoli (mostly stems) every day because he LOVES it.

His "staple" foods include romaine lettuce, cilantro, italian parsley, kale, (sometimes baby spinach - but limited), green chard (? - something like that - he doesn't like it that much though so we don't get it often), dandolin greens, carrot tops, snow peas in the pod, radish tops, and sometimes dill (though I think it smells wretched, so not often.) Those are what I get every week and I mix them all together and separate it into 2 cup baggies.

He gets limited amounts of broccoli and carrots. Those are what we have tried so far that he likes - he hated collard, mustard and turnip greens. Hated bok choy. Hated green peppers. I'm still trying other stuff to see what he likes.

Does it sound like I'm missing any important staples here?

 

[naturestee]

Looks pretty good to me. I like to include the occasional red leafy green too, such as red leaf lettuce, purple kale, or purple cabbage. Cabbage can cause gas in sensitive buns but I've never had a problem. It's actually the same species as kale and collard greens. My buns really, really like the purple cabbage.

I love the smell of dill! If you have an Asian grocery store nearby you may be able to get other herbs in larger amounts for less price. Mint family herbsare great to try, such as peppermint, basil, and lavenderand they're very good for the stomach. I usually grow a ton of these in summer, just be aware that many tend to invade the garden and are best kept in pots.

Even my fresh fruit-hating bun usually likes blueberries, so that may be another good choice. I haven't tried offering frozen ones as usually I eat those up too quickly in my oatmeal.:biggrin2: