how much hay/pellets do you feed large rabbits

[todd131]

hi! i was at the rabbit show this weekend and i purchased a pedigreed american chinchilla buck. he is awesome! he is 5 months old and so curious and full of personality. i have decided to keep him in my basement and litter train him.

during my conversation with the breeder she told me to NOT feed any hay to the rabbits and up the food to 1.0 cups of pellets a day. i was using a half of cup of pellets and all of the hay my rabbits could eat. this woman produces over 100 rabbits/month for a meat packing plant so i am inclined to believe her however, i have always gotten good advice from you folks here so i wanted your opinions and i would like to hear what amounts you feed your large breeds.

thanks!

todd

edited to correct my error on feed amounts.

 

[todd131]

whoops my mistake. she told me to cut the hay and feed 1cup pellets under normal conditions and 2 weeks into pregnancy to up to 1.5.

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

The thing with meat rabbits is that the breeders want to put on the weight as quickly as possible. These rabbits don't live long, so it doesn't really matter if their teeth aren't in great condition.

With pet rabbits, you want them to be as healthy as possible. This means a good diet, good healthy weight and to be generally healthy. You want your pet to live as long as possible and that live to be the best it can be.

1.5 cups of pellets seems like a lot for any rabbit. While young breeds and larger breeds do need more, over feeding is not good. My Giant Angora only gets 1/2 a cup pet day along with lots of hay and some veggies. She is at a good weight and produces nice wool. She is also spayed, kept indoors and is a pet rather than a breeding rabbit.

Since your rabbit is still young, you don't want to limit pellets too much. I would give hay and get him to eat as much as he wants. You might want to limit the pellets to about 1 cup a day for now and reduce it when he is older (about 9-12 months if he maintains a good weight). If you do want him to get used to eating hay, it is best to start now. It can be difficult to get an older rabbit to eat hay if they have never had it.

 

[todd131]

thank you for the reply!

i should mention that according to her the rabbits would get sick from the hay, something about a distended stomach and they would die.

the 1.5 cups is only for 2 weeks during pregnancy then it's back to 1 cup. i just want the rabbits to live healthy lives and produce quality offspring for as long as possible.

this buck (buckley is his name, real creative i know) will be my pet until he passes naturally.

i have been feeding the hay and they seem to be doing fine on the 1/2cup of pellets and all the hay they want. now i am confused about the feeding regimen.

 

[Shaded Night Rabbitry]

You may want to edit your posts. Mentions of rabbits for purposes other than pet and show will get you kicked pretty hard in the bootay around here. (However much I or you may disagree.)

I'm fairly sure "heritage" (an easier synonym) breeds are suppose to be free fed for a long while, to get up to the weights they need to be at. Alfalfa hay is a good hay to feed... Especially for babies. They need to pack on the extra weight before 2~4 months, and it still gives them some protection from enteritis.

I'm honestly not sure about feed requirements for ints or srs. I free feed my flemish boy, and free feed alfalfa.... But I know amercian chins are a tad smaller. But the flemish boy, at 3~4 months, is eating about.... 2 cups a day? He'd eat more, i'm sure, if I went out there to refill his bowl more often, but I tend to forget. XD He's only 6 or 7 pounds right now to boot.

 

[todd131]

i can't edit it now. the site won't allow me. i am asking the moderators to please make the change.

i apologize if i have offended anyone, it was not my intention whatsoever. i will remember to use that term in the future. thank you for letting me know!

 

[Happi Bun]

Shaded Night Rabbitry wrote:

You may want to edit your posts. Mentions of rabbits for purposes other than pet and show will get you kicked pretty hard in the bootay around here. (However much I or you may disagree.)

Not necessarily true. He does not need to edit his posts unless a Mod asks him to. No one has ever been kicked hard in the butt for mentioning meat rabbits. They were politely directed toward sources geared towards their interest.

I've never heard of hay killing rabbits unless moldy or contaminated by something. That is very bizarre. Good quality hay will not and should not kill a rabbit. It is excellent for their digestive system and teeth. I can't comment on pellet amount for those type of rabbits, I have no clue.

Keep providing unlimited hay, you will be fine.

 

[woahlookitsme]

With our californians we were advised to free feed and the rabbits did fine. I have continued that advice with my tans(partly because their metabolism is higher so they have the energy to burn off the extra) Except for the ones who cant control themselves. In that case we mix rolled oats in the feed. Hay is usually a handful once a day because it is still hot over here and my rabbits are outside the hay raises the body temperature so we try not to give them alot to keep them cooler. For pets maintaining a healthy body weight is the most important thing. On the arba website it says Maximum Weight for a Chin is 12lbs. This can be more or less depending on genetics, sex, and age.
Genetics meaning the weight of the parents. Sex meaning does usually weigh more than the bucks (preferred for chin bucks: 9-11) and age meaning of course juniors/babies will weigh less. Classification of a junior is Under 9lbs or Younger than 6mths.

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

I never did give much hay and this went for dwarfs though flemish giants.

I always leave in a self feeder. The rabbit wont eat it all. They will look like they eat a lot at first but they'll just munch when hungry like they do with hay. I absolutely hate dealing with a rabbit who knows its feeding time and acts like it is starving to death because it knows its only getting a bit of feed once or twice a day.

if he's out free roaming the house I'd keep him on the self feeder, he'll be moving around constantly and wont put on a ton of weight.

and I put wood in for them to nibble on to keep their teeth cut back.

And I've always gave some veggies as treats, I wont make it a main part of their diet and have never had problems.

 

[akane]

They were politely directed toward sources geared towards their interest.

My thread just disappeared and I had to figure out why and where else I could go by myself....



Hay helps digestion and should not cause bloating or anything. Too much pellets without hay can cause those problems. Even the breeders I've talked to who don't believe in free choice hay feed it at least once a week to help improve digestion and keep things moving. I free feed hay to all my rabbits (both large and small breeds) and then limit pellets. I haven't figured out exactly how much pellets are best for my meat rabbits but I would feed unlimited to a growing or pregnant rabbit unless you notice they are getting too chunky. I prefer to feed each rabbit as an individual instead of a certain amount for every individual of a breed. It was also highly suggested to me to get a pellet with 18% protein.

 

[farmerchick]

though i am not an expert

i recently wondered the same thing about feeding my PET rabbit who was originally bred for meat, i asked my vet and she said to feed him unlimited hay and pellets up until a year and after that limit the pellets and always have a supply of hay. he doesn't seem to eat a lot, he is putting on weight fine (he's only a few weeks old now) but he doesn't pig out on food, but his bonded buddy is a big eater and they live in the same cage so i'm not sure about what to do about limiting his food when he is older.

but i'm sure as long as your rabbit has healthy fur and teeth and looks healthy and isn't under or over weight then you should be ok. i guess it would depend on age, and overall size that your bunny is going to get.