Increasing Potassium Intake

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Amy27

Amy27

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If I can, I would like to increase Chase's potassium intake as it is something the medication she is on can cause a decrease in. She will get lab testing to check the levels but if I can keep them up it would be great. I looked online and I found spinach was a green high in potassium but Chase won't eat it. I can't really find anything else I can give her that is high in potassium. I wondered if anyone knew of anything that is safe to feed bunny's that is high in potassium.



Thanks
 
Thanks angieluv. I printed out that list and am going to take it with me to the vet on friday. May be she can suggest somethings off from the list that I can try.

I tried pedialyte before and Chase wouldn't touch it but she really wasn't drinking then. I am afraid to put something in her water and have her stop drinking it. Though right now she has 3 water bottles, 3 bowls and a water fountain so I could probably try it with one and see what she thinks. When you put something like pedialyte in the water do you change it more often? Does it go bad after a few hours from being out and not in the fridge?

I also found this I thought about trying

http://www.rabbitstop.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=rs&Product_Code=RS516&Category_Code=2Supplements

Thanks for your help.
 
Chase actually doesn't like banana's. I know she is so weird. I think it is something with fruit. She doesn't seem to be a big fan of fruit. But weird random things like carpet or paper are good lol go figure. Maybe I will try the banana's again. I get freaked out about leaving it out so I usually try and if she doesn't eat it I take it away because I don't want it to spoil and then she eats it. So if I was going to try banana's again and put them in her room do you know what a safe time period is where I could leave them in there for her to eat before they went bad? I haven't tried them in a while and I think it was you before that suggested pineapple and when I gave it to her she wouldn't eat it. I left it in her room over night and the next morning 2 small pieces were gone. So maybe I just need to give her sometime to eat it.

Thanks
 
I know that the electrolytes stay in pedialyte for 24 hrs but I am assuming that it needs to be in a closed container.. not going to work
That peter's product probably would not taste good
I'm sure that we can come up with some additional ideas
bananas have a lot of potssium, most buns love them but can only have a small amount.
probably giving small amounts of various things will keep the potassium level up
let me have a little time to look into it more.....
 
:D I forgot that this was picky Chase we were talking about:biggrin2:. I do agree with your statement about giving her more time with the food. A little bit of brown only indicates oxidization. Some folks use lemon juice to prevent oxidization in fruit salads... that's the reason why they still look dandy after hours on the buffet.

I would leave it for a while with her, and keep on trying with foods that she doesn't appear to initially like. I know that there's been a couple folks on here who have gotten their buns to inhale pumpkin out of a syringe (even though they weren't keen on it for starters [Pipp]).

I'm also remembering that you were trying foods out on her at a time where she was very ill and stressed. As those feelings go away, she may become more adventuresome.

Meds may also affect how things taste to her. I was on amoxicillin for the last week or so, and everything tasted metallic :(...


 
Thanks I got some banana's on the way home tonight and will give her a small piece tonight and see what she thinks. She is to busy running around right now.

Speaking of Chase being a picky eater the vet told me I would really have to hide the Lasix (pill) in something because it taste very biter. So I did for a week. Then I would just put it on the floor next to her treats. Now I shake the bottle of meds and she comes running and eats up the pill and looks for more. The vet can't believe she eats it like that. But let me go buy some nice fruit, juice and pedialyte and she won't touch it.
 
Maybe you can try giving her dried banana chips? Hazel didn't like fresh bananas either for the longest time, but she did eat them dried. Now that she is older, she does eat fresh banana too.
 
Thanks Hazel-Mom I didn't even think about dried banana. Chase does like that. I am going to put that on my list to take to the vet tomorrow.

Though I think maybe she just didn't like to take a bite out of a banana. I cut a piece off a banana tonight that was like 1/2 inch long and gave it to her. She acted like she was going to eat it but kept pulling away and then went and ate her hay. So I cut the piece into small little pieces and she is eating it up.

I am going to take these things with me to the vet tomorrow and ask how much I should be giving Chase. I thought about the pedialyte too and I think with as many things as Chase has to drink out of if I put pedialyte in one it shouldn't make her stop drinking out of all of them and don't they have pedialyte that is unflavored?

These are great ideas everyone thanks. I like having different options of things I can give Chase since she will probably be on the Lasix forever so she will always need additional potassium in her diet.
 
Here are some of the riches sources in fruits and vegetables for people. Some are already mentioned, but all of these should be in moderation, as some are high in sugars and fats.


Food
Serving
Potassium (mg)

Banana
1 medium
422

Orange
1 medium
237

Raisins
1/2 cup
598

Spinach, cooked
1/2 cup
420

Sunflower seeds
1 ounce
241

Almonds
1 ounce
200

 
Oh, I didn't realize raisins were high in K, either.

My bunnies each get a banana slice in the morning, and a raisin at bedtime. Amelia is very picky and won't accept substitutes or additions. She will sniff at things and then sort of paw at them, and then turn her back on it.
Nick likes to lick my fingers after I give out banana, to get all the banana flavor and little morsels off.

I get the the Organic Flame Raisins from Whole Foods. They are a bit expensive, but I only go through 3 a day, so it's not too bad. I just keep them in an airtight container. Most of the time, the raisins are big and juicy, Amelia just loves them.

That is interesting that Chase doesn't like taking bites of the banana. Maybe it will just take giving her small pieces.
 
Pet_Bunny I didn't know raisins where high in potassium. Thanks for posting that. Chase loves raisins. From BethM's post I think I will head to Whole Foods and get some organic ones.

Talking to the vet today she thought raisins and banana's were great idea's so I will be giving her 3 raisins and 2-3 inch piece of banana a day. In 2 weeks she will get her levels checked and we will go from there.

Thanks for all your great suggestion.

BethM I think Chase likes to remind me I am her slave and would like her food cut in bite size pieces lol. They sure are picky. But whatever I can do to get her to eat it I will do. I wondered if it was the mushyness of the banana when she went to bite into it that she didn't like.

Angieluv if you think of any other ideas please let me know. I would like as many options as possible of things Chase will take. Do you think the amount the vet recommended of banana per day is ok? I am not going to try that Peter Aide I posted. The vet said to leave Chase's water alone. Not to add anything to the water or move or change her water at all. She just started drinking again the last 2 weeks. She did say if I wanted to do pedialyte I could do it with a syringe, she thought it was a good idea but not to add to her water.
 
Amy27 wrote:
Pet_Bunny I didn't know raisins where high in potassium. Thanks for posting that. Chase loves raisins. From BethM's post I think I will head to Whole Foods and get some organic ones.
Click to expand...

The ones I get are next to the bulk section, but they're pre-packed. I think the package is about 1 pound, and they're about $5. It may be less than a pound, I can't remember. I usually replace them when they're about half gone, I'll eat the older ones and get fresh ones for the bunnies. (Yes, I am a slave, too!) Even so, one pack will last for quite a while. (Once I got a pack where most of the raisins were small and dry-looking, but I took them back and showed the person how dry they were, and they exchanged it.)

They also have Thompson raisins, but in my store the Flame raisins seem bigger.
There might be something different in the actual bulk area, I haven't checked there. I like that they are organic and don't have added sugar or preservatives.
 
Thanks BethM for the information. I seem to forget there is a Whole Foods in my area because I have 3 grocery stores that are like 3 mintues away and Whole Foods is about 20 minutes away, so not to far to go once in awhile but I still always forget about it so I am glad you mentioned it.

Chase is really warming up to eating the banana. Tonight for the first time I got to see her eat it, it was so cute. It looked like she was trying to eat peanut butter and the noise she made was adorable. I am stil cutting it up. There was one piece she got that was a little bit bigger then the rest and she seemed to struggle with it a little bit. Pretty much like someone who took a big bite of peanut butter. Is that normal? I see pictures on here of bunnies with a whole banana and here Chase is getting bite size pieces you would give a 6 month old baby. Maybe it will just take her time to get used to the texture.

ETA: BethM I am just curious do you feed your buns all organic? I would love to but the stores that are real close by don't carry enough organic greens for me to feed all organic and I can't go to Whole Foods 3 times a week.
 
Amy27 wrote:
ETA: BethM I am just curious do you feed your buns all organic? I would love to but the stores that are real close by don't carry enough organic greens for me to feed all organic and I can't go to Whole Foods 3 times a week.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, I don't feed the buns all organic. I'm with you, in that the Whole Foods is much farther away from me than other grocery stores. Plus, I just wouldn't be able to afford the amount of cilantro and parsley my bunnies go through, if I got organic.
I do try to keep their treats as healthy as possible, so their treats are dried fruit, and I avoid anything with added sugar or preservatives. Nick has a sensitive tummy, so I am very careful with his treats. It seems that the organic stuff is less likely to have those things. I'm still careful to read labels. (I'm very particular about what I eat, as well.)

I do end up at Whole Foods once a week, though, in my normal grocery rounds. I buy a locally produced milk, and it is actually cheaper at WF than at the other store in town that carries it. Enough cheaper that it is worth driving to get it! (Tofu, olive oil, and veggie burgers are cheaper there, too!) While I am there, I do get their organic dandelion greens, Amelia loves them, so I try to provide them every day. Sometimes I will also get their organic carrots, if the tops are in good condition. I eat carrots every day, and my bunnies love the tops. I grocery shop on Saturdays, and I get enough to last a week, so I only need one trip per week.

So, I guess the short answer would have been.....Some of the buns' food is organic, some of it isn't. :)
 
BethM wrote:
Some of the buns' food is organic, some of it isn't. :)
Click to expand...

I don't want to start a debate on organic foods. I will use it but I think it is overrated. Over 90% of the organic fruits and vegetables are imported in Canada.

If it is an organic Canadian product grown in Canada, I would most likely believe it is so.The productis organic, because the farmer says it is. We have to take his word for it and there is no way we can prove it. Yes we have food inspectors, but there is no regulations that they follow and there is never a surprise visit on any farms that claim they are organic. Any inspections to a farm is called in advance and arrangements is made by the inspector and the farmer to when the inspector can come out to the farm to check it out. By then any evidence has been removed. :coolness:

So when products come from Mexico or China, would you really believe the claim is organic? I get a chuckle when a fruit is less than prefect or has a bruise on it, the farmer would say, "Label it as Organic and we can sell it for more." :twitch:
 
I also don't want to start a debate over organic vs. non-organic, but I would like to clarify what I wrote about it.......

I am more likely to choose local over organic, for most things. Also, some of the things I buy organic (like the bunny raisins) are more because there is no added sugar or preservatives, where the conventional raisins available here do have additives. Nick is very sensitive to sugars, so I will pay a premium price to get the bunnies Just Bananas, because I have found no other dried banana chips that don't contain oil and/or added sugar; they happen to also be organic. Amelia's dandelion greens are organic, but they aren't available any other way.

I will choose organic on things I normally buy, if they are on sale, but I cannot afford to buy everything organic all the time. I am more concerned in my regular food intake by additives, and watch carefully for those. I agree that the "oversight" on organic things can be questionable, in this country, and who knows what goes on in other countries.

So, I do try to choose local foods with few or no additives, whenever possible. If those items happen to be organic, as well, I guess it can't hurt.

:)
 
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