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i have butsy on regular mmartins .. she sheds like a crazy haha, im gunna go food shopping tonight lol ill let you knowwhat i find and what the experts recommend !!
 
Sorry for joining this thread late. I don't have any experience with Martin's but I have always fed Oxbow Bunny Basics T, and the first time Toby shed in his life he went on nonstop for 8 months before he finally stopped. So... I don't know if it's just the particular bun or the food! Did Gus shed like this before that you know of?
 
I do get my supplies from Montreal Critters! The woman who owns it is awesome and she is very rescue oriented! I just picked up a 50 lb. box of hay from them last week :) I really like the Harlan food I give to my rats (most rats are not fans of Oxbow) and mice and I was wondering if maybe their rabbit pellets were just as good. I like Martin's but I also think that Oxbow is better quality but have not switched over because I have an overweight bunny and they don't have a low cal formula. Which brings me to considering HT...
 
Gus was moulting when he came to live with us (the end of last August). He was beingfree-fed afeed store"deluxe" mix with pellets, corn, oats,wheat, sunflower seeds, and Calf Manna,and sometimes hay. I started researching rabbit diet and learned that mixes area big no-no,so Iwent back to the feed store and bought him just plain pellets.

Hestopped moulting about 6 weeks later. (I now think all the extra stuff in the mix was causing him to moult--particularly theCalf Manna which should really only be fed to nursing mamas!)Then I was told by a local rescue that Martin's was a better pellet, so I switched him to Martin'sLittle Friends (alfalfa) pellets (I couldn't initiallyfind him the Less Active timothy formula). About 6 weeks after that he started moulting again (around mid-December). I switched him to the timothy formula while he was still moulting (I think in late December).

Around about mid-January, I noticed he'd finished the one moult and had gone straight into another! I also noticed he was looking a bit thin and scruffy, so, after asking about it here and reading a few threads from the breeders about the lack of protein in the timothy formula feeds,I went out and bought some more MartinLittle Friends (alfalfa) pellets and began mixing about a Tbsp in with his regular amount.

He seemed to stop moulting after about2 weeks, but that only lasted for a week or two. Thenthe moulting went to all over shedding! This has been going on now for 7 months and I'm really tired of all the bunny tumbleweeds blowing around and the constant rabbit hair all over our clothes, etc. etc. It's almostworse than a cat!

Plus, I think the moulting may be contributing to his grumpiness. I've readthat moulting makes rabbits grumpy, and the longer he's been on Martin's the grumpier he's gotten! :grumpy:

Anyway, it just seems to me that the Martin's is the cause of all the shedding, so he's being switched back to thesame feed store brand he was on when he came to us. If he's still moulting in 6 weeks, then I don't know what I'll do. :rollseyesBut atleast the feed store pellets were super cheap! ($12 for 20 kg/44 lbs!vs. $17 for 5 kg/11 lbs!) So if I have to switch again, at least I won't have wasted a heap of money (just a heap of food... :p).

Thanks!

Rue

 
Hi, do you have a Peavy Mart store where you live? It is kind of like a farm/feed store. I buy a 50 lb bag of straight alfalfa pellets for about $16 and it lasts forever,these pellets, whole oats and grass and fruits and veggies and willow sticks to chew on make for a great diet for my buns and they only seem to shed in the spring.
 
I don't think a pellet will start a molt, but I can see them prolonging it. I haven't noticed a problem with Martins, but lately I've been mixing Oxbow and Martins together and its working well, the molts don't seem as intense, so there may be something to it. I also have a bag of Otter Coop here and may mix that in as well.

Martins is an extruded pellet and Pipp needs that for her molar spurs. I'm not sure if its the kale or the Martins keeping them in check, but something sure works well in that regard. :)

But the best solution is always variety. Rabbits are designed for variety. Just mix pellets and toy with the portions, but I wouldn't switch pellets.

Someone here once recommended upping the protein only during molts, the theory being that it will promote the new hair growth and help push the old growth out.

Not enough protein will hinder growth issues (like hair), too much tho is hard on the kidneys. You don't want to be faced with early renal failure when the buns are old. So it's a delicate balance.

I'm not a fan of the current trend to feeding just timothy hay and only low protein pellets. I think mixing varieties of hay and grasses, different pellets, and providing a variety of other vegetation like produce is still the healthiest bet.


sas :bunnydance:
 
Yes, on top of his pellets he gets as much local hay (it looks like it'sa mix) as he'll eat and a variety of fresh greens (parsley, cilantro, radishes andtops, carrots and tops, several different lettuces, kale, bok choy, mint, arugula, beet tops, etc. etc.) every day.

That part of his diet has remained fairly consistent since we've got him. So that's why I suspected it was the pellets causing the prolonged moults.

Anyway, I've been switching him over from the Martin's to the Otter Coop brand over the last week and ALREADY I've noticed a difference in his condition! He's still moulting, but I expect it'll take another 4-5 weeks for that to stop. But he's looking much sleeker and his fur is SO soft now! Even when he was on a mix of the Martin's timothy and alfalfa pellets he didn't look this good! :)

And the nutritional values aren't that much different between the two feeds:

16% protein vs. 15% with Martin's
3% fat vs. 2.5% with Martin's
18% fibre vs. 22% with Martin's (that's the biggest difference, but plenty of hay and greens should make up for that)

I am aware that the alfalfa meal can cause kidney problems later, but I guess that's a gamble I'm willing to take at this point. I suppose if he does really well on the Otter Coop feed, I could try mixing in some Martin's timothy again, but I have a feeling it'll just cause more moulting.

Why can't feeding rabbits be simpler? :p

Thanks!

Rue
 
I have some 14% Otter Coop pellets that I feed my buns. If you want a bag to try out with Gus, let me know. I don't remember all the fat and fibre values, but from my memory it is better than most other local feed store pellets. To get this one at the Pitt Meadows coop, you have to special request it and they ship if over from the Aldergrove Coop.

My buns don't shed very much, normally about once a year.

I have started feeding Baxter the Martins regular pellets as he was losing weight (he's about 8 now) and he's in much better condition now. I also think that when he was living with Zeke, he was eating about 90% of their pellet rations and Zeke was eating mostly hay, so when Zeke passed and I cut back on Baxter's pellets he started losing weight. But, I have not noticed any shedding since starting Baxter on this feed three months ago.

Send me a PM if you want to try out the Otter 14% pellets.

-Dawn
 
Thanks, Dawn!

I had no idea they had a 14% pellet! I'd have bought that instead! :p

Ah, well. I think this is probably a case of Gus just not doing well on Martin's (as I said upthread, so many people like Martin's I don't want to bash them!) since he's always seemed to look really thin and scruffy on it. Even when I started mixing the timothy and alfalfa he still didn't look all that great.

He looks really good now, butI haven't even totally switched him over to theOtter Coop brand and I'm a bit concerned he mightgettubby on it.I think I may have to cut back the amount he's getting to a 1/3 C a day instead of a 1/2 C! But I've noticed the Otter Coop pellets are much more dense than the Martin's. So that could be all the difference.

Anyway, I'll keep him on the 16% stuff for a month and see how he does. I'll let you know if I decide to try him on the 14%.

Thanks!!! :)

Rue
 
Great News!!! My local PetSmart is now carrying Oxbow Bunny Basics T! They said that most PetSmart's in Ontario should be stocking it now. I know that it doesn't help you too much Rue, but maybe there is hope that it will come to Vancouver for you soon.
 
Rens' Pets here in Ontario stocks it too.:)
 
I forgot about this thread! Thanks for bumping it!

Here's an update on Gus:

He's been on the Otter Coop brand of pellets for almost 3 weeks now and he's gone from shedding to moulting! But this is good, because it's a proper moult (started at his nose and working along his back, and the fur is coming out in clumps), instead of just all over shedding.

So, we'll see what happens when he's done his moult. If he stops shedding, he's staying on the Otter pellets. If he keeps shedding, then I'll be looking at Oxbow. :p

Thanks!

Rue
 
Bebe has been shedding for the last two months. There is fine hair all over the place. Thank goodness I have a hand vac to keep things under control.

I feed Bebe a combo of Oxbow, Zupreem, Martins, Extrusion, and some alfalfapellets. But she is in a constant shed. So who knows if food is a factor to the shedding. The weather has being extreme having a hot summer, with lots of rain this year.However Bebe lives in an air conditioned house so temperature can't be a factor either.
 
I shifted to Martin's Adult over the course of a month, and noticed that Slatey's fur became very coarse. I've switched bak to the less-active Martin's and will report back to you all :)
 
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