Mixing timothy pellets with alfalfa?

[pinupchick]

Right now Ula is eating Oxbow Bunny Basics Adult timothy pellets, but she tends to go through cycles of pickiness and will likely refuse to eat it shortly. Her go-to food whenever she becomes finicky is Peter's Maintenance pellets, which is mostly alfalfa based with other hays mixed in. The vet insists she be on timothy, but I have no choice but to switch her back to Peter's whenever she refuses to eat every possible brand of timothy pellet.

Also, her shedding cycles are a lot worse on timothy, which is odd, but I've noticed it several times over the past few years.

So here's my thought: I buy a big airtight container and dump a bag of Oxbow with a bag of Peter's. She never has digestive issues when I switch brands, so that shouldn't be a problem.

I also have an unopened bag of Peter's that I don't want to go to waste. She gets timothy hay all day and some fresh veggies at night. She's currently on 1/4 cup of pellets daily and she weighs 4 lbs.

Is half-and-half an okay idea?

 

[Bunnylova4eva]

I wouldn't think its too bad. People have told me to do timothy pellets, but my family decided that its too expensive compared and the purina alfalfa ones. Despite this, my bunnies have never had calcium level problems or anyhting like that. Its best to keep the bunny eating *something*. The timothy might be the 'ideal' but half and half should be fine.

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Giving a mix should not be an issue as long as she will eat both. I would not actually mix them all up, I would have 2 containers and mix as I serve. While it may be a bit more work, you do get to make sure it is evenly mixed and if giving a mix doesn't work then you can just go back to feeding one at a time.

 

[naturestee]

While I am a fan of timothy pellets, there is no reason that every rabbit HAS to be on them. If she does better on the Peter's stuff, that's fine. The main differences are that Peter's has lower fiber and slightly higher calcium, certainly not a deal-breaker. As long as the rabbit eats a good bit of grass hay, Peter's looks like a good food to me. I actually like the different food sources in it instead of just timothy.

Here's the nutritional info:
http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/products/type/fortified_food?node=1519
http://www.rabbitstop.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=RD506

 

[LilLops]

Thats exactly what i have only just started doing. In Australia the only timothy pellets you can get are oxbow but its unbelievably expensive and not very common, so i have a bag of oxbow and a bag of alfalfa pellets and mix them at dinner. I too feed 1/4 of a cup. Works for me for now!

I just do it becos its i like the idea of timothy pellets but its just unrealistically expensive to keep buying the little bags for my three.

good luck i hope you figure out something that works!