Switching pellet brands, are the new ones okay?

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Catlyn

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Hey everybody! So we had almost run out of our previous balticagro pellets and we got a new bag today, but it's not exactly the same. These previous pellets were yellowish white grassy in color and tasted like hay. These new pellets are bigger, and more brownish and firmer, tasting more like grains. The packaging only says "for rabbits" and leaves me cold on whether these are meant for meat or pet rabbits. I'll add a picture of the new pellets below. Thanks in advance!
 

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Hi, it is hard to say from the look I guess you can contact manufacturer and ask about composition of the pellets. Usually there are components stated on package and it should give you all the components. It is important that fibre was 19% or more, also you can see is it alfalfa based or what are the main ingredients, wheat, oaths, it is impossible to guess from your photo what is inside of it.
Anyway, when you want to make transition to new pellets you should mix old pellets with new for a week or two, first few days take 2/3 old pellets and 1/3 new, then a few days 1/2 and 1/2 and so on, reducing old and increasing new, if you don't have any alternative you should perhaps trust what's written on your bag that it is for rabbits. Or think of some other ways to feed your rabbit without pellets made from unknown ingredients.
I've heard of dog food made of various outdated products, like old bread taken just with all the plastic packages and so on, I don't know was this true or not but if there are no ingredients maybe it's just irregular components? I am pretty sure if you contact manufacturer they will tell you more.
 
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If it doesn't have ingredients listed I wouldn't feed it. Find out what is in it first, and if it is ok, then transition as Poopy Poo describes.
 
Yes, i would love to feed him stuff that i know for sure is good and safe for him, but i'm afraid that is not an option. You see, i have no saying in the situation of what pellets he gets bought, as my dad handles that part. He said that the manufacturer's warehouse didn't know exactly either. The only thing in the bottom of the bag was "30 kg dry pellets for rabbits"

Unfortunately i lack the time and finances to constantly supply my bun with a multitude of leafy greens in order to cut out the pellets from his menu. And yes, i have planted potted dill and normal lettuce to grow for him, but it takes time.

And i constantly squabble with mom that enough carrots and apples for the day is enough- she once mindlessly gave him a potato chip, two full carrots and tiny apples-all in one day. Whatever should i do when my mom is so stubborn to change?

Anyway, are there any telltale signs that a specific brand of pellets is just not good enough for the rabbit?
That brand, although unlabeled, tastes fibrous (and grainy, and solid) enough for me. I'll mix in a little of those for him tomorrow and will keep you all updated if anything out of the ordinary happens.

Thanks for all the help!
 
Question - did you eat the pellet to see what it tastes like? Or how do you know? I'm just curious lol
I don't have any experience with pellet brands outside of the US so I can't help you there
 
Another question, is there a huch difference between food for pet and meat rabbits? I guess meat rabbits get more nutritious food and just more food generally, could be wrong of course, but if you got meat rabbit pellets they are still edible maybe less healthy?
 
Of course i tasted them-how else would i know? I'm not absolutely sure how big the difference of those two feeds is either, probably meat rabbit food includes more nutrients? They couldn't possibly cut down the amount of fibre because they don't seem to have huge pockets filled with cash to visit vets for teeth trimming. These pellets did taste fibrous and grainy though, not grassy, so i guess i'm safe to assume these are not based on alfalfa? I've never ever actually seen alfalfa around here, when we got him, he was already on adult food.
 
So, i asked before- are there any telltale signs that a brand of pellets is just not good enough?
 
So, i asked before- are there any telltale signs that a brand of pellets is just not good enough?
Well, if your rabbit gets sick maybe they are not good enough. Sorry the name of the brand is unknown so manufacturer too, pet owners usually buy well-known brands with good reputation with full description of ingredients etc, so we say *** pellets are suitable for my rabbit as they have 19% of fibre, low calcium and fat and based on timothy hay, or alfalfa can be if your rabbit is under 4 months. What you asked sounds like mission impossible, I personally can't tell anything about this unknown brand from a photo of one pellet even if you tried it and described its taste!
But I understand you want to know if it's safe to feed your rabbit with them. I've asked questions not long ago, trying to understand what is written on a package and how do I know if this is good or bad food. Here's my thread maybe if you read it you can learn some basics too, I feel much more confident now, with a help of people from this forum.
https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/comparing-food-pellets-of-two-different-bags.94086/
 
Myself when I buy rabbit pellets I focus on the ingredients. So better to focus on those than the brand and so on.

Try to buy pellets that have no antibiotics in them, some have it. Low fat, low protein and high fiber level and so on ^^

Don’t know if your country also have law on that ingredients should stand some where on the package.
 
@Hermelin Yes i tried to figure out what's in those pellets from the package and with all the help from the kind people on the forum and irl but it didn't say what is in it, and still no-one knows. But as all the pellets that we have ( had ) are from a manufacturer that specializes in animal foods, i reckon that they couldn't be anything too dangerous. And as said before, i have no saying in what pellets get bought for him. But he did seem to enjoy them with great pleasure so i think we should be okay?

Thank you all so much for helping me out
 
Well if it is your local manufacturer and there's not much choice you should probably trust them, I googled your previous pellets Agrosomething they are specialising on food for animals and from their other products I believe that it's not for pet rabbits but for farming, but I can be wrong. I understand that you depend on your parents, there are many online shops like zooplus.com that ship to Estonia 5 euro for delivery and free delivery on orders over 50 euro or so, no problem and they have pet rabbit food and everything for rabbits so you can get all ingredients and choose proper food for your rabbit. But, of course their prices would be much higher than your father got from your local manufacturer, so maybe they won't buy from them. I know I am sometimes on a very tiny budget myself can't afford everything I wish to buy for my rabbits, so I understand that pretty well.

About your food. If I were in your situation I would probably try to find the name of manufacturer and call them and ask about rabbit food they produce, they probably would redirect me to some other people who are responsible for this particular food, maybe it's just dead end but I would try anyway. Just to get what it made of.
Now, say I have a bag of new food and I have a rabbit I would probably I don't know I'd give him some, firstly mixed with his old pellets (also unknown brand and ingredients), well he will probably eat them as well.

The problem is not that he won't eat them but maybe they are high on calcium or composed of ingredients simply not good for his bones or liver or hair or something, home rabbits can live 10-14 years on good diet and proper care, but they also can develop arthritis or teeth problems or liver problems, and you will have to go to vets, which is not easy as I understood and would be very expensive so you again will depend on your parents with that.

That's why people here won't recommend feeding him some unknown food, because well-known manufacturers produce well-balanced food, to keep your rabbit healthy for long and happy life.

That is your risk, that if this food made for meat rabbits maybe their main goal is to gain more weight and I don't know at what age they are going to be butchered but definitely not 10 years.

That's how I see it, I might be wrong. You will have to think for yourself and decide on your own responsibility.

If you won't feed him dry food I think there are more options I know there are different types of diet and maybe some people here can advise about it, I have no experience, my rabbits are 100% home pets and my situation is different. But I am happy to share what I've already learned myself, pretty sure you'll find your own solution.
 
Yes, my bun is a total pet and our family has all agreed that he will not be anyone's dinner( well if i were to crack a joke he would probably be mister Death's meal in ten years or so, hsven't and probably won't neuter him as parents see no need for that)

I haven't actually heard of that online shop, will definetly check it out though, and maaaaybeee i can talk to dad if he would call or write or whatever the manufacturer's warehouse to know what's inside the bag, well, any prescise information, to be exact.

Could i just leave out his pellets until we can find out what's inside of them?

EDIT: i checked the website for rabbit feeds, and they all were described as "dwarf rabbit food" while my boy weighs somewhere around 6kg. I'm not sure if dwarf food fits for no-dwarfs
 
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Could i just leave out his pellets until we can find out what's inside of them?

If he is a good hay eater (eats about his body size each day) and is fed greens regularly, then not having pellets is fine. If he doesn't get greens every day (I think you mentioned), but is eating plenty of hay, then it is still ok to go without pellets for a short while. I've heard of people feeding nothing but hay... not sure on whether that is nutritionally acceptable or not.
Some rabbits are far more sensitive than others. I knew of one rabbit that had been fed nothing but dried dog food for his first 5 years!
 
Oh he is such a hay lover! Sometimes he gets prickly with his selection of hay from the bale, but he'll munch it all up anyways, so i see no problem in that. Honestly, his bottle froze a week ago so we've been pouring his water into a cup, and thus he eats more hay in result-he had been too thirsty to totally devastate a hay rack before. Now he's eating as much as he should. The fact that he jumps up up and high to devastate a fluffy haybale shows me that he's quite a grazer.

He doesn't seem to mind occasionally tumbling down onto a hay-stuffed pillow to get the best selection of hay right from the bale.


But when we mean " hay the size of himself" we do mean how big he is in size, not weight, right?
I'm not sure if 6kg is somewhere around 13 lbs or not, but i sure hope no single bun stuffs so much inside. But when evaluating looks of size, he does chew up that amount of hay. He seems to be calm enough to climb on my belly, scoping around and munching on hay right then and there, so i guess he's just chill while curious?
He doesn't exhibit that behaviour with my parents though?
 
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And yes, another question. I know all about the tp rolls and cb boxes stuffed with hay herbs and snacks and stuff, but what sort of toys should i look for/try to make when i want to add a level to his run while not taking up too much space?

I have seen those bridges and hay houses in my local pet stores, but they are all ridiculously small for my big bun, and in my opinion, a little overpriced.
 
I'm so sorry for such an awkward post asking my questions like this, but while i was editing the post from before to add in all the questions, the forum said that i had taken my sweet time over 15 minutes to edit that so i had to screen and paste them all here. Hope these are elligible. Sorry!
 

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Hmmm... wonder if it is a glitch about the 15 minutes. I've walked away in the middle of writing and returned an hour or more later, and have been able to pick up where I left off.

Not sure if I'll get all your questions. Yes, I mean size (not weight) of body. If he's a good hay eater, that's great. And, yes, it does make them drink more water. :)

The eating of hay is what causes their teeth to grind down properly. It is the only thing that causes their jaw to move in that figure 8 motion for grinding. Hay (grass) also contains silica which works like sandpaper on their teeth. Chewing twigs is for entertainment but isn't doing what hay does for grinding of teeth. Many rabbits will ignore branches.

The balls made to hold hay make hay-getting too difficult. Some rabbits may enjoy it for fun, but it should never be the primary way to offer hay. I don't use them. Never have.

Growing grass for a rabbit is fine too. Might want to check what kind of seeds. Alfalfa is too rich. In fact offering any fresh grass would be like offering a new green. It would need to be done gradually and a small amount at a time to prevent stomach upset.
 
Thanks!
Out of pure curiousity, what chew toys are effective on your rabbits?
 
All 4 of my rabbits are dental bunnies and chew these type of things :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rosewood-B...00PUENTL8/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

Which are really tough and keep their front teeth down.
Be warned it's not an exciting toy, they just chew on it over time..

I also found 3/4 of my buns enjoy chewing on this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003II221G/ref=twister_B00GLQG434?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Its not 100% hay, its a cardboard tube coated in hay- but they enjoy gnawing on it.

The willow balls are always broken within a few minutes, and the branches you buy in shops are tasteless and dull. If you can, collect some locally- apple trees and fresh willow branches are always a huge success with mine.

I grow a range of different things for mine, I like to engourage different types of chewing and textures to grind down their teeth naturally. Growing grass is a really nice treat for bunnies!
 

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