Customized Diet for Bunny!!!

[NickZac]

Health info has been so great here I figured I would give the nutrition section a go as well! So I have a 5.5-6lb Netherlands Dwarf named Lilly. She is freeroaming and highly active, and has a pretty ideal build. I figured I would run her existing diet by to see if it is acceptable and how it can be improved. She has:

Endless timothy hay...I used to get natural/organic but all I can find is bulk Kaytee...is that stuff as good as the small company product?

A lot of fresh vegetables, mainly romaine and carrots, with some broc, spinach, and celery (rophage)...I try for natural or organic as well as pesticides concern me.

About 1/4 to 3/4 cup a day of pellet food, usually under a half as I try to max the greens. The food I use is "Sunaturals Natural Rabbit Food with added vitamins and minerals". It smells much better than other foods and bunny seems to like it...but I recently noticed that the main ingredient is dehydrated alfalfa meal, which I was under the impression was not good. Am I missing something or is this not a great food to use? Is there anything better you recommend?

Pic of food:

 

[NickZac]

This is not Lilly...just to clarify. It was an upload error

 

[funnybunnymummy]

Aw, Lilly is so pretty!

Unfortunately, that Sunaturals stuff is full of junk.Look for a plainpellet that's 16% protein or less, preferably timothy based. Oxbow, Mazuri, Purina Mills, Kaytee, or a feed store brand will be better for her.

As for hay, do you have a feed store nearby? Often they'll allow you to collect the loose hay for free or sell a flake for a couple dollars. Or you could do what many members here do and buy an entire bale. You'll need to have some place to store it, but the hay will be 1000 times better (and cheaper!) than anything from the pet store. Heck, buy a bale and donate half of it to your local rabbit rescue or animal shelter!

Hope that helps!

Rue

 

[Flick]

Here's a video discussing vegetables for rabbits:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/user/FastUpOnRabbitCare#p/u/10/-W62vZIKW4g[/ame]

I buy Kleenmamas hay.
http://www.kmshayloft.com/

Petco sells a pellet called Zupreme Nature's Promise. It's Timothy hay based and pesticide free. I feed this to all my rabbits. I tried Oxbow Basic T (which may be a better pellet), but none of my rabbits like it.

 

[NickZac]

Thanks so much!

I'll have to try to find out if I can get hay around here or order it. I often wonder about how old that hay in the petstore bags are, as to if it is clean or has been stored and munched on by other critters.

She never ate the Kaytee or Oxbow very well. I tried Carefresh but that didn't fly either. I've heard of the Zupreme Nature's Promise; does that have tidbits in it like the Sunnaturals?

If I phase to a better pellet food, how long should I spend the 'blending' process to avoid sending her into digestive shock or her turning her back on my and ignoring me for a week?

 

[kirbyultra]

Zupreem's pellet food is just plain pellets. Some rabbits like it, some don't (like anything!). I agree that switching off that Sunatural brand is a good idea. It does have a lot of junk stuff in it.

The veggies are ok but just be aware that carrots are a treat because its sugar content. You can feed a little bit each day but it shouldn't be a large portion of your bunny's salad. I remember also reading that spinach is high in oxalates which can be harmful if accumulated. You can feed them every once in a while.

If you're going to switch pellets combine them slowly over the course of 2-4 weeks, adding more and more of the new pellets until compeltely switched over.

 

[butsy]

i dont think you should be feeding lilly carrots everyday. i forget if its too much sugar? i read it online somewheres.. it should be fed as treats

 

[butsy]

i feed my rabbit martins brand pellets. she loves it, it does make her shed a bit more tho...

 

[Yield]

[align=center]I used to feed Zupreem, and my rabbits didn't care for it that much.

Their fur was always bad- and they were shedding a TON 24/7! And there's corn in it (which I think is why their coats were so bad.)

I recommend Manna Pro, it's alfalfa-based (and plain looking- how it's supposed to), but my rabbits love it and their fur looks and feels sooo much better now. (and it's cheaper!)

I'm almost 100% sure that if I tried to switch them back to Zupreem, they wouldn't go for it.

I've heard of a lot of rabbits disliking Zupreem. Plus the protein level is a little too high than rabbits should be getting (at least that's what I've been told).. but if that's your choice- go for it and see if your bunbun likes it =)

 

[NickZac]

So would you try to get her to eat more of stuff like kale and/or collared greens? She shows a huge preference to carrots and romaine. Has anyone used the ecotritian food? I've heard it is pretty good. Lilly likes to pick the goodies out of the food she has now, and a few hours later she eats the rest. Hopefully, she won't stop eating the pellets.

 

[NickZac]

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4102642

Ingredient wise this looks good. Anyone here have any insight on it?



I may just give the Oxbow Bunny Basics a shot and mix it with some other, more 'junkish' food to entice her, as it seems a lot of pople on this forum give it the thumbs up.

 

[DebsBuns]

Mine just get the Oxbow Bunny Basics T with hay and veggies. Mine usually get red or green leaf lettuce, endive( when I can get it), bell peppers, tomatoes, cilantro, parsley( once a week), spring mix.

 

[Yield]

[align=center]Kale is recommended to only be given three times a week. I give it to my bunnies Mon, Wed, and Fri.

Here are some pics of the veggie bowls I give my buns EVERY night =) (The two bowls on the outside are 2.5 cups, and for my 4 lb and 5 lb buns, and the middle one is 4 cups and for my 12 lb bun)

These bowls contain:
-Kale
-Escarole
-Cilantro
-Romaine Lettuce
-Dandelion Greens
-Red Bell Pepper
-Orange Bell Pepper
-Yellow Bell Pepper
-Collard Greens
-Celery

These bowls contain:
-Red Bell Pepper
-Orange Bell Pepper
-Yellow Bell Pepper
-Kale
-Endive
-Celery
-Cilantro
-Parsley
-Dandelion Greens
-Bok Choy
-Collard Greens

I vary them but they almost always have Collard Greens, Parsley, Celery, Cilantro, Dandelion Greens, Bell Peppers, Endive, and Escarole. Romaine Lettuce is good for them too.

I'm not so sure about that food you posted (in the link). The food should look really plain like this:

(those are the pellets I feed my buns)

otherwise I'm pretty sure it's considered junk food.. like us eating McDonald's every day =P

But I think I've heard good things about the Oxbow!

 

[NickZac]

Yield:

I wish I had time to prepare meals like that for my bun!!! That is a feast! I eat Dandelion greens myself and never considered them for Lilly; I will try it out. She literally loves romaine so much that whatever I give to her has to be primarily Romaine, but given dandelion greens have a distinct flavor, perhaps she will like them.

--------

I've always been told Romaine isn't bad for them, as it does have nutrients unlike iceberg lettuce, but obviously variety is ideal. She eats broc pretty well too. Are there any bagged mixes I can get which have a variety of goof things for bunny???

I am feeding her a combo of her old food and Oxbow Bunny Basics/T. It is hard to tell if she is eating the Oxbow, although I think she is only eating some of it and picking the old food out. How long will it take her to accept it? I've put ground up treats in it..any idea on how to help her eat it as her current food really is 'junk'?

 

[MiniLopHop]

I started out with echotrition food, but when my vet read the label she was not impressed. It's a great brand for the gerbils, but not for buns. I switched over to the Oxbow. It took a few weeks to get situated, but bunnies tastes hopefully will change with time. Now all three of my bunns are on Oxbow and they eat well. The fur is shinier and sheds much less.

I get bags of mixed chard (swiss, red, and yellow). Adding dandilion, cilantro, and parsley on a regular basis. In general I will then also get one more thing, depending on what looks good at the store. Just a personal observation, but I think the rabbits tend to be more accepting and less picky by changing the greens every week. They have the staples so their tummies don't get upset, but having a wide selection also keeps them from focusing on one thing and refusing to eat anything else. It can be a big problem for turtles who also eat the same veggies.

Glad to know your bun didn't just turn into a reptile

 

[NickZac]

Well, she has taken a liking to parsley and spring mix, and to a lesser extent peppers. I realized the other day she is getting to be a really big bunny.