Feed question

[MyBabyBunnies]

Just wondering, how good is Oxbow rabbit feed? Here's the link:

http://www.oxbowhay.com/showProduct.sp?PRODUCT_NO=44&cat=46

 

[BunnyMommy]

Laura, that's theonly feed that my vet recommends. He's been telling us to getit for Sherman every since we adopted him.

When we finally run out of the feed thatwe got from the House Rabbit Society we're going to ordersome. He says that their hay is the best too along with theirtreats (says they're more nutritious and less disruptive to bunny'sdigestive system).

Hope this helps!

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I have to convince my parents to buy it! Fromwhat I can tell it looks excellent, but I have a ton of other feed Ineed to use first. Maybe I can get it next time I need feed lol.

 

[BunnyMommy]

LOL!

 

[HankHanky]

In my personal opinion,

anything that the House Rabbit Society sponsors as a perfect Rabbitdiet is questionable. They are NOT experts ! Except in their own minds.Any Vet that espouses the same, I just figure is in the pocket [blindlyfollowing the advise] of the HRS. Timothy based pelleted rabbit feed isnot the best choice for any rabbit and the feeding of Vegetables is NOTa necessity. That train of thought is what causes most of the dietaryproblems in Pet Rabbits. Believe it or not. I suggest you do your ownresearch rather than follow blindly the HRS. As always, JMPO.

The best of luck nomatter what road you choose.

Dennis,C.V.R.

 

[BunnyMommy]

Hi, Hank.Thanks for your opinion. I actually have done extensiveresearch in the area of bunny nutrition and am well aware that thereare multiple schools of thought in this regard.

I've found that the House RabbitSociety's nutritional plan works very well for Sherman. He ishappy, healthy, and thriving. I advocate diversity in bunny'sdietary program and the House Rabbit Society's regimen very adequatelyfits this bill. The veterinarian that I've chosen for him isone of the top vets in this state and I trust his opinion implicitly(just for your information, he was very honest and up front with us andtold us that bunny could very well live a long and healthy life on hayand water alone).

For now, all trains of information beingconsidered, HRS's plan is the one that we're going to gowith.

--BunnyMommy (Devoted bunny slave to Sherman)

 

[Carolyn]

Hi Laura,

I completely agree with BunnyMommy. Her advice is notone of opinion, but of research as well as her own very difficultexperience with Sherman.

The House Rabbit Society led you in the right direction.

Oxbow is an excellent feed and the professionals and long-timecaretakers of rabbits at my animal hospital swear by it.They're certainlynot out to 'line their pockets'.As a matter of fact, that couldn't be further from the truth.The many people I've spoken to at my animal hospital have actuallysteered me away from certain things in order to save memoney. Go Figure!!

-Carolyn

 

[m.e.]

HankHanky-

Just curious, but why do you say vegetables are not a necessity for rabbits? Certainly it's far more natural than pellets.

~M

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Caroyln,

That's why I took BunnyMommy's word for the feed. Shealways does her research thoroughly and wants the best possible forSherman. I tried to look up things on the feed but I could find nothingon it besides the kinds of feed they make, lol. I don't really have agood vet that I can just call up and ask these questions, the one Itook them to was about an hour away and me being the irresponsible momI was, never got the number. He was a good vet though, it gave meconfidence to know that he said their neuters were relatively simplyand should not be a problem and he had done many before, it just gaveme the idea that he knew what he was doing. He also took it uponhimself to get Spice tested for a urinary tract infection because I hadbeen worried about him peeing red, he said it was probably nothing butjust wanted to ensure that he was alright for me. Very good vet I mustsay, we got a discount because my brother in law's mom works their withhim so it was a very good deal. Anyways, now that I totally went offtopic I would just like to end on topic (for once, lol). Thank youBunnyMommy and Carolyn for your input and HankHanky for voicing youropinion.

[align=center]**************************************[/align]
[align=left]m.e.,[/align]
[align=left]Veggies and fruits are high in sugar content and are not atall needed in a rabbits diet for that reason. Sugar is not good forthem, even the natural stuff for fruits and veggies. [/align]

 

[Carolyn]

I'm glad you got it worked out, Laura.

You're absolutely right about BunnyMommy doing her homework before she gives advice.

I'm glad you have a good vet. It gives you a lot of comfortknowing that you have someone to rely on. Some might claimthat his doing the test of the urinary tract was just to 'line theirpockets with $$', but I don't buy into that at all. When yourrabbits are part of your family as yours are, it gives you piece ofmind to have such things investigated. I completely supportyou and I'm sure you felt better having the procedure done.

When are we going to see more pictures of your boys?

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

M.E.,

As to the question of vegetables in the diet, Buck summed it up well,as per usual, a while ago after I had asked a British Rabbit Councilmember about the vegetables question.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That vegetable diet thingmentioned is quite a bone ofcontention amongst rabbit fanciers, pet owners, breeders, and evencountries. People in the U.K. are more prone to feed "natural" foods,such as grass, for example or fruits and vegetables because that is thetraditional practice and pelleted feed, such as we are familiar withhere in the U.S., is not as easily obtainable.


In the U.S., most fanciers, breeders, and laboratories rely on acomplete, balanced, pelleted feed because it is available, inexpensive,convenient for their purposes and it has been a common practice for thepast 20-30 years. Some pet owner organizations, such as the HouseRabbit Society, however, advocate less pellets, or no pellets in thediet and more natural foods as being more healthy.


The arguement continues with little resolution in sight. I have beenkeeping rabbits on pelleted feed for about eight years now, and havebeen thinking about the question for some time. While I have made noconcrete conclusions yet, I have made a few observations.


The longest lived bunny on record, one Flopsy, a "wild" rabbit that wasadopted by an Australian family and grew to the ripe old age of 18years 10 mos 21 days, ate local grass and hay his owners provided fromtheir farm. They fed no pelleted feed. Although "wild," he was of thesame species as our own domestic buns in the UK and USA.


Pelleted feed enables rabbits to grow and make weight quickly,efficiently and inexpensively. It addition, it enables them to reachprime condition within a relatively short time. All these attributesare certainly of value to the knowledgeable breeder and fancier, whomight be interested in showing, and the average lab, that wants healthyrabbits,but I don't know that they are particularly interested inrabbits' longevity. In their satisfaction with the practicality ofpelleted feed, I think they might be missing some of positive aspectsof the long term effects of a more natural diet.


Bottom line, in nature, rabbits eat most any plant life they can gettheir little mouths on, yet they don't seem to live very long, either.Is that due more to to natural predation, or dietary factors? I suspectthe former, but can not conclude, therefore, that their diet isnecessarily the better one. A more "natural" diet just seems morecommon sensical to me, yet I know of rabbits who were ailing with sucha diet, and did perfectly well on a pelleted diet.


For the time being, I will continue to feed a mostly pelleteddiet,supplemented with timothy hay and some occasional greens, fruitsand vegetables as the more prudent course of action. Moderation is thekey, and not starting the young buns off to soon on the green matter.

* * * * * *

-Carolyn

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Carolyn wrote:

I'm glad you got it worked out, Laura.

You're absolutely right about BunnyMommy doing her homework before she gives advice.

I'm glad you have a good vet. It gives you a lot of comfortknowing that you have someone to rely on. Some might claimthat his doing the test of the urinary tract was just to 'line theirpockets with $$', but I don't buy into that at all. When yourrabbits are part of your family as yours are, it gives you piece ofmind to have such things investigated. I completely supportyou and I'm sure you felt better having the procedure done.

When are we going to see more pictures of your boys?

-Carolyn

Yes Carolyn, some may argue that he was, but I know differently. Heonly charged me for the amount that the test cost to run, not for thelabor! He never got a penny out of running the test and I know that fora fact. He charged next to nothing, if anything for the neuters, maybe$10 or $15 which is excellent considering I hear that most arearound $80 and that's the cheapest! Basically that only coveredthevet student that was assisting him.

Funny you should ask about picture, I was just thinking about that thismorning and need to ask for my sisters digital camera. I'll try to getit soon!

 

[BunnyMommy]

Carolyn wrote:

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

M.E.,

As to the question of vegetables in the diet, Buck summed it up well,as per usual, a while ago after I had asked a British Rabbit Councilmember about the vegetables question.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That vegetable diet thingmentioned is quite a bone ofcontention amongst rabbit fanciers, pet owners, breeders, and evencountries. People in the U.K. are more prone to feed "natural" foods,such as grass, for example or fruits and vegetables because that is thetraditional practice and pelleted feed, such as we are familiar withhere in the U.S., is not as easily obtainable.


In the U.S., most fanciers, breeders, and laboratories rely on acomplete, balanced, pelleted feed because it is available, inexpensive,convenient for their purposes and it has been a common practice for thepast 20-30 years. Some pet owner organizations, such as the HouseRabbit Society, however, advocate less pellets, or no pellets in thediet and more natural foods as being more healthy.


The arguement continues with little resolution in sight. I have beenkeeping rabbits on pelleted feed for about eight years now, and havebeen thinking about the question for some time. While I have made noconcrete conclusions yet, I have made a few observations.


The longest lived bunny on record, one Flopsy, a "wild" rabbit that wasadopted by an Australian family and grew to the ripe old age of 18years 10 mos 21 days, ate local grass and hay his owners provided fromtheir farm. They fed no pelleted feed. Although "wild," he was of thesame species as our own domestic buns in the UK and USA.


Pelleted feed enables rabbits to grow and make weight quickly,efficiently and inexpensively. It addition, it enables them to reachprime condition within a relatively short time. All these attributesare certainly of value to the knowledgeable breeder and fancier, whomight be interested in showing, and the average lab, that wants healthyrabbits,but I don't know that they are particularly interested inrabbits' longevity. In their satisfaction with the practicality ofpelleted feed, I think they might be missing some of positive aspectsof the long term effects of a more natural diet.


Bottom line, in nature, rabbits eat most any plant life they can gettheir little mouths on, yet they don't seem to live very long, either.Is that due more to to natural predation, or dietary factors? I suspectthe former, but can not conclude, therefore, that their diet isnecessarily the better one. A more "natural" diet just seems morecommon sensical to me, yet I know of rabbits who were ailing with sucha diet, and did perfectly well on a pelleted diet.


For the time being, I will continue to feed a mostly pelleteddiet,supplemented with timothy hay and some occasional greens, fruitsand vegetables as the more prudent course of action. Moderation is thekey, and not starting the young buns off to soon on the green matter.

* * * * * *

-Carolyn

Very wellbalanced and insightful analysis of the very"controversial" bunny nutritionissue.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Oops,can you tell I'm slightly one sided on the issue? Sorry lol, I used tobemore in the middle on all issues and could state bothsides. I'm starting to lose my touch with that since my english teacheralways told me to pick a side and stick with it, lmao.(It'salways the teachers fault!)

P.S.- This board movesfast.

 

[BunnyMommy]

No, no! It's all right, Laura!

That's exactly the point that we've beenmaking. There are multiple schools of thought out there onthis issue. You just have to pick the one that you feel isbest for your particular bunny. The method that you've beenusing is working very well for Mocha and Spice, so there's nothingwrong with embracing or supporting it.

P.S. I know about theboard moving so fast! I'm supposed to be asleep right now,but every time I think that I've finished answering posts five more popup!!!

 

[BunnyMommy]

P.S. Toadd to this, once you have the basics down (hay and water), the rest issubject to interpretation and moderation.

 

[Carolyn]

Don't worry about it, Laura.

For the record, you were right in saying that the vegetables have a lot of sugar in them. They do.


-Carolyn

 

[BunnyMommy]

That's right.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Have I told you all lately how much I love you guys and this forum?! lol.

P.S.- BunnyMommy shouldn't you be in bed?

 

[BunnyMommy]

Laura, you're sosweet!

Actually I was just thinking, oh,mercy. I need to be in bed. I have to get back upat 3:00 p.m. to start work today at 4:00 p.m. and I've been on thisboard for most of the morning! I know I need to getoff of here! My work hours have changed, but my body isresisting!

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

lol, I was wondering if perhaps Sherman took overthe bed and you were not looking too farward to sleeping in his cage.You can catch up with the board later.