Feeding veggies

[Cinnabun121212]

Hi, recently caught a rabbit that had been living my neighbor's yard for the past 3 months -- took me 3 weeks to catch her (I think it's a she)and has been with me for 5 days now and doing great and looks great! Also took to litter training within 2 days :bouquet:.

So my friend has been a rabbit owner for many years and she gave me a plan on what to feed my rabbit. She's not a baby. So for the past few days I have been feeding her ...

1/8 cup pellets in the morning along with a handful of mixed veggies (romaine, kale, parsley & cilantro)
Mid-afternoon another handful of mixed veggies
1/8 cup of pellets at night and handful of mixed veggies and one baby carrot a day

Does that sound good? She also has unlimited hay. Now that I have decided to keep her want to get her on Oxbow Bunny Basics and also get some Oxbow hay (instead of the Kaytee I am temporarily using).

I'd say she's a good 5 pound rabbit, very active and infatuated with my slippers??? I thinks she's trying to mate with them :huh. When not interested in my slippers is a very gentle bun who loves to be petted.

Any help is much appreciated ... I will be asking many more questions soon! Thanks for your help.

PS - I am planning on having her checked out by a vet this week!

 

[LakeCondo]

Just a few suggested modifications: give kale & carrot only occasionally & increase the pellets a bit unless she's overweight.

A vet check is a great idea. That should include finding out if she's spayed or not. I hope this can be done by a urine sample, but I have no idea. You might want to ask before your appointment.

I'm so glad you took her in & she seems to be bonding, at least with your slippers. You might want to get her a stuffed toy to play with.

 

[missyscove]

1/4 cup of pellets a day is fine for a mature, 5 lb rabbit. I wouldn't increase that unless she's underweight. You might want to check out feed stores near you for hay by the bale; it's much cheaper than pet store hay.
Her "interest" in your slippers sounds like hormonal behavior. I'd recommend discussing a spay with your vet when you take her in for your checkup. Especially since she was living as a stray, make sure your vet covers any parasiticides for internal or external parasites that she might require.

 

[Cinnabun121212]

Just curious as to the reason why Kale should be giving in moderation for a rabbit? I know with guinea pigs certain veggies had to be given in moderation due to the high sugar/calcium content.

Can rabbits eat spinach or red cabbage? I had a bought a package of "Spring Mix" veggies and saw there was baby spinach in the mix (that was a food I also had to limit with my pigs). Also is there any fruit treat that is safe for her? I was reading up on a list but would like to know personally from the real experts here!

As for hay, I luckily have a place where I can get Oxbow at a reasonable cost by bulk and it's always so so fresh and nice smelling .

I'll have to see about getting her a little stuffed toy ha-ha. I have an extra pair of slippers in the room with her but she doesn't seem to phased by them not moving.

Thanks.

 

[MyBabyHasPaws]

Here's a good link to a good site about this: http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/diet.html

kale, spinach and mustard greens are high in oxalates so their feeding should be limited to 3 meals per week.

 

[Cinnabun121212]

My friend gave me that link too and will further look into it. At this point I might just omit spinach and kale all together. Had a pig develop a kidney stone and just don't want to head in that direction again!

Today I made a mix of romaine, dill, chickory, arrugula & cilantro. Will be her main feed and maybe once every other day will add in parsley for now. I also bought a bad of Orchard grass and she is enjoying that mixed in with her Timothy hay.

Thanks so much for your help.

 

[JBun]

That's great of you to have taken in this bun and given it a good home It sounds like it's adjusting well.

For rabbits, you want to avoid sudden diet changes as it can sometimes cause digestive problems. When you introduce new foods it should always be starting with small amounts and gradually increasing as long as your rabbits poops stay normal. Here are some good veggie lists. Though the HRS website says that certain veggies don't cause gas with rabbits, I haven't found that to be true. I've heard of several accounts of some veggies causing probelms with rabbits, so that is something you will want to keep an eye out for with your rabbit. If you only introduce one new veggie at a time, then if it seems to upset your rabbits stomach, you'll know that that veggie might not be ok for your rabbit.

http://www.rabbit.org/care/veggies.html
http://www.3bunnies.org/feeding.htm#greens

 

[erinmoveit]

I have that picture on my phone sent to me from a fellow bunny friend on the forum whom I've adopted a bondmate for Peanut. It's great. Although, I find myself tending to get the same things repeatedly. Question, the *'s, SHOULD they be given 1-3x's a week or is it saying that IF you do feed those items, it should be no more than 1-3x's per week. That always confuses me.

 

[Imbrium]

IF you feed them, they should be limited

 

[erinmoveit]

Thanks for that clarification. I tend to stay away from those veggies. In the past, Kale has always increased the amount of cecals and in the event that I'm not around to feed the buns, I can be sure that whatever they get is an "any day" food!

 

[MyBabyHasPaws]

^i'm the same way! I just stay away from those all together.

My main mix here is: Romaine, parsley, endive and whatever herb they can eat that the grocery store has on sale that week lol. I always include either a grape or small carrot for dessert

 

[erinmoveit]

mine go CRAZY for cilantro and mint! Staples here are endive, brussel sprouts, parsley and bok choy

 

[Cinnabun121212]

I'm getting a bit confused here, I thought parsley and carrot were to be given in moderation and not everyday? How many sprigs of parsley do you give daily? I think I will try Mint next ... sounds like it might be a hit .

Right now my bunny is either trying to fake me out begging for more food or really needs it. I am still keeping up with the 2 packed cups of fresh veggies daily, unlimited hay and a 1/4 cup of pellets a day. She just devours the pellets in minutes (even knocks her dish over to eat them). She really needs to dive more into her hay and why I'm sticking to this routine for now.
Due to the holiday I have to wait until after Christmas now to get her to a vet and just hoping I'm giving her enough food. She's really happy, active and :happybunnyoops are good

 

[Imbrium]

yes, parsley should be limited... HRS says high OA veggies shouldn't be more than one of three veggies that are offered each day and that you need to rotate the high OA veggies... basically, no more than 1/3c per 2 lbs body weight in a day, don't feed parsley more than 2-3 days a week and don't feed it with other high OA veggies.

 

[erinmoveit]

My buns eat their pellets the same way. They always act like they're starving and not getting enough to eat. Always pulls on my heart strings a bit, but I know that they're getting their fair share.

 

[mochajoe]

A wonderful site with a wealth of information about feeding and care is the House Rabbit Society... www.rabbit.org Good luck!!!

 

[Pipp]

Pipp's salad... They really should eat a large variety of veggies. A little of almost everything (except legumes, leeks, some roots, etc) is best. I try for at least one leafy green, one herb, one cabbage-like veggie (broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage) and one different colored one (bell peppers, raddiccio, cauliflower, sometimes tomato, whatever).


sas :bunnydance:

 

[Pipp]

oh, and a bit of carrot or apple.