Oxbow pellets

[Blue eyes]

KittyKatMe wrote:

I get a 10 lb bag of Oxbow at my local pet store for $9 for Young $10 for adult. It's a pretty good deal, and I have 3 on Young, 2 on a mix, and 2 on adult, so I need a couple bags per week.

Wow, that's unusually cheap. Our petsmart carries 5 lb bag of oxbow for $13!!!

Is that their Oxbow Essentials? Are you sure it's a 10 lb - not a 5lb?

 

[HolyHandGrenade]

I just bought a 10-lb bag of Young Rabbit Oxbow on Monday for $14.99 + $5 shipping on wag.com, with 15% off because it was my first order. (Oh and then it showed up yesterday...yep, less than 24 hours after I ordered it!) The store I used to get the 10-lb bags at sells them for at least $20, so this was a pretty good deal. I'm gonna buy much larger bags online once Monty's on adult formula.

 

[ldoerr]

I just ordered a 10lb bag of Oxbow adult from BinkyBunny today. It cost $13.99 for the 10lb bag + shipping which was not bad considering what all I ordered (10lb bag oxbow, bale of young oat hay, litter box screen, papaya tablets). It said that it would take 4 buisness days to get here. On BinkyBunnies website, if you have your order shipped to a buisness you save like $3-$5 (cant remember which) on shipping.

 

[Thumperina]

Update. My bunnies ate pretty well Oxbow young rabbit food (alfalfa based).
Finally, I decided to switch for Adult rabbit food (timothy based). It smells differently. I saw Polly come by, smelled it and left. During the night the amount in the bowl reduced a little, but not anything close to how much young food they were eating.
I am thinking to switch back to Young rabbit food. It says on the package that it is for "all active rabbits". Mine are pretty active (two are 1 year 1 month old, two others are 7 months old).
Do you think it should be OK if I keep feeding them Young rabbit food? Sherwood forest is alfalfa based, isn't it? Or, should I wait and see if they get used to Adult food?

 

[lyndym]

Update. My bunnies ate pretty well Oxbow young rabbit food (alfalfa based).
Finally, I decided to switch for Adult rabbit food (timothy based). It smells differently. I saw Polly come by, smelled it and left. During the night the amount in the bowl reduced a little, but not anything close to how much young food they were eating.
I am thinking to switch back to Young rabbit food. It says on the package that it is for "all active rabbits". Mine are pretty active (two are 1 year 1 month old, two others are 7 months old).
Do you think it should be OK if I keep feeding them Young rabbit food? Sherwood forest is alfalfa based, isn't it? Or, should I wait and see if they get used to Adult food?

I switched my buns to Oxbow adult food once they turned about a year old. I didn't have to, but some people suggest mixing some of the previous pellets with new pellets whenever switching, whether you're switching brands or types. This way the buns are kind of tricked into getting used to the new pellets! You could probably ask your vet about whether or not an adult rabbit should be eating young rabbit food. The use of alfalfa in it promotes growth/a healthy weight in babies and pregnant/nursing moms, so it's possible an adult rabbit could gain too much weight eating that type of pellet.

 

[missyscove]

I'd recommend switching them over more slowly. I'm sure the alfalfa based pellet smells tastier, but in time I think they'd learn to love the adult food too, mine sure do.

 

[Blue eyes]

Yes, absolutely the food should be switched gradually. Mix the old with the new over the period of 1-2 weeks. They just get used to it that way. You can start by mixing 3 parts juvenile food with 1 part adult. After several days switch to equal parts of each. Then switch to 1 part juvenile to 3 parts adult food.

Any time food type or brand is switched, it's a good idea to do it gradually.

I would not recommend keeping them on the alfalfa-based. I believe you also stated in an earlier post that they are also eating alfalfa hay? If this is still the case, try doing the same thing. Mix the alfalfa hay with timothy or orchard and gradually decrease the portion of alfalfa hay. Any adult will usually go for the alfalfa just as they'd go for a bowl of candy. It's up to us to get them to eat the healthier diet.

 

[Thumperina]

yeah, I suddenly completely ran out of young rabbit food because we got 14 inches of snow, and unavailability of grass in the yard caused them finish package of pellets unusually quickly. I didn't expect to run out of pellets on that day. So I rushed to the store and got them adult food instead of young rabbit food. It was cold turkey switch.
I guess I will order both types and switch them gradually.
I just remember some people saying even in this topic that there is nothing wrong with alfalfa based pellets. Also, the way Oxbow food is advertized on packages makes me think that Adult food is not for active rabbits (is it for fat lazy rabbits then?)

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

Alfalfa is not just a treat. Alfalfa-based pellets are a healthy diet for rabbits of any age, when fed appropriately. Adult rabbits do best on a measured amount of lower protein alfalfa pellets (14-16%). The general rule is about 1/2 cup daily per 5 lbs. body weight. The amount can be adjusted for your particular rabbits. I have Dwarf Hotots and Holland Lops, which range from 2-4 lbs. Most of them eat a leveled 1/2 cup daily and have beautiful fur and good body weight. If I notice one getting a little chunky, I just cut back to about 1/4 cup. If I notice one that seems thin, I give them a heaping 1/2 cup or so.

There are also alfalfa pellets that are 17-18% protein which are the kind that are best for nursing or pregnant does, litters and young kits. These pellets are usually higher in fat too.

If you choose to feed an alfalfa pellet, I would recommend feeding a grass hay with it (timothy, orchard grass, bermuda, etc.) Alfalfa is higher in calcium, so it needs to be balanced with grass to ensure that your rabbit isn't getting "too much of a good thing." Sometimes it takes a little while to switch off of alfalfa hay, but they come around.

 

[holtzchick]

you guys are so lucky shipping from binkybunny.com is so cheap!! It's very expensive like $20 to ship to Canada the shipping is more than some of the items.

Hmm I wonder why they say you shouldn't stock more than a few weeks pellets. Does it matter if the expiry date is not for a while and they are kept sealed in a air tight container/resealable bag?? Sorry if I'm hijacking this thread let me know i can start a new one.

 

[missyscove]

It's not so much the alfalfa itself that matters, but the higher protein content overall which typically results from the alfalfa being in the pellets. An active adult rabbit would be more like a rabbit that was breeding. Your typical house bunny doesn't need that much protein.

 

[Thumperina]

Alfalfa is not just a treat. Alfalfa-based pellets are a healthy diet for rabbits of any age, when fed appropriately. Adult rabbits do best on a measured amount of lower protein alfalfa pellets (14-16%). The general rule is about 1/2 cup daily per 5 lbs. body weight. The amount can be adjusted for your particular rabbits. I have Dwarf Hotots and Holland Lops, which range from 2-4 lbs. Most of them eat a leveled 1/2 cup daily and have beautiful fur and good body weight. If I notice one getting a little chunky, I just cut back to about 1/4 cup. If I notice one that seems thin, I give them a heaping 1/2 cup or so.

There are also alfalfa pellets that are 17-18% protein which are the kind that are best for nursing or pregnant does, litters and young kits. These pellets are usually higher in fat too.

If you choose to feed an alfalfa pellet, I would recommend feeding a grass hay with it (timothy, orchard grass, bermuda, etc.) Alfalfa is higher in calcium, so it needs to be balanced with grass to ensure that your rabbit isn't getting "too much of a good thing." Sometimes it takes a little while to switch off of alfalfa hay, but they come around.

do you keep your buns separately and feed them separately? Mine are all together and I don't have a way to track who ate what. It can be that one (out of 4) rabbits eats the whole amount with others not touching the food, but I doubt it (I see all of them eating from time to time). They get about 1 cup in the morning that last them during the day and 1 cut in the evening to last overnight. So, it should be 1/4 + 1/4 cup per rabbit a day if they eat it equally. Except it, they eat grass in the yard (when it not covered with snow like now), veggies and hay.

 

[Thumperina]

Should I consider my mostly outdoor rabbits as "active" rabbits? They are not very active during the day but love to run around at dusk and down. They go up and down stairs and they jump up the bale of hay I have (pretty high).

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

do you keep your buns separately and feed them separately? Mine are all together and I don't have a way to track who ate what. It can be that one (out of 4) rabbits eats the whole amount with others not touching the food, but I doubt it (I see all of them eating from time to time). They get about 1 cup in the morning that last them during the day and 1 cut in the evening to last overnight. So, it should be 1/4 + 1/4 cup per rabbit a day if they eat it equally. Except it, they eat grass in the yard (when it not covered with snow like now), veggies and hay.

Yes, my rabbits are housed separately. I raise rabbits on a small scale, so they aren't spayed/neutered and can't live together.

Your rabbits are certainly more active than most breeding rabbits. An alfalfa pellet should be fine as long as it's measured appropriately for the number of rabbits living together. Just check them regularly to make sure everyone is maintaining a healthy weight and body condition.