Well, I Think I Have A Picky Eater.....

[agnesthelion]

I posted the other day about small poops. Karen gave great advice about maybe Agnes being too distracted playing and notmeating like she should when she has free run.

So I've been doing a more close inventory of her hay intake. I think I have a bun who doesn't care for Timothy Hay. She just doesn't eat a lot of it. I have some alfalfa hay bale that I got when she was a baby, she will eat SOME of that, but still not alot.

She is also really picky with treats and veggies. I've just started introducing them to her the last couple weeks. Shell eat romaine but that's about it. She wont even touch the "fattening" treats like banana, blueberries, or raisins.. What the heck!?!?!?

Even her pellets she has been picky on.

So I read oat hay for picky eaters. What else should I try? I'm going to our huge local farmers market on Saturday.....are there some "weird" things I should get for her?

Thanks!! I know I ask a lot ofnquestions on here and i really appreciate all the help

 

[MiniLopHop]

I would try botanical/orchard hay, my kids go crazy for it. I think it is a bit softer and certainly more aeromatic of the hays.

Perhaps try some herbs? Parsly and Cilantro are favorites at my house. They also love edible flowers such as lavendar or pot maragolds (NOT regular maragolds, it must be the caldula species). It's better to save fruit until they are a bit older, so it's good she doesn't like them yet.

 

[ZRabbits]

Oat hay is good and will give her a variety. Mine just love to lay on it as it is softer. They like the crunch of the Timothy. Alfalfa is good too, but aren't you giving Agnes alfalfa pellets already? Might be too much alfalfa for her.

Cilantro and Parsley are good to start off on. Mine love the leafy plants. You could also give Agnes Wheat Grass. That always brings on the appetite for my boys.

The only fruit mine like are apples and strawberries.

And regarding marigolds, did a check, and there is nothing out there that says just the caldula species. Would love to see research on that as I did get marigolds. I've looked high and low and have not seen were there is just one specific kind of marigold good for bunnies. And it's a myth that marigolds keep bunnies out of gardens, so if a wild bunny can eat it, hmmmmm.

K

 

[1357rabbitlover]

Yeah, i agree my bunnies all love parsley too, and 2 out of 5 of my bunnies don't like all the sweet stuff like carrots, banana and apples. All they eat that is sweet is strawberries and sometimes pear.

 

[agnesthelion]

Good to know I will try more of this stuff listed.

Yes she is getting alfalfa pellets but I only put the other hay bale in there to see if she would eat it. Ironically I just switched pellets here recently because she wasnt really eating her other ones. Guy at the feed store told me don't stress too mich about pellets if she is eating hay and healthy veggies. Well, she isn't doing that either! Haha I don't plan overloading her with Alfalfa....just experimenting to figure out her taste buds
And the sweet stuff I also only really tried to see of she would eat it so I could see how picky she really was.......

 

[ZRabbits]

Well I would stress the pellets.Pellets have come a long way anddoes have everything your bunny needs in it. Plus a good hay and veggies. But that's just me.

Hope you find what your picky eater likes.

K

 

[agnesthelion]

Oh yes, I will definitely keep up with pellets I just think he meant that there is so much other variables than just pellets (sadly, some novice bunny owners think you just put pellets in their cage and that's it ) i probably just need to figure out what she will eat and balance it out from there best I can.

Darn picky eaters! My hubby is picky and no my rabbit is too! Hahaha...Hard for me to understand because I will literally eat almost anything!

 

[ZRabbits]

agnesthelion wrote:

Oh yes, I will definitely keep up with pellets I just think he meant that there is so much other variables than just pellets (sadly, some novice bunny owners think you just put pellets in their cage and that's it ) i probably just need to figure out what she will eat and balance it out from there best I can.

Darn picky eaters! My hubby is picky and no my rabbit is too! Hahaha...Hard for me to understand because I will literally eat almost anything!

I'm very fortunately, My husband and my bunnies will eat anything stuck under their noses. Though with Luna, it has be served her way. But at least she's eating.

You will find Agnes' balance.

K

 

[PaGal]

Not sure if it will help but I thought I would throw it out there for anyone that might find it useful. Thump did not eat so much of the hay I bought from the store but my neighbor who is a farmer gave me a bale of timothy/orchard and Thump eats it like crazy.

The stuff from the store seemed fresh enough, even had a nice smell to it but Thump prefers the neighbors fresh. Of course with the neighbors he gets long pices of hay and some fairly thick ones which he seems to prefer.

 

[Samara]

I may be off base, but you might want to check her mouth. Sometimes if a bun isn't eating much it's because something inside their mouth aches. Maybe her teeth are giving her something to gripe about? Might be worth while to grab another human and a flashlight and take a peek.

Orchard hay is sweeter and greener than most timothy hay...you may have luck with that. All of the above suggestions sound good! I may have missed it above, but I was going to recommend dry oatmeal. Quaker or store brand will do, but make sure it's plan and not the sugary stuff. Sometimes I mix that in with pellets.

Parsley is a favorite around here. Banana too. Kale, collard greens, carrots with tops...

What brand of pellet did you switch to?

 

[melbaby80]

Cilantro and parsley are a favorite here. I also mix a bit of oatmeal in Jacks food from time to time. He prefers timothy to orchard, but he will definitely eat both.

 

[agnesthelion]

What brand of pellet did you switch to?

^^^i don't even know the brand. It's from a local feed store in my town that has been around for a gazillion years. It's where I get her Timothy hay too. Fresh baled and not store bagged. They sell everything for birds all the way to cows and horses.

The guy knows a fair bit about buns (and all animals really) and when I told him about her picky troubles, he led me to this stuff. It is more alfalfa based than hay based but she is only 4 months old and also he said as long as she gets some good greens and veggies and hay it's fine. BUT as I've said, I've realized her hay intake isn't where it should be so I need to work on a balance.

Thanks for all the food tips. I'm making a list of what to try and how to balance things out

 

[agnesthelion]

I may be off base, but you might want to check her mouth. Sometimes if a bun isn't eating much it's because something inside their mouth aches. Maybe her teeth are giving her something to gripe about? Might be worth while to grab another human and a flashlight and take a peek.

^^good idea. I will get my hubby's help to look when he gets home.