What could be wrong with pellets if buns ignore them?

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Jenk

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This morning, two of our three rabbits made several attempts to eat their pellet rations but would only eat a few pellets before walking away from their dishes multiple times. They both eventually gave up and left their nearly-full dishes in favor of hay, which is not like them at all.They love Oxbow BB/T, and I'd just opened a brand-new bag (with a 12/12 best-buy date).

One of our buns did eat half of her ration--about 1.5-2 tsp.'s worth--but I removed her dish before she could finish it. The other two buns' unwillingness to eat the samepellets really concerns me.

Should I be worried about Mycotoxins? Our rabbits are not pellet picky and have never turned up their noses at Oxbow BB/T, which is the only brand/type that they eat.

I should also note thatI bought another bag of Oxbow BB/T this morning from a different location, and all three buns ate their rations from that bagwithout hesitation.

Thanks,

Jenk



 
Did you check and see if their tummy was hard? Could be that nasty GI stasis? How is the output going? Poo normal? is it a new bag of pellets? if so do you see any mold?

I'd check later today and see if their appetite improved and if not - give simithecone and see if they are just having a bought of gas; if things don't improve an hour later I'd go to the vet.

Please update.
 
juliew19673 wrote:
Did you check and see if their tummy was hard? Could be that nasty GI stasis? How is the output going? Poo normal? is it a new bag of pellets? if so do you see any mold?

I'd check later today and see if their appetite improved and if not - give simithecone and see if they are just having a bought of gas; if things don't improve an hour later I'd go to the vet.

They refused the first ration of pellets at 7:30 am today; I can't yet tell if their output qty./appearance has changed because it's a bit soon yet. But, thus far, they're acting normally.

Their first ration--the one they refused--is a new bag. But the second ration I fed them was also from a new bag, which I purchased at 10 am today after they refused pellets from the first new bag. (Got allthat? ;))

They didn't refuse the first batch of pellets due to inappetence/illness. They seemed to dislike/mistrust the smell of them. Because once they were offered pellets from the second new bag, they ate them without hesitation.
 
Have you checked their teeth? Malocclusions could cause them discomfort when they eat, especially the molars. Feel their cheeks and see if there are any abnormalities that aren't 'mirrored' on the other side- these could be molar spurs.

How long does a bag last you? Is it possible these have got a bit stale?

How else are they acting? Anything else unusual?

Jen
 
Ah okay-posted at the same time :p.

Perhaps you got an 'off' bag? If they both turned their noses up at it.

Jen
 
A lot of things could have happened to the bag they didn't like. It could almost be a fluke if 1 bun said no to it but if 2 of them both did, then it's possible something was weird with it. Maybe something happened to that package and it wasn't airtight. If it wasn't stored properly, the pellets might not have been fresh. I don't know if you want to go through the trouble, but perhaps Oxbow would have something to say about a less-than-ideal bag of their product if you reported it.

I guess it doesn't appear any different to your eyes? Or smell differently to you?
 
kirbyultra wrote:
A lot of things could have happened to the bag they didn't like. It could almost be a fluke if 1 bun said no to it but if 2 of them both did, then it's possible something was weird with it. Maybe something happened to that package and it wasn't airtight. If it wasn't stored properly, the pellets might not have been fresh. I don't know if you want to go through the trouble, but perhaps Oxbow would have something to say about a less-than-ideal bag of their product if you reported it.

I guess it doesn't appear any different to your eyes? Or smell differently to you?

The bag is dated 12/30/12 and was at my house (in the usual cabinet) for only a week before I opened it. I don't suspect storage issues at my vet's office, from where I purchased it.

I contacted Oxbow yesterday, as did my vet's office. The manager of Quality Assurance is kind enough to send an entirely new batch of pellets (i.e., multiple bags) to my vet's office, one of which will be set aside for me at no charge. They also want me to turn in the old bag, so that the company can test it just to be safe.

I don't smell/see anything strange about the bag in question; I'm starting to believe that maybe the hay used to make that particular batch just smells odd to two of my buns. It was just strange seeing them walk away from their pellets.

BTW, tooth issues aren't suspected at this point; everyone's eating their hay like goats mowing down a field, and they've since scarfed down two pellet rations from an even newer bag of Oxbow BB/T. :biggrin2:

Jenk
 

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