Nibbler ate dog food!?

[Florida_Bunnies]

Hi everyone. I’ve been a lurker here for a while but never posted. My husband and I are first time bunny parents and we are now the proud mama and papa to this little guy/girl:

 

 

(Sorry not the best photo in the world, taken on phone).

So we have named our bunny Nibbler because we are both big Futurama fans. =) Nibbler was purchased from a local pet store and comes from a breeder here in our town, but the pet store was not sure of the exact age and sex of course. So we took Nibbler to the veterinarian for a check-up and they could not determine age or gender yet either. So for now Nibbler has been designated as a boy and we *THINK* he is about 12-15 weeks old. ANYWAY sorry for all the details. 

 

So today my husband and I were sitting on the couch and we heard “munching” or crunching sounds. Both of our dogs were asleep on the couch with us, and I knew Nibbler was out and about so we looked in the kitchen and we find Nibbler eating dog food straight out of their bowl!  When we shooed him away he waited a few moments and went right back over and started eating it again! He has plenty of fresh hay, pellets, water and I just gave him some fresh kale! So why is he eating dog food!?? Also I’m trying to determine how harmful this could be. I’ve found conflicting reports, some saying that it could affect the bunny’s kidneys in the long term but mostly would just cause obesity to some vets saying that eating dog food can lead to a bunny emergency within 24 hours. Has anyone else had experience with this? I guess we’ll have to take up the dog bowls when we aren’t around so Nibbler won’t be munching away and getting fat!

[PuddleJumper]

hehehe sneak little nibbler! lol My other bun I had Basil would try his best to steal a mouthfull of cat food! O___O I put grid cubes up so he couldnt reach that section but the cat could just hop over it to get to the food but that wouldnt work to well for your dogs… hmmm The best thing to do is put the bowls up while Nibbler is out patrolling for a doggy food snack! hehehe

[Florida_Bunnies]

Yeah I’m just going to start keeping the bowls up away from him. I guess I shouldn’t be so surprised, he also drinks water out of the dogs water bowls! I think Nibbler has species confusion… =D. He also likes to play with our dogs as well and enjoys flopping in the dog beds or next to the dogs on the couch. He acts much more like a dog than a bunny, lol. I just hope that it won’t upset his little tummy though.

[Helenor]

From what I’ve seen from my bunnies, if I leave anything that seems like food around in their reach they’ll try to eat it. If he’s going into the kitchen to eat the dog food, you may need to block access to that area with a gate or something. I’m not really sure how bad dog food is for them. Maybe someone else who has had more experience with this can tell you what to do, but keep an eye on him for now.

[jerseygirl]

Bunnies! There curiosity is troublesome sometimes. I wonder if it’s the salt they are attracted to in pet foods?

I would encourage lots of hay consumption. The fibre will keep things moving through his digestive system fast. The sooner the dog food passes the better. So hay and water, maybe limit pellets for a day if you normally give feed them.

Of course, keep a close eye on him. I wouldn’t think it would cause any long term effects on his organs from a one off incident. GI stasis is the main thing to watch for and would be the most risky. Some rabbits are sensitive to the slightest changes. So just keep a watch for small poop or zero poop, lack off appetite and possibly hiding and sitting crouched (can be sign of pain), loud tooth grinding.

A phone call to his vet wouldn’t hurt either. See what they recommend.

He’s a cutie! Sounds like you may have your hands full with him. lol

[Florida_Bunnies]

I think he is doing just fine. After I took the dog food away he thumped at me and pouted under the dining room table for a bit, but he couldn’t stand not being paid attention to for more than about 10 minutes and soon came up and was nudging my foot wanting me to pick him up and put him on the couch. (He is a lazy bun, he can get up here, he can jump up directly and we also have an ottoman set up so it is easier for him but he actually likes being picked up.) He demanded petting and “flopped” between my husband and I and I got a good grooming session, haha. After he got tired of pets he got up and ate lots of hay and did his poops so I guess he is fine, no worries. Yeah he is a curious little handful. I did a lot of research on bunnies before we got him and I was not expecting a bunny that was so attentive and affectionate! I was expecting him to be aloof or whatnot, haha but no no he wants pets and attention all the time and actually pouts and gets mad if he doesn’t get it. He also demands play time out of our doggies which annoys them sometimes and is hilarious to watch because they are actually AFRAID of Nibbler, haha. He is so comfortable around here too, he just flops anywhere anytime. We call him a “free range” bunny because we literally bunny proofed our entire home except for our office (which he cannot get into) and his cage door is always open so he can run around as he pleases and at night our dogs get their own bedroom and Nibbler gets the whole house but of course insists on chewing on the phone book in our bedroom at 3AM.

 

[jerseygirl]

Good to hear. Thanks for the update.

He may go thru being more aloof when he’s a teen bun so don’t be too disheartened. He sounds delightful. And a social bun. This interaction early on will always be a benefit in the long run I believe.

[RabbitPam]

He’s absolutely adorable looking.
As for his behavior, he is very busy training you, his slaves, to meet his every demand. (Thumping when losing the dog food, indeed.) Just be careful not to leave him alone with the dogs unsupervised. Our most experienced members here with dog/bunny households do not advise it ever.

Jersey is spot on in her advice for the cleansing hay and water. He just is the age where he’s learning what the limits are. Unfortunately, they taste test everything they can reach at this age, and if it was tasty and edible, whether it’s dog food or a remote button, down it goes and they come back for more. So once the dogs have eaten, those dishes need to keep being removed. Or empty.

[Author]

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