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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum DIET & CARE do y’all think i am feeding too much??

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    • paige
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        i wake up and let him out to either play outside in the yard where he eats grass for about 4 hours or i let him run around my house which then he doesn’t usually eat until about 4 hours later which he eats hay. that’s his first feeding i give him is hay or grass. for lunch, i give him a half a can of baby food and a handful of fresh veggies and hay again. for dinner, he gets a tiny bowl of pellets like two teaspoons of pellets and no hay. he has no digestive issues, ever. and he seems really happy and healthy, he runs around a lot and always seems happy ? i just wonder if i feed him too much…or maybe too little since it’s just veggies he eats. it could be not enough calories for him.. what do y’all think?


      • LittlePuffyTail
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          How old is your bunny and approx. how much does he weigh?

          Why do you give him baby food?


        • Mikey
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            Ive not heard baby food listed as a safe ingredient for bunnies. Bunnies also need unlimited timothy hay to help grind their teeth down and to keep their gi tracks moving smoothly. Feeding every 4+ hours can be dangerous, because if their gi track stops, it causes stasis which can kill a rabbit. Another reason for 24 hour available hay, so they can munch on it so their tummies are never empty


          • paige
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              my bunny is about 4 lbs, i don’t actually know. and he’s only a year old… he’s a lionhead rabbit btw. he eats mashed bananas and stuff as baby food and someone told me their vet said it was okay. i just give him that so he can get different veggies and fruits without me buying the whole thing and then 90% of going bad. And ok, i didn’t know it was so bad if he didn’t have hay even for like 4 hours! O: i thought maybe like 1 day would be bad


            • Gina.Jenny
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                Rabbits need constant access to hay, which should form at least 80% of their diet, for two reasons. Firstly a rabbits gut only works if it has food going through it constantly. 12-24 hours without food can be fatal to a rabbit. Secondly, rabbits teeth grow continually, and they need to eat hay or grass, to wear the teeth down. If a rabbit fills up on soft food, his gut doesn’t get enough fibre, and his teeth will grow too long, which can be painful, and mean an expensive visit to the vet too.

                Fruit/veg based baby food, or mashed banana are recommended for a rabbit who isn’t eating after surgery, but can cause health problems if fed as the normal day to day diet. Sudden changes is diet are also bad, so you need to make changes gradually. Make sure he has hay to eat all the time from now on, wean him off the baby food and mashed banana by giving a little less every day. Two teaspoons of pellets isn’t a lot for a 7 lb bunny, so as you cut down on the soft food, replace it with a few pellets for lunch. Do you live near a market, where you can buy small amounts of veg? Fruit should really be kept as a treat food, and isn’t essential for a rabbit, none of my four ever eat fruit.


              • paige
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                  this is my first rabbit. i literally knew NOTHING about rabbits besides they eat vegetables when i first got him a year ago. the pet store person just gave me a quick run down of what to do and then i looked it up a little when i got home. so i really don’t know much about their health and how much they should eat.

                  yea i saw someone else said the thing about the hay but he never really eats it so that’s why i stopped offering it to him all the time. however starting today, he’s been having constant hay but hasn’t really been eating it :/ when it’s there, he never eats it and never really drinks water which is part of the reason for the baby food. i figure it gives him some hydration. the baby food is not always fruit. it’s usually veggies too btw. cuz i know a lot of sugar is bad.

                  well i feel bad if i ruined his diet or something and made him unhealthy ??? he really doesn’t eat a lot! like ill give him more food like pellets and it will go uneaten for like 12 more hours! idk maybe ive been under feeding him this whole time and his tummy is just small from that. i feel horrible o:


                • paige
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                    Im lucky he doesn’t have any digestive issues or teeth problems or anything, it sounds like >.<


                  • Mikey
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                      Youll want to wean him off of baby food as soon as you can. Its really not good for him wont really help the hydration. From what i could find on google, baby food should only be fed to rabbits during emergencies where they will not eat anything else, but should be weaned off it within a few short weeks due to the sugar content and preservatives. It might not be causing him problems now, but might down the line as he gets older. Veggies and greens will help keep him hydrated though. He doesnt like hay, my guess is, because hes not used to eating it too often. You can get timothy hay and mix in some alfalfa hay since a ton of rabbits really like alfalfa. After he gets more used to eating it, you can start decreasing the alfalfa and hope he continues eating his timothy


                    • paige
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                        well i started thinking about it and im like hmmm he eats grass all day outside and doesn’t eat hay inside…

                        when he’s inside, he runs around all day and hangs out with me and the dogs and explores everywhere. and i can tell he gets hungry cuz he’ll try to eat this wicker chair i have…

                        but in the yard. theres nothing to do and no where to go or explore…

                        so i realized, when he’s inside, he just doesn’t wanna eat cuz he’s playing.

                        so i put him in his cage and closed the door to test my theory and he ate his hay cuz he was forced to take a break from playing O=


                      • paige
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                          do u guys think it’s normal that he doesn’t ever wanna drink water tho??


                        • Beka27
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                            Do you ever see him drink water? Do you give him his veggies wet? Does he have a bowl or water bottle?

                            We all start somewhere with our rabbit knowledge, so please don’t feel bad! He sounds like a happy bunny and with a few tweaks you can have him on a very good diet!


                          • Gina.Jenny
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                              You Mention him getting out in the yard in the mornings, mine go out first thing in the morning, and if the grass is wet from rain or dew, don’t drink much. He probably enjoys eating the fresh grass in the yard way more than dry hay, mine eat way less hay when they are out on the grass all day, but its still important that there is always hay to nibble on. I would guess the baby food fills him up, meaning he isn’t hungry enough to eat hay or pellets, but if you gradually reduce the baby food, he should increase how much he eats. You probably find he eats quite a bit during the night, when he can’t play. Pellets will probably make him thirstier. What brand do you use? On the bag, does it say how much fibre is in them? You want high fibre ones, without added sugar is best, though most brands do add some form of sweetener, often molasses.

                              Don’t feel bad over what’s done, but try now to get him onto a better diet. Its not always easy to give a bunny the right diet, as some bunnies can be very fussy eaters.

                              BTW, he may well be trying to chew the wicker chair cos all bunnies need to chew, and it may be quite tasty to him. Can you get some bunny safe twigs for him to chew on, which is also good for wearing down teeth? Willow twigs are good.


                            • paige
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                                he has sooo many toys, he gets new toys every 2-3 days cuz i feel bad if he doesn’t have one. yea he has stuff to chew on, he really does just like eating my chair LOL.

                                and yea i guess he does eat more at night when he’s in his cage. he doesn’t seem to eat much when he has the option to be out and play…

                                and his food is good! i looked on the package and it’s 22% fiber and i know it’s supposed to be at least 18% ?? thanks guys!! ?

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                            Forum DIET & CARE do y’all think i am feeding too much??