Well, I have found that most things from the pet store are apparently NOT good for rabbits. Lol. Food should be just pellets, and certain ones are better, look for the higher protein content I think its supposed to be 17 or above. No mixed food, seeds, corn cob toys are not good. Of course I learned all this after as well lol, so Im just passing the knowledge.

Oxbow food products are supposed to be very good. I dont use that yet but will be switching at some point. Rabbits less than a year generally get Alfalfa hay, while after that Timothy. Vege list is around here somewhere, I’m sure someone will post a link. Good luck and good for you for seeking better answers than pet store salespeople!

Food –

Oxbow makes a very good pellet. If you don’t want to go with that brand, get a timothy based (if your bun is adult) PLAIN pellet. No seeds, as those are very bad for buns and no colored junk included. Also no dried veggies. Just plain old pellets. Pellets should be measured out and supplemented with daily veggies. Hay should be free fed. I also feed oxbow hay – my girl has to have a mixture of hay (oat/orchard/timothy) and Powder likes orchard (he used to eat timothy, but I let him try orchard and now he’s like “mom, what is this? This isn’t the good stuff!” when I try to give him timothy).

For toys… Powder likes wooden chew sticks (the kind with bark on) and cardboard, any type of cardboard. He isn’t fond of any other toys. Stickers likes willow chew balls, chew sticks, dig boxes (just a box with shredded paper in it), anything she can toss…

If you are unsure what toys your bun likes you could order toy parts (I like the bird toy part stores) and make your own. Then if they don’t like a specific set up you can take it apart and try it a different way. Much cheaper than store bought as well.

Just as a note: do NOT get a food that is high in protein. Rabbits are strictly herbivores and are not designed to break down protein efficiently. Anything over 15% is generally not good. You could get away with higher content if the amount of pellets fed is negligible.

ETA: Now I’m on a real computer (I was on my dumb iPhone waiting for the bus) so now I say my buns’ favorites. For food: Oxbow Organics. They get tons of different kinds and brands of hay! American Pet Diner timothy hay- both the “Gold” kind and the high fiber kind, Oxbow oat hay, Oxbow organic meadow grass, Orchard grass from a shelte near my parents’ house… Their favorites are BB oat hay and orchard hay though! They will do anything for it.  

They aren’t into toys, they like to jump off of things. Silly boys. They do LOVE the BB willow wreaths though! There’s also a hay ball thingy from BB and it’s stuffed with hay and herbs and whatnot and they had a lot of fun tearing through it! They kinda like cardboard cat scratchers too. Hehe.

I think any oxbow product is really good. I don’t buy any treats from the pet stores. Please stay away from any Marshall or Peter products. I buy toys from bunnybytes and busy bunny!

I think Oxbow pellets are the best, but regardless you want a timothy based that is plain plain plain-no seeds, nuts or colored bits (If you want to give treats, give raisins or any of the oxbow treats and no yogurt drops of course )

For toys-the Maze Haven is an absolute utter favorite and the tunnel is awesome-total staples All the willow/grass toys are great-edible and fun to throw

https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO…fault.aspx

Depending on your breed, determines protein content.  I have a Long Hair American Lop Ear.  He requires higher protein content.  So to clarify Tate, depending on your breed, you may need higher or lower protein.  The main thing is stay away from high corn feed fillers.

I like Oxbow pellets and American Pet Diner pellets but I feed a very small amount of pellets, if any to my rabbits.

My favorite hays are APD 2nd cut (or timothy gold) and KMS 3rd cut timothy when it’s in stock.

Does anyone know if/when the Maze Haven will be back in stock at the BinkyBunny store? My bunny keeps tunneling through my blankets!! So it sounds like something she’d really love (:

You can have the store e-mail you when it is available.

Perhaps you can get your bunny her own fleece blanket? My Chacha loves to play in MINE.. so it is hers now!

Posted By zpipes on 08/24/2011 10:25 AM

https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO…fault.aspx

 

Depending on your breed, determines protein content.  I have a Long Hair American Lop Ear.  He requires higher protein content.  So to clarify Tate, depending on your breed, you may need higher or lower protein.  The main thing is stay away from high corn feed fillers.

Ah, I was going purely from the House Rabbit Society website. That must be where the confusion came from, as they say anything over 16% is “dangerous”. Good to know about long haired breeds though! I didn’t realize that the extra inch of hair required that much more protein! As a side note, what brand of food are you feeding? All of the ones with a protein content over 15-16% are either alfalfa based or contain some animal product. Velvateen loves variety and is not so eager with his pellets anymore, so I’d like to switch it up and introduce something new for him! He hates the Oxbow Timothy one. Lol

Okay thanks Lovechacha! Good idea

Posted By bunnnyfriend on 08/24/2011 06:46 PM
Does anyone know if/when the Maze Haven will be back in stock at the BinkyBunny store? My bunny keeps tunneling through my blankets!! So it sounds like something she’d really love (:

We are working on that.  I hope to have some kind of answer tomorrow.  I hope we will have it soon. 

Hey Tate, I use Kaytee, I think its around 16% if I remember correctly, and it is Alfalfa based. However he is still a toddler, about 6 months now. I don’t know what brand I’ll be switching to when its time to lean away from Alfalfa though.

 Has anyone tried the ZuPreem line? It is evidently the midrange option where I live (Oxbow is out of reach for my budget) but I have heard nothing about it. It is made from timothy, which is attractive, but I am so new to all this I can’t waste money on food that causes higher vet bills later. I need to concentrate the “extra” funds toward upgrading my sweetie’s condo. Any thoughts would be appreciated, thanks

I have used Zupreem in the past. It’s fairly good on paper, although I’m not sure if it uses any animal by products. American Pet Diner may be a good one for you to start on HOWEVER it is not found in stores, only online. It’s a good, balanced pellet that uses either Timothy hay or alfalfa (depending on which one you get). I have my qualms with Oxbow, despite using it.
How old (approximately) is your rabbit? The most important thing to remember is that pellets make up a very small portion of the diet. Pellets will cost you $10 up front, but it will last about 3 months. The emphasis will really be on good quality hays and veggies.
So basically, you will probably be ok using ZuPreem.

 My bun is reported to be a year old. I am not sure as this is our first day as a family  I am really concentrating on fresh clean awesome hay and awesome veg, but I want to make the right choices as early as possible. I have had problems with cats raised on the cornmeal based dollar store food and make sure my kitters get better quality, it staves off vet problems in long run. My bun has been on exclusively junk food pellets with NO hay NO veg. I am trying to figure out where I need to go from there pellet wise . I also know pellets are a tiny portion, but still best to get the best I can for my budget. He has taken to the hay we got and has been enthusiatic about some greens, so I know he will be fine, eventually.

I really like your thinking! I’m a huge supporter of proper nutrition and the wrong nutrition can really wreck havoc on the body. I think you’re fine with the ZuPreem. Having been on a junk pellet prior, he should actually take to ZuPreem easily. It’s very aromatic. It does cotain corn and that’s somewhat of a debatable ingredient. I wouldn’t not try it, but if you’re seeing some cecals left over on a daily basis or notice anything else “off”, you can change. While there are guidelines for feeding, it really takes some experimentation to see what your rabbit does best on. My boys have been through almost every pellet available and we’re finally settled on something that’s agreeing with them.

I have found that if bunnies are on junk pellets they are not likely to prefer the new healthier pellet- it is like feeding your kids pizza and then telling them they are not eatiing only veggies. Youwant to do a gradual switch over a period of a couple of weeks- slowly increasing the amount of new pellets. Cotton was very resistant to the change (she is my picky bunny) but once switched over she goes crazy at pellet time, impatient for me to dump her Tablespoon of pellets into her cage so she can gobble them up. You just need to stick with the routine of switching over and they will adapt.

 I plan on doing a switch slowly and carefully, as we near end of the bag he was sent with. I do plan on slowly mixing the pellets not just a hard switch. I want to minimize tummy upset and so far, fingers crossed, he is fairly open to new stuff…