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FORUM DIET & CARE 13 week Holland Lop diet help

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    • Alexandra
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        I have a 13 week old Holland Lop who weighs 1.5 pounds. I have read on different forums that other bunny owners with the same breed their bunnies are around 2 pounds this age. When I first got her she was plumpy and happy. She still is a happy bun and does her normal routine. Eats, drink water, plays.
        I’m not sure what kind of hay the breeder had her on but I was giving her alfalfa hay with the Purina show pellets the lady gave me. The woman said to feed her 1/4 cup 2x a day. But that wasn’t doing well with her so I decreased to only 1/4 once a day. I did that for a little bit and it seemed to stop her runny butt. But then I noticed that it was turning her pee heavier which dried out white I know that means excess amounts of calcium. I then stopped the alfalfa hay and started giving her Timothy hay. This seemed to fix the issues with the exception since then only one time did her pee turn white. I started her on the Timothy hay when she was 10 weeks old. Since then I’ve noticed she looks a lot skinnier. She’s running around and doing well but her butt bones seem to stick out a little and her shoulder blades are definitely pointy.


      • Deleted User
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          At 13 weeks my boys were getting unlimited Timothy hay, 1/2 cup of pellets, and 1 cup of greens. They were also around 2.5 pounds. Bombur has always had slight tummy issues, so I’ve always had to monitor his diet and adjust every so often. 1.5 pounds isn’t super unusual because she is a dwarf bunny and won’t end up being more than 4ish pounds full grown. You could try increasing from 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup to make sure she’s getting enough nutrients in. You might want to transition off the Purina pellets and onto a good quality alfalfa pellets for young buns, something like Oxbow or Burgess. Purina isn’t the best quality pellet, and is geared more for adult buns. Hope that helps


        • Boston's Mama
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            Babies need unlimited pellets ( unless a vet recommends to cut back due to weight gain )
            Since she is skinnier looking and the current pellets gave her runny butt I would look at changing pellets
            I had a similar issue with my boy and I changed him to burgess pellets and have had no issues since
            Burgess is also one of the rated top foods for its fibre content and ingredients
            If you decide to change pellets though you have to do it slowly (75% old food 25% new food for 2 weeks , then 50% 50%,then 25% 75%
            Too sudden will cause issues for her tummy

            I limited my boys pellets from 4months ish due to weight gain but sometimes bunnies need unlimited till 6 months …


          • Boston's Mama
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              My boy is eleven months now and so he’s limited to 1/4cup in the morning and then 1/8cup at night with his greens – some use slightly less and some slightly more – you will get a feel for amounts once you reach that and see how she is weight wise etc

              I would def look to swap to a alfalfa pellet made for young rabbits from one of the top rated brands for nutrition though , oxbow or burgess where what I narrowed that down too from ingredients ( oxbow was best for my past bunny but it didn’t help enough with poppy butt for my current one so he is on burgess instead )


            • Alexandra
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                Thank you all for the response.
                I went out today and got a bag of oxbow alfalfa pellets for young rabbits and alfalfa oxbow hay. I’m going to mix the Timothy and alfalfa hay together for her and I’ll slowly increase the amount of pellets I give her. I heard the brand she had was bad but The lady told me to wait until the small bag she gave me was gone


              • Alexandra
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                  I’m also all out of her old food so I can’t transition it that way. I read that I can slwolg start introducing the new pellets little by little so it’s going to take me a bit to get the amount of pellets she should be getting


                • Deleted User
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                    Because she’s switching right off the bat without mixing them in with old pellet, watch for any signs of GI discomfort. Not eating or pooping for 12-24 hours and any diarrhea.

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                FORUM DIET & CARE 13 week Holland Lop diet help