Advice on pellet-free diets

[Theodorusrex]

Hi all,

As some of you may know Theo had another episode of stasis a few weeks ago – the worst yet probably. He didn’t eat independently for almost a week, and it took him a further week to get back to normal eating. It was really scary – 7 doses of metoclopramide were required this time, we really thought we may lose him. 

The vet checked his teeth etc etc and all seems normal and healthy which is great. He did note however that Theo had gained 300g since his last appointment (He weighs 2.5kg) and chastised me for overfeeding Theo which I didn’t take too kindly really because we are so so careful with Theo’s diet. He gets a small handful (around 10 pieces) of science selective pellets in the morning, a scoop of probiotics in his hay early evening and around 2-3 cups of veg (romaine, kale, basil, mint, coriander – mixture thereof)  and half a fibafirst stick (science selective also) around 11pm. And then obviously unlimited hay (two kinds mixed – greens oat hay and oxbow orchard grass) in his litter tray and a separate hay feeder at all times. To me I’m not overfeeding Theo (he is a big fellow!) and he gets plenty of exercise. 

I like to give him small amounts of food at semi-regular intervals because if he doesn’t eat pellet/probiotic/veg etc immediately then I know to keep an eye for signs of gas/pain/stasis onset. But our vet wants us to take him off dried food completely. Any thoughts on this? Would appreciate any and all advice because I’m so unsure about the transition. I’ve reduced his pellets by half slowly over last week or so, he is now getting around 5/6 pellets in the morning instead but he really seems hungry come bedtime. He has lost 100g which is great. 

[Sirius&Luna]

I think the problem is, it doesn’t take a lot of pellets to overfeed a rabbit. I don’t know anything about taking him off dried food completely, so I’ll leave someone with more experience to answer that.

What I was going to suggest was adding some dried leaves and forage to his diet instead. Mine go crazy for things like dried blackcurrant leaves, plantain leaves, and other dried herbs. That way, you could still check that he was happy and eating, but it wouldn’t be a calorific treat (not that you are giving him calorific treats… but you know what I mean. Clearly something is causing him to put on weight)

[Bam]

Hi Theodorus! Happy to see you here, but I’m sorry Theo is still struggling with his tummy.

I stopped giving Bam the science selective pellets and switched him to all Fibafirst sticks (and now I have the VetCare Digestive plus for him instead of Fibafirst, because there was a Fibafirst shortage.) Fibafirst and the digestive plus have higher fiber, almost like hay. I don’t give a lot, maybe 1,5 stick/24 hours (less while he was dieting). The science selective pellets seemed too rich for his little tum.

I still give Bam grass every day as his vet prescribed him. Maybe you could try Readigrass? It’s not available here, so I go outside and cut grass every evening (with a LED-light beanie on). Luckily we’re having a warm winter, so there’s still grass, albeit of a somewhat poorer quality. Readigrass is a tiny bit richer than normal grass hay, but many buns seem to love it unconditionally. If you cut out all pellets, perhaps he could do with readigrass, a pinch of alfalfa as a rare treat and grass hay?

Bam too got fat from fresh greens. I didn’t think that was posible. It is though. Bam gained weight on a diet of mostly dandelion, yarrow and plantain. Since the fresh grass diet was introduced in late August he’s lost all extra weight and is back to 2 kg.

Fresh grass needs to be introduced somewhat slowly to prevent sticky poop.

ETA: Does your vet mean take him off ALL dried food,  including hay? 

[Theodorusrex]

Sirius&Luna – many thanks for your reply! I agree that the tiniest amount too many pellets will cause slow and steady weight gain I suppose – and as my vet said bunnies running in the fields live off grass and leaves mainly! Pellets isn’t something natural for them no matter how much they enjoy them Theo does get dried dandelion and herb mixes mixed in with his hay as an occasional treat but you’re right it is something I could introduce on a more regular basis.

Bam – thank you! It is nice to be back on the forum – life has been a bit crazy lately. Sorry for the confusion – vet just means pellets/dry rabbit food. So he said he wanted Theo on a diet of just hay and greens essentially. I have switched theo over to only fibafirst for the first time today. He got one stick this morning and will give him half at bedtime – see how that goes. He looked at me very crossly this morning when there was no pellets on offer mind you! I have tried Theo on readigrass before not long after we got him. Perhaps I will need to order some more and see how he likes it! Unfortunately we don’t have access to fresh grass that I would trust where we live (in the city). Can rabbits really gain weight from too much veg? I would never have thought that. He does get rather a lot of fresh greens so perhaps we need to cut that back too. I had no idea that was even possible. How have you found VetCare Digestive plus? I remember you mentioning it before and I could be tempted to try it

EDIT: I see the ingredients in vetcare digestive plus and fibafirst are very similar – with similar fibre contents 32% vs 30%

[Q8bunny]

Plenty of buns do great without pellets. Chewie is nearly pellet free (he gets a negligible amount) – I just make sure to rotate through a variety of hays, greens etc, and dried goodies. And also to get him in direct sunlight for an hour or so every week.

[Theodorusrex]

The direct sunlight might be an issue where we live (Ireland) – we see the sun once a year if we’re lucky

Theo only gets small amount too so I suppose it’s not a big jump to remove them entirely – I’d just be worried about whether he’s getting all the nutrients he needs in a pellet-free diet.

[Q8bunny]

If you can provide a variety of greens & limited veg/fruit, the answer is yes. In fact, with good quality hays alone, buns get pretty much all they need. The greens variety is your safety net. If you struggle for sunlight, you could always get a clip-on lamp and pop in a UV light bulb (the type people get for plants or lizards) and shine it over the food bowl at mealtimes. That should do the trick. And you can borrow it from time to time too.

[Bam]

Q8 is brilliant, it should be quite possible to shine a UVB light bulb over hay for extra vitamin D.

As for the Digestive plus and Fibafirst, the ingredients are very much alike. I was going to get Fibafirst, but the place I order Fibafirst from was all out. Bam likes both kinds (Bam pretty much likes all food).
Buns don’t get fat from leafy greens unless you really overdo them. I let Bam have leafy greens pretty much ad lib. Bam gladly ate all of it.

[Q8bunny]

Like hoomins, buns tend to store fat from sugars and starches, I guess…

[Q8bunny]

Too many tacos… too much pasta… too much Christmas cake…

I’m talking about Chewie, of course.

[Author]

Messages