Alfalfa hay and alfalfa-based pellets

[emkvet]

 I got my 2 yr old Netherland Dwarf from someone who fed alfalfa hay and said she also fed Purine Rabbit Chow Show brand (alfalfa based). The woman said that Hazel refuses timothy hay. Since I got her last week I have been feeding her alfalfa hay and and alfalfa-based pellet (Eco-trition). However, I want to start switching her over to timothy or grass hay and pellets due to the high protein and calorie content of alfalfa, which I read she doesn’t need as an adult bunny. I have ordered the Oxbow Bunny Basics food and am waiting for that to come in. Should I also start feeding her a different hay also, or will switching her pellets be enough?

[Monkeybun]

Definitely switch the hay. Pellets should be the smallest portion of her diet, with hay being the largest, and the alfalfa hay is too rich for adult bunnies.

[Stickerbunny]

Switch the hay and pellets. Do it gradually though, as you don’t want to shock her system with a sudden change. Start mixing in some of the oxbow with her normal pellets and every day make the oxbow more and the alfalfa pellets less, until you don’t need the alfalfa pellets anymore. Same with the hay. My two favor orchard grass, others prefer timothy, some prefer oat – just experiment to see what type of grass hay your bun prefers. I feed alfalfa occasionally as a treat, since my two love it, but it’s really too much for buns and hay is supposed to be most of their diet (the pellets should be measured, mine get about 1/8 a cup each daily). Also, fresh vegetables are great for bunnies! And don’t be surprised if she refuses the oxbow at the start of the process, Powder would sort it out with his tongue and push all the oxbow pellets to one side of his dish and only eat his old pellets, crazy boy. He now devours them though.

[LoveChaCha]

If your rabbit is snubbing Timmy hay, I would suggest Orchard grass.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Yes very ideal for you to switch. The oxbow is a fantastic pellet, but I find mine prefer anything but. They will only eat oxbow pellets if they are the only pellets-we were not able to switch gradually (they just dug the oxbow out to eat the other pellets) but had no trouble switching completely over to oxbow without doing it gradually. (I think it shows how healthy the oxbow is to other pellets, that they prefer other pellets-we all like our junk food )

For hay you can feed any hay but alfalfa-the others are grass hays -but certainly a little alfalfa isn’t a problem either. Blends, or orchard grass, meadow mix or timothy/alfalfa blends may be better received than going to strait timothy Or even mixing the alfalfa with other hays would work BB store sells a flower mix thats called ‘hay topper’ and my guys go crazy for it-you just sprinkle on the hay

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