best pellets to use?

[Delaney]

hi! so my bunny is almost 10 months old, he is a mini lop Holland lop mix. he’s being fed unlimited fresh orchard grass oxbox hay (I’m allergic to Timothy), unlimited water obviously, and a variety of a cup of 3 to 4 types of vegetables that are safe that I change up a little every time I go out to buy new ones, and this pellet brand I’m not sure of. when I got him, he was 7 weeks 3 days old and had weaned off his moms milk, and this was a breeder, a nice family that we knew and they took good care of their rabbits. well when I got him I’d read so much about oh don’t change up rabbits diets often keep it mostly the same because GI statis is so deadly and common so I was so scared about that. so the breeders had been feeding all their rabbits this pellet called producers pride 50 lb bag obviously because they had about 10 rabbits and had to feed them all I guess. so I was so scared to change his diet and have him get GI stasis I just went out and got this product too because all her rabbits were healthy and I didn’t wanna change it. I took him for a check up about a week old and the vet said oh no he needs alfalfa pellets, not these unlimited for growth. (this was basically the only thing I had not remembered as I’d done so much bunny research months and months leading up to getting him my family was tired of my bunny knowledge ahah). so I went out, bought oxbow alfalfa hay and alfalfa pellets because that’s what the vet said to do to get him back where he needed to be. I read that’s what they needed I just hadn’t changed him over yet like I said I was a little too afraid of GI stasis. anyways I’m talking about this way too much. I kept him on alfalfa until about 6 months like I’d read, then I went back to orchard grass hay and his old pellets which had been sealed for about 3 months now. so he’s been on those for about almost 4 months. he loves them, but I’m completely open to going out to buy oxbox pellets each two weeks or so to get him the diet he needs. I’m just a little worried he’s not big enough for his age but I don’t know because he is mixed with a bigger and smaller lop breed.

if those pellets aren’t good for him, the bag is only a little less than a fourth gone, but I’ll throw it out and go buy oxbox for him. I just didn’t know the opinions on these particular producers pride pellets. I’ll put in a picture of him too, maybe I’m just a worried bunny mom as usual but I feel he’s a little small. idk

Edited by Wick: Inserting a mention of an instagram link from a duplicate posting: http://instagram.com/p/BhINEZTnLYs/

[Daisy]

What are the ingredients and contents of the pellets you give now?

Pellets should have alfalfa or thimothy as main ingredient. Yes, it can be alfalfa based pellets regardless lf age according to this source: https://supremepetfoods.com/the-difference-between-alfalfa-and-timothy-hay/ unless somone else provides a link to a source saying otherwise. Note, alfalfa HAY is still unsuited for adult buns!

Furthermore, they should have the following contents according to http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/rabbit-food-comparison.asp (yes I copy pasted this, I’d have handwritten it for you but I’m on a tablet right now and typing is a pain in the behind):

Fibre: The higher the fibre content (look for a minimum of 18%) generally the better the food will be for your rabbit’s digestion.
Protein: A healthy adult rabbit needs a protein level of 12-14%. Young rabbits (under five months) need a higher protein level of around 16% to support their rapid growth.
Calcium & Phosphorus: Calcium should be 0.5 – 1.0% and phosphorus 0.4-0.8%. Equally important is the ratio between the two (which should be 1.5-2:1 calcium to phosphorus).
Fat: 2.4-5%
Vitamins: Vitamin D 1000 IU/kg, Vitamin E 50 IU/kg, Vitamin A 10,000 IU/kg
Ingredients: The ingredients list will be in the order of the proportion included; with the ingredient the food contains most of listed first. Look for brands that list grass (e.g. timothy, alfalfa, fescue, hay or ‘forage’) ahead of cereals (e.g. wheat, oats, corn, or maize). As grass is higher in fibre and lower in protein than cereals, foods that are grass-based generally also have a more suitable nutritional balance.

[Delaney]

hey! thank you so much for putting all that effort into your response it must of taken you so long, I really appreciate that! i checked the bag ingredients a second time and it says:

Crude Fibre (min): 15.00%
Crude Protein (min): 15.00%
Calcium (min): .70% and calcium (max): 1.20%
Phosphorus (min): .40%
Crude Fat (min): 1.80 %
vitamins : vitamin D3, E, and A supplements

the very first ingredient listed is processed grain by products, then forage products, then roughage products, molasses products (like what’s in oxbows alfalfa pellets), calcium carbonate, grain products, salt (err)?, then several other vitamins as well as words that end in “ide” which now concerns me because that’s chemicals is it not? now I feel pretty bad about that. he’s healthy and his digestion is good, I also give him oxbow digestive support tabs. after reading that I’m goung to get him the oxbow better kind, it is only lacking in the fiber and fat departments as well as well the very important ingredients. I should have thought about that much earlier and I am so silly but luckily it’s only been a few months. I’m just a bit worried if I change him over (I’ll do it slowly and mix it in) but that it would cause a bad change to his digestion but I’m sure it’ll be okay. Please let me know if you had seen my photo in the link and think he’s too small but I want him to have everything as healthy as possible! thank you again so much for your answer!!

[kurottabun]

Hmm he doesn’t look too small to me…do you know what’s his weight? He could also still grow since he’s only 10 months old.

If you’re switching gradually by mixing in some of the old pellets together with the new ones, then chances are it’ll be alright and won’t upset the bun’s tum. Adult bunnies should be getting timothy based pellets and hay. Most of the time even with just one of them being alfalfa will mean too much calcium for the bunny. Alfalfa pellets are also very high in fats and can cause an adult bun to be overweight because the nutrients are too rich for them once they pass the growing phase. One of the most reputable brands out there for rabbits is Oxbow (as you probably already know), and this is what they say about a rabbit’s diet: http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/small-pet-care/rabbits/nutrition/#Fortified%20Food

For reference, my bun is 11 months old and I’m feeding him Oxbow Essentials Adult Rabbit Food pellets. Before I switched over I was feeding him alfalfa based pellets and noticed he was getting fat really fast – I’m pretty sure he would be overweight now if I didn’t switch to the Oxbow timothy pellets.

Here’s the list of ingredients for Oxbow Essentials Adult Rabbit Food:
Crude Protein (min): 14.00%
Crude Fat (min): 2.00%
Crude Fiber (min): 25.00%
Crude Fiber (max): 29.00%
Moisture (max): 10.00%
Calcium (min): 0.35%
Calcium (max): 0.85%
Phosphorus (min): 0.25%
Salt (min): 0.50%
Salt (max): 1.00%
Copper (min): 30 ppm
Vitamin A (min): 19,000 IU/kg
Vitamin D (min): 900 IU/kg
Vitamin E: (min 190 IU/kg)

Ingredients
Timothy Grass Meal, Soybean Hulls, Wheat Middlings, Soybean Meal, Cane Molasses, Sodium Bentonite, Soybean Oil, Salt, Lignin Sulfonate, Limestone, Yeast Culture (dehydrated), Vitamin E Supplement, Choline Chloride, Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, Selenium Yeast, Vitamin A Supplement, Folic Acid, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Copper Proteinate, Riboflavin Supplement, Manganese Proteinate, Biotin, Manganous Oxide, Thiamine Mononitrate, Magnesium Sulfate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Cobalt Carbonate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Calcium Iodate

As you can see from the above, the fiber percentage is quite high, which is really important for a bunny’s digestion. The first ingredient listed is timothy grass meal, which is also a good sign.

[Delaney]

thank you for your reply!! I don’t have a scale at the moment, but I could definitely borrow one from someone! I didn’t know he could still grow as I’d read so many differing sources on when they’d usually stop growing. and yeah I was going to get adult oxbox rabbit pellets either way! I think a lot of people don’t know just how fattening alfalfa is especially the pellets but that’s not their fault!! those are way better ingredients, especially the fiber levels so I’m gonna start switching him over soon

[Q8bunny]

Sherwood makes wonderful grain and soy – free bunny pellets.

[Daisy]

Kurottabun, do you maybe have a source that says alfalfa pellets should not be fed? I come from the field of bio science so I have a natural (and thorough as you can see, haha) interest in these things and I’m always wondering why people say alfalfa pellets are bad for adult bunnies as I have yet to find a source that confirms it. I give alfalfa pellets myself so if I ever find good sources that tell me it’s bad I will consider a switch because I like the idea of giving my bunnies the best possible food, but as I said I have not found any evidence and I’m always curious where people get their information from (I want that information too, feed me XD). I hope I don’t come off as nitpicky, negative or hars or anything because that was not my intention, I’m just trying to learn!

Now for my 2 cents, here are the contents of the pellets I feed (Science Selective, source https://supremepetfoods.com/products/science-selective-rabbit/):

COMPOSITION
Alfalfa meal, soybean hulls, wheat, wheat feed, flaked peas, linseed, beet pulp, soybean meal, soya oil, monocalcium phosphate, salt, calcium carbonate.

NUTRITIONAL ADDITIVES/Kg
Vitamin A 15000 IU, Vitamin D3 1500 IU, Ferrous sulphate monohydrate 152mg, Calcium iodate anhydrous 1.5 mg, Copper sulphate pentahydrate 20 mg, Manganese oxide 38 mg, Zinc oxide 62 mg, Sodium selenite 0.2 mg.

ANALYTICAL CONSTITUENTS
Crude protein 14.0%, Crude fibre 25.0%, Crude oils and fats 4.0%, Crude ash 8.0%, Calcium 0.6%, Sodium 0.3%, Phosphorus 0.4%.

As you can see, the fat percentage is 4%, which is higher than Oxbow. Calcium is 0.6% which is lower than the max found in Oxbow, but higher than the min. This should not be an issue at all as long as calcium content is below 1% and fat below 5%. Now looking at the Phosporus in Oxbow Essentials Adult rabbit food, this is too low. When looking at the Calcium/Phosphorous ratio it is off both in case of min and case of max content Calcium (1.5:1 and 2.4:1 instead of the recommended 1.5/2:1). So as long as you monitor the weight of your bun closely (which you should anyway), alfalfa pellets should not be a problem as the pellets that contain alfalfa were designed to take the contents of alfalfa into account.

Note that I’m being nitpicky about the Oxbow here, members here are very fond of Oxbow pellets and it sure is a great option for you if you’re from the US. If you’re from Europe Science Selective and Beaphar Care+ are staples here! Or if you’re feeling trendy and adventurous, there are great grain free options as well but I recommend you to read more on that if you’re interested because it’s still new and not yet widely accepted.

[kurottabun]

@Daisy No worries about that, no offence taken

Oxbow’s website says:

“Always choose an age-appropriate pellet formulated specifically for rabbits. Oxbow’s Essentials Young Rabbit Food is ideal for rabbits under one year of age. For adult rabbits, choose from one of Oxbow’s three premium adult rabbit formulas.”

This implies that adult rabbits should be getting a different kind of pellet. Of course one could argue that ultimately as a corporation they would still push for their own products, but since Oxbow is such an established brand and they have proven to be a reliable one when it comes to rabbit care, most of the time I take their words at face value.

I’m not a vet or professional bunny expert so I don’t know for sure, but I think in general the main reason why people say alfalfa is bad for adult bunnies is because the main ingredient (alfalfa meal) is too rich and can cause an adult bunny to become overweight. The extra calcium in alfalfa can also cause chalky pee, and there’s been quite a number of members here who managed to resolve the chalky pee issue by simply switching over to timothy based pellets. Technically decreasing the pellet amount should resolve this, but doing this would mean decreasing all the other nutrients (besides the fattening ingredients) found in the pellets too, potentially causing an imbalance in the overall diet and a lack of other nutrients, because pellets are made out of so many different ingredients.

Compared to a timothy based pellet for example, the bunny can enjoy a normal, limited amount of pellets and still get its daily amount of necessary nutrients without compromising due to a certain “extremely fattening” ingredient, if you know what I mean.

[Delaney]

thank you all so much for your input!! it really helped me decide and realize where I had went wrong with the pellets. I’ll likely get the oxbox adult pellets but I’ll look into the ingredients and pricing of the other brands mentioned because oxbow pellets are definitely gonna cost more on pellets than I was used to ($10 for a bag that 9 months later is only a fourth of the way gone that is) if you guys know of any pellets other than ones mentioned that are a good price and good ingredients that are better than oxbox let me know though! thanks again for all of your help

[Author]

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