Diet and Exercise

[Sonseearae]

Hello, we are new bunny parents of a rescued, one and a half year old Holland lop.  Her name is Holly and she is, of course, the cutest bunny ever…except for yours I’m sure.  Anywho, she is our first bunny, she is an indoor companion and we got her at a rescue.  The woman who we got Holly from told us to give her 1/4 cup of pellets in the morning and 1/3 cup in the evening.  Incidentally, I don’t have her weight but assuming the woman gave me good feeding guidelines, perhaps I can extrapolate with those numbers?  After she told me that, I explained that we had pellets but had gotten her timothy grass as well.  She said, “Oh good!  She’ll need that too!”  Since she didn’t mention this need until I did concerned me that I might not be getting all the information we needed so I went home with the bunny (5 days ago) and continued my research where I stumbled across repeated information saying she also needed four cups of greens a day.  So am I understanding this correctly that it is a bit over a half cup of pellets, two handfuls of timothy grass and four cups of greens per day?  It just seems like she’s going to be a contestant on My 600 Pound Life at this rate.  Is this right?

Also, she has a large indoor hutch – I’m kind of jealous, I have to admit.  The ratio of size of bunny/me to bunnies/my apartment…well the bunny has a bigger house then we do.  We let her out whenever someone is home although we block off half the apartment because it is not bunny-proof – but she can see us at all times if we are home.  So…very often either I or my daughter will just sit down and pet her, talk to her, play with her, etc.  How much of this interaction does she need?  How much exercise does she need?  

In the meantime, I’ve had to look up bunny flops, which she is doing a lot.  Teeth chattering, licking…everything she is doing looks like she’s a happy camper – we just want to keep her that way and would appreciate any direction.  Thank you.

[Bunny House]

Hi and welcome!

Adult bunnies should eat Timothy based pellets- at the most, a 1/4 a cup a day because especially with lops, they have bad molars because they aren’t aligned properly so pellets make them chew instead of grinding their teeth ( their teeth grow their entire life) and pellets aren’t needed in a diet as they get everything they need from their other food. Pellets can also cause points on the molars( my lop gets them a lot) Timothy Hay needs to be unlimited 24/7. Veggies- romaine, baby spring mix, celery, anything low in sugar, calcium and protein. The rule is 1 cup for 2 pounds of body weight a day. Unlimited water( bowls allow natural drinking Habbits) . I suggest reading BUNNY INFO at the top for more info!

Have you taken her to a rabbit savvy vet? Only those vets should see rabbits as they are not like cats and dogs and treatment is very different. Is she spayed? She has a 76% chance of developing uterine cancer before 4. The vet will give you a good run down on the proper diet, illnesses that bunnies often get (gi stasis) and how to treat them at home, but of course, you should find the nearest bunny ER.

For housing. Hutches are fine, but they must be spacious. Buns need 4-6 hours a day of free time to roam. Many people use dog pens or bunny proof their house so they run free . And human interaction is very important. Bunnies are very social so if you don’t have a lot of time for 1 on 1 then maybe you could get a friend( but you would need to bond).

I hope this helps! She will bring a new kind of love to you guys

[Asriel and Bombur]

I have two Holland Lops and to be honest, that’s way too many pellets. My boys get 2 tbsp of pellets a day, and the majority of people on this site with bunnies under 5 pounds feed the same. Greens are usually 2-3 cups. As BH says, unlimited hay is absolutely essential, especially because lops are prone to dental issues. This type of diet is also extremely important to maintain for the overall gut health of your bunny. The excessive pellet diet she’s on will cause her to gain weight and become obese as well as potentially causing her to produce too many cecals, get gas, or even lead to stasis.

She’s getting a great amount of exercise and love and attention so no issues there

[Author]

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