Diet transition

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 4sd replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 11 months ago by Liz_Win.

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- 05/06/2017 at 8:41 AM
  Liz_Win
  Participant
  10 posts
  So, basically my friend got a cute little bunny from her cousin because he was unable to take care of it. Little did she know that he only fed it pellets and no hay at all, so she decided to try and transition him. She tried to feed him hay but he just spat it out…? Every way she tried didn’t work, any she basically attempted everything. Now she’s coming to me for help and I’m not sure what to do. Please help!!
- 05/06/2017 at 10:44 AM
  tobyluv
  Participant
  3312 posts
  What kind of hay did she try? Young rabbits can have alfalfa hay and they usually love that. If it’s an older rabbit (adult – over 6 months old) a grass hay is better, such as timothy or orchard grass. Orchard grass is a little sweeter and softer and some rabbits prefer that. There is also meadow hay, botanical hay and oat hay. A little alfalfa can be sprinkled over the timothy or other kinds of hay to entice the rabbit to eat. If the rabbit is over 6 months old, he should have limited pellets, based on his weight. A medium size adult rabbit should only have about 1/4 cup of pellets a day. If the adult rabbit is fed too many pellets, it will likely not want hay. The amount of pellets should be decreased gradually and different types of hay should be offered.
- 05/06/2017 at 11:19 AM
  Liz_Win
  Participant
  10 posts
  She tried meadow hay, orchard grass, oat hay, and Timothy hay.
  
  Thanks for your help and advice with reducing the pellets gradually, my friend wanted to know if she should just switch cold turkey and not make it a longer process. Her rabbit is a very picky eater, and will choose the option that tastes better any time. I suppose if she reduced the pellets over a period her rabbit would just eat all the pellets up, feel full, and not eat the hay though.
- 05/06/2017 at 10:29 PM
  tobyluv
  Participant
  3312 posts
  Besides reducing the amount of pellets, she can feed them in small increments during the day. That way, he wouldn’t fill up and would hopefully eat some hay. Rabbits should graze all during the day and always have food in their stomachs. She could also try scattering the pellets in the hay. It looks like she hasn’t tried alfalfa hay. Eating that would be better than no hay at all, to prevent GI troubles and teeth problems.
- 05/08/2017 at 6:33 AM
  Liz_Win
  Participant
  10 posts
  Good idea, thanks! I’ll tell her to try that. Maybe I could lend her some of the hay I have?
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