Feeding bonded bunnies when one is a pig!?

[Barbie]

Well, Leroy and Jeannie are well on their way to being bonded.  They spend the majority of their time together (I only still separate them when I’m going to be gone).

I’m having a bit of trouble figuring out how to feed them.  Twice a day, Leroy gets a tbsp of timothy pellets, and Jeannie gets 2 tbsp of alfalfa pellets.  Problem is, Leroy is way more food driven than Jeannie, and on top of that Jeannie eats slowly, perfering to eat a bit and then coming back several times to finish it.  Leroy gobbles down his portion in no time flat and then goes about trying to steal whatever Jeannie is eating.  Same goes for veggies, but I don’t worry as much about those becasue I just eyeball the amount that they get and then give it to them in a couple different servings so Jeannie get a chance to eat some before Leroy steals the piece of lettuce or whatever out of her mouth.  Hay is the same, but I just make sure that they always have two litter boxes with plenty of hay in them.

I’m concerned about the pellets for a few reasons… first of all Jeannie is still a baby and she needs her alfalfa pellets, even though she’s smaller than him, she’s getting more pellets since she’s probably still growing (no one at HRS knew exactly how old she was so I was told to keep her on alfalfa pellets for at least 3 more months).  Also, I’m worried that Leroy has put on a bit of weight, so I need to help him work that off and keep him from gaining any more weight – a double portion of alfalfa pellets is not going to help that!  And, I just don’t like it that Leroy is such a bully about food!  Now that’s not to say that Jeannie doesn’t stick up for herself – she shoves her face right in there and noms away if there are pellets spilled on the floor. I’d rather not force Jeannie to eat like that though since that’s not what she prefers.

I usually hand feed them their pellets at the same time, and that works out ok in the evening when I have time to sit with Miss. Slow Eater.  When I’m actively watching them, I can push Leroy away from Jeannie while she’s finishing her dinner. But in the mornings, I really don’t have time to just sit with them and monitor Leroy (they do get out to run around when I’m showering and getting dressed, I just don’t have time to play in the mornings).

I tried giving Leroy his pellets out of a treat dispenser ball, but that doesn’t slow him down much.  Would it be best to just put them in separate rooms while they eat? Is there something else you guys with bonded bunnies do to let the slower bunny eat?

 

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Since your looking at a difference of 1tbs-could you just adjust so they both either have 1 or 2?

Also you can feed seperately. Noot pigs out on treats and will eat them all (too many for him) and not leave Chuck any-same with Rupert and Kahlua. So I put down treats (in your case pellets) for the non-piggy bunny and then get the piggy-bunny distracted-usually doing some tricks for their treats. They are focused on me and let their buddy eat in peace You can also just physically remove them during feeding times (especially with pellets or treats)

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’m concerned about the same thing if I decide to bond Olivia and Bindi. Bindi eats his food like it’s a race and Olivia is a real lady and takes her time

[Deleted User]

I faced the same challenge with mine. Different sizes, ages, needs and eating habits. I tried  hand feeding, as well as separate dinner times, but then I came across an  HRS article http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-4/pellets.html stating that young rabbits develop just fine even on very limited pellets:

In feeding trials in which pelleted feed was reduced to 50% of normal intake and the diet was supplemented with greens, young rabbits maintained normal growth. When the amount of pellets was reduced to below 50% of “normal,” growth rate declined (Pote et al 1980). These studies indicate that even young, unaltered rabbits do well on a reduced pellet diet. Since most of our house rabbits need to lose weight rather than gain, reducing pellets below 50% should not affect spayed or neutered adults adversely.

I decided to revert back to feeding my rabbits together but to cut back on everybody’s pellet portion size so that my greedy bunny wouldn’t have a chance eating the other’s share. To supplement, I did increase the amount of vegetables and the variety of hays by adding legume hays.

 

[kralspace]

Lola and Daisy are the same way so when I first open their door for playtime Lola will shoot out and go exploring. I shut the door and feed Daisy his pellets on the top floor so Lola won’t know otherwise my white tornado will try to claw her way back in. When they’re back together I’ll scatter a dozen or so around and Lola goes crazy trying to Hover them up.

 

edited to add: Leroy, you bad, bad boy!

[RabbitPam]

I think separating their food places is worth a try. My idea is to put together a few NIC cubes in a square or small rectangular space, put Jeanie’s food in it with her and wait until she eats some before letting her out. Since it’s good for her to come back and eat frequently in small doses, you could just watch her for when she wants more, than let her in alone. Of course, that would work with their main house as Kralspace suggested, but it’s for both of them and for more than just eating, so in fairness to leroy maybe a “food station” for her would work. Also, I’d be sure to put a litter pan near it, so both of them can go in the pan while it’s happening, in case Leroy gets nosy and wants in. Jeanie might even need a litter pan inside with the food. He can use the regular one wherever you have it. You can use a dog x-pen too, or line a carrier bottom with a litter pan and enclose her in that for meals also. At least until she’s grown off the alfalfa.

[Beka27]

If you were going to separate her for feeding like Pam said (which is a great idea), I would probably split her feedings up. Maybe give her about a third of the amount 3x a day. That way she isn’t in the box forever while Leroy is out playing.

[Barbie]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

I’ve just been feeding them in separate rooms and it seems to work. Less stress for everyone involved I think. That way Leroy doesn’t get teased with Jeannie’s food after he’s finished his, and Jeannie is free to hang out and do whatever in between bites. Doing the feedings that way they’re separated for about 15-30 minutes, but there’s never been an issue when they re join each other so I’ll just keep an eye on them to make sure it’s not affecting their bond, and otherwise I think I’ll carry on as I have been. I already feed them twice a day, morning and night, so you don’t think I need to split that down into 3 feedings, do you Beka?

I feed them their veggies together, and Jeannie has no problem getting right in there and taking food out of Leroy’s mouth, which I was glad to see – I guess he’s not as much of a bully as I thought. He does the same to her. I also do their veggies in a couple different feedings throughout the day simply because Jeannie has a smaller mouth and she can’t eat as fast so doing a few different veggie feedings gives her more opportunity to eat what she wants without Leroy devouring it all first I feed them so many vegetables though I’m not really worried about one or the other not getting enough.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

And on seperating for feeding-I do this all the time for treats. Noot and Rupert actually will bit my fingers (and draw blood) if allowed they are so frantic for raisins or treats-whereas Chuck and Kahlua carefully take and slowly chew a max of 2. Even though I don’t take Noot and Rupert physically out of the space for just a couple of raisins, I will give them their treat and then distract them (With pets) while Chuck and Kahlua slowly eat their treats. [It works best to give one raisin, pet pet pet until they are impatient and then give another raisin, pet pet pet]

[Author]

Messages