food?

[dreamlessforever]

ok so i know what to feed my bunnies and how much but does the brand of food matter? i buy my bunny food from a feed store because of how mnay rabbits i  own i have to buy a 50lb bag every three weeks. but more recently i have been buying the big bag of food at walmart about 25lb and i buy 2 bags of that. i just want to know if that food is fine for them or maybe i should investe in better food. problem is i cant afford to buy a bunch of small bags of food with as many rabbits as i have. any thoughts? are the large bags i’m buying just fine? also i give them vegetables and fruit but i was never really told what i couldnt or shouldnt give to them so if someone could list some good and bad that would help.my mr. bun~bun likes raw green beans alot those are ok right? he will freak if he doesnt get them lol.these are some things i would like to know if they are ok for buns like apples? oranges? lettuce? celery? tomatoes? grapes? cherries and other assorted berries? pomegranate? colligreens? broccli and cauliflower?  oh and they hay subject but i have only given them timmothy hay and alfalfa hay, but i have seen a bunch of different ones is what i am feeding fine? do they need both or only one or something else? i had researched rabbits once but that was back when there wasnt alot of information on stuff like this.what about some kind of liquid vitamin? i dont know i am just throwing things out here so i can better learn to keep my buns healthy.

[BunnyMuffin]

There is a lot of excellent information regarding food in the diet section of this website. At the top of this page there’s a green bar where you can find “Bunny Info” and then choose “diet” on the drop down menu.

As for pellets, the main thing is that they be timothy based for adult bunnies (not alfalfa). There are also guidelines out there on the nutritional content with regards to fibre, fat, etc. I can never remember them, and the website I use for reference is currently not work – so hopefully someone else will be along soon to help out with that.

I’ve never heard of giving vitamins. The most recommended diet around here is unlimited hay (timothy for adults, alfalfa for babies), a limited amount of pellets (1/8 to 1/4 of a cup per 5lbs of body weight maximum), and 2 cups of greens per 5lbs of bunny daily, with limited treats (raisins, fruits, carrots, and anything else high in sugar and fattening).

That’s it from me – time to run to class! Hope this is at least a start for you!

[Beka27]

bunnymuffin covered it well!
 

your “best bet” ideal diet is unlimited timothy hay (as much as they will eat everyday), very limited timothy-based pellets (only 1/4 cup per 5 pounds of bunny) and 2 cups of veggies per day.

with so many rabbits, you may need to decrease the number of veggies to make sure everyone gets some.  i go thru a TON of veggies on just two buns, but do try to give them some veggies everyday.  to make up for the difference, increase the hay intake, not the pellets.  i tried to figure this out… 50lb of pellets every 21 days… you are using almost 2.5 pounds a day.  it sounds like you are feeding too many pellets.  you might be able to cut your pellet bill in half or more by feeding the right amounts, and therefore you’d be able to afford a better quality pellet and purchase more veggies with the difference.  i’d suggest you get a measuring cup and begin tracking how much they get per day.  every week you can decrease the amount a little bit until they are where they should be.  you don’t need to worry about feeding different types of hay.  if your buns eat the timothy with no problem, i would keep with that.  it is usually a cheaper hay, and if you can buy it in bulk, you would save even more.  the other types of grass hay (brome, meadow, orcahrd, oat) can be fed in addition to the timothy as a treat if you want, but it’s not necessary.  fruits should be fed sparingly as a treat. these include: apples, oranges, tomatoes, grapes, cherries, berries, and CARROTS.  for daily veggies, think GREEN LEAFY: romaine, collard greens, carrot tops, parsley, cilantro just to name a few. 

here is the BB diet page and a veggie list of what is safe and what is not:

Diet Info - BB

Veggie List - BB

and here is a great article from rabbit expert Dana Krempels:

What Should I Feed My Bunny? - Dana Krempels, Ph.D.

[Sarita]

I’m not sure how many rabbits you have – I have 9 rabbits and I was very lucky to find a place that I can get greens for a very reasonable amount.

I usually give romaine or green leaf lettuce, curly parsley, cilantro and either dill, mint, or basil each morning.

However, I know that greens can be very costly so if you are unable to give alot of greens I would recommend a very high quality timothy hay pellet instead – don’t skimp on the pellets.

My rabbits get very limited pellets (for the most part – I have some rabbits that get no pellets).

I give 2nd cutting timothy hay and sometimes other grass hays for variety – no alfalfa though.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Ok I think your questions been answered very well so I won’t add! But I HAVE to see some pictures of the bun in your avatar-CUTE!

[KatnipCrzy]

In general I think small pet vitamins are garbage.  The only usually marketed for rabbits are for “rabbits and guinea pigs”- which do not have the same dietary needs, they are not even the same type of animal, and originate from different parts of the world.  Guinea pigs DO need plenty of vitamin C.  But rabbits should get the vitamin and minerals they need from a small serving of good quality pellets and fresh greens and veggies daily.  (Of course unlimited hay also).

Same thing- gerbil and hamster are often grouped together.  They are very different animals and I am disturbed by manufacturers basing vitamins, treats, etc based on the SIZE of the animal.  So in my opinion unless it is a guinea pig- no vitamins are needed.

[dreamlessforever]

well i got this down now but i still am not sure where to buy timmothy based rabbit food from. how am i suppose to feed multiple rabbits at once? that amount of pellets doesnt seem like enough to me all of my bunnies are at least 5lb except for the little one and they always eat 1 cup of food per day and they thin down if they eat less then that. would they eat less of it if it were the other food ? bun~bun can keep eating his green beans though right? im serious he will have fits if he doesnt get them.

[dreamlessforever]

would that 5lb bag on this sites store be enough to feed all 6 of my bunnies for 1 maybe 2 weeks? anyone know the shipping rate? and how long would it take to ship to me? if i do buy that one maybe i should get more then one bag to make sure i have enough time to buy more when needed.

[BunnyMuffin]

The timothy pellets I get are made by oxbow (not sure if that’s what they sell on this site). I order them on drsfostersmith.com because we also order aquarium supplies at the same time to save on shipping. The shipping on that website is based on dollars spent, not the weight, and it will tell you how much more you can spend before your shipping costs will go up. So you could probably get a couple bags of pellets for the same shipping as just 1 bag. I usually get a bag of pellets and 25lb box of timothy hay, plus whatever aquarium supplies are needed, and the shipping is always very reasonable.

How many rabbits do you have? Do you have pictures?

[dreamlessforever]

well i have 7 but i havent decided if i am keeping our large female named food yet. well all i have are old pictures i will take some new ones when i am done moving the house around (for the rabbits to fit in my room). i did manage to get some pics of a few of them in the outside playpen on my breaks.edward was out first then pouffer was out for a while then baby bun had her first outside play time ever.

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[dreamlessforever]

my bunnies not cute enough for you guys?

[kralspace]

I think they’re so cute that everyone’s head has exploded from cute overload…lol

They are beautiful, I have a b/w Dutch too, but I love that middle photo of the brown/white one.

I get the 50lb bag of show rabbit feed from Tractor Supply because I have 6 bunnies. The brand is Dunmoore, or something like that. I compared it’s ingredients to those in the small bags and it’s pretty close.

[dreamlessforever]

oo thanx! well i got the house done so its picture time i’ll post em up later so be ready for another cute bunny explosion!!

[jerseygirl]

haha! Dreamless, don’t think people have realised you tagged pics on the end of this thread but we have a way of ferreting out cute bunny pictures! I’m still trying to work out who is who! So we have Edward, the white with black eye spots, Pouffer, the broken brown and white, baby bun the new little Dutch, Bun-Buns, the older brown and white Dutch…? Am I on track? What did you end up naming the new Dutch? Baby Bun?

[dreamlessforever]

well i have not decided what i wanted to name the little one yet lol. and heres the bunnies that you havent seen yet. the pictures are listed by the names arwen (female), fluffy (male), food (female), and a newer pic of bun~bun woot!!!!

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[dreamlessforever]

sorry the pics posted wrong fluffy is the grey and white one.

[jerseygirl]

What a beautiful crew! Must all keep you busy!!!

[dreamlessforever]

very busy but not only them on my profile it will tell you all the others i take care of during the day and night.

[jerseygirl]

Holy Cow!

[dreamlessforever]

i am a very busy person.in about a week i am going to get baby bun fixed and stuff. then every two weeks after that we will have more and more bunnies done until they are all fixed. but i may have a slight setback on them my ferrets are sneezing and i have to leave money open to take them to the vet if it gets any worse. but it will get done eventually.

[BunnyMuffin]

I saw a bunny tail! Very cute bunnies!

[dreamlessforever]

yes very cute. personality wise though the females seem to be a little shy and lost  but the males ha they have more personality then i do lol.

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