How much Weight in Pellets do you go through?

[TheWhiteRabbit]

Hi all!

As discussed in the Welcome thread I am doing research into getting a House bunny (Flemish Giant). While looking at Diet for a giant rabbit (or any rabbit) I have come across the amount of servings of pellets as a calculation.

From what I read it is 1 oz of pellets per 1 lb of body weight. So assuming a Flemish Giant gets to be 18lbs full grown that is approx. 2.5 cups of pellets a day or just over 1.125 lb of pellets a day(plus greens and unlimited hay). This leads me to believe it would be about a 30lb bag a month in pellets(rounding up).

My question is does this all sound accurate? How much weight or how big of a bag of pellets do you go through in about a month? Do you free feed pellets or ration to ensure they are eating their greens and hay?

I am just wondering how big of a bag I am going to need and how long it would last me theoretically. I want to wholesale buy pellets in bigger bags with out running the risk of the bag going stale.

[tobyluv]

1 oz of pellets per 1 lb of body weight is too high. That would mean a 4 lb rabbit would get 1/2 a cup of pellets a day. That is too much.

Here is one set of guidelines regarding amount of pellets. It was written by the vet who sees the rabbits at the sanctuary where I volunteer.

Weight        Daily pellets

2 – 4 lbs      1/8 cup
5 – 7 lbs      1/4 cup
8-10 lbs      1/2 cup
11 – 15 lbs   3/4 cup

That only goes up to 15 lbs, but some Flemish giants are that size, while others may weigh more than 20 lbs. Depending on the source, you will find different recommendations regarding amounts of pellets to feed a rabbit, but I have never seen any site say 1 oz of pellets per 1 lb of rabbit weight.

Pellets should be free fed until a rabbit is 6 months old, or a little older, then they should be measured daily and the bowl should not be refilled if the rabbit empties it.  Rabbits should have hay available at all times.  I have a New Zealand rabbit, who is around 7 or 8 pounds and she gets a little more than 1/4 cup of pellets a day. 

[TheWhiteRabbit]

Ok now see that chart makes more sense to me. It also makes my wallet a little happier

I knew about having hay available at all times and then daily greens.

[MoxieMeadows]

I go through aprox. 1 pound of food a week (around 1 ten pound bag in 2 months, but my bun wastes a lot). My bun is about 9 pounds.

[JackRabbit]

My girls each get 1/8 cup of pellets per day, and my boy get little under 1/4 cup per day. It seems like I go through a 10 lb bag every 6 weeks or so but maybe a little longer. My buns don’t waste a single pellet but I do throw out the last cup or so because there’s always a little hay dust or “crumbs” in the bottom of the bag and it gets all over the last cup or so of pellets. I pay about $15 for a 10 lb bag of Oxbow adult rabbit pellets.

[{Alli}]

Bun Bun gets about 1/8 cups of pellets and he weighs about 2 pounds. He’s on KMS pellets and the minimum they come in is 10 pounds which I get and it lasts me a couple of months.

[TheWhiteRabbit]

Thanks everyone! Very helpful.

[Beka27]

Even for a flemmy, I wouldn’t feed over 1/2 to 3/4 cup a day. Increase the veggies and hay instead of adding additional pellets.

[Author]

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