Not eating enough hay?

[elenaforrest]

My rabbit doesn’t eat much hay? I got him 2 and a half months ago and I waited a while to make sure it wasn’t stress keeping him from eating much, but know a couple of months later he’s doing really well but still not eating much hay? I give him 2 cups of leafy vegetables and 3 tablespoons of pellets a day and unlimited hay and water. I’ve looked at a lot of videos saying to put the hay in the litter box or to put it in large hay rack and I have tried both methods but he doesn’t touch the hay in the hay rack and rarely eats the stuff directly in his litter bin. I’m feeding him timothy hay and he doesn’t seem to hate or love it but maybe I should try orchard grass or oat hay? He eats the hay more often if I feed it to him from my hand or from a toy but I’m worried he isn’t getting enough fiber. His gut seems fine and he hasn’t had any GI distress but is it normal for a rabbit to be totally fine not eating much hay? If anyone has any ideas, please share, I’m starting to get really worried he is going to go into GI stasis or his gut will slow down.

[DanaNM]

I think trying some different types of hay would be my next step. Some buns aren’t that into timothy but love orchard or oat. A different source or cut of timothy might also be good, as it can vary in freshness. You could also maybe reduce pellets (assuming he’s fully grown), maybe go down to 2 tablespoons. If bunnies have pellets available all the time, they might not get hungry enough to eat the hay. You don’t want to be too dramatic though, because if he isn’t eating hay due to a dental problem, then you need to make sure he’s eating enough.

 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[elenaforrest]

@DanaNM Thanks! I will definitely try orchard or oat next and I can decrease his pellet intake too in case that’s the issue as he is full grown. Is there any easy way I can check if he might have a dental problem? Thanks for the help!

[pinkiemarie]

You didn’t mention how much he weighs and honestly from your picture I can’t tell if he’s a standard sized or dwarf. If he’s a dwarf that may actually be enough pellets to keep him full without eating any hay and you may want to see about cutting back slightly. You could examine his teeth for anything obvious but a vet that is good with rabbits is the best option for an examination because they’ll know a lot more than we will about what is normal.

[DanaNM]

Yep, agree with pinkiemarie that a vet can diagnose dental problems, but other symptoms include drooling, increasing picky-ness in eating, and other signs of discomfort. And I also agree that if he’s very small then he might just be filling up on veg and pellets. 🙂

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Wick & Fable]

It’s important to mention that dental problems being associated with low hay eating is a really common pairing, but it doesn’t necessarily mean dental problems was the initial cause of the reduced hay eating. Reduced hay eating typically causes a lack of dental maintenance, leading to dental problems, which feeds into the original “not eating a lot of hay”. So it’s important as @DanaNM and @pinkiemarie mention to try other things, in addition to the dental check!

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[elenaforrest]

He is a holland lop so that’s a dwarf breed, correct? He is about a foot in length, possibly more, and maybe 4 or 5 inches wide…? His ears also don’t flop down like a lops usually would but I was told that was a birth defect. I will slowly cut back on his pellets and try a new type of hay and if the problem remains, I’ll definitely get him to the vet. I’m not quite sure how much he weighs but I’m reasonably confident he isn’t overweight. he doesn’t seem to have any drooling or discomfort eating but I’ll keep an eye on him. Thanks for the help!

[Author]

Messages