Poop Envy

[MimzMum]

Okay, this didn’t seem to fit in the other threads so I thought I’d ask my question here. ^^;

I am having a bit of poop envy between my bun and my daughter’s bun. When I first got Mimzy, he ate fresh grass from outdoors and dandelions and plantain, etc. He was more active than he is inside, natch, and he made nice, big round full bb’s.

Since he’s been indoors, and particularly since his neuter, he makes smaller, drier bb’s. He eats dried grasses, pellets and portions of italian (large leaf) parsley, green leaf lettuce and the occasional carrot for a treat. Sometimes even a teensy bit of banana or apple if he’s been real good and hasn’t had any in awhile.

I’ve really cut down the carrots since I found they are awfully sugary and I didn’t want a fat bun. BTW, he is a Thuringer.

My daughter’s bun, Pip, is a half lionhead, roughly the same body size as Mimzy, and eats nothing but orchard grass and the occasional cardboard tube, plus nice leafy green lettuce for the extra greens. (Granted MUCH more hay than Mimzy eats…my daughter calls her ‘the lawn mower bun.’) HER bb’s are HUGE compared to Mimzy’s. (A definite improvement from how she was when she came to us from the pet store, where she had to poop in her own bed and who knows what they fed her and she seemed (at least to me) kind of bound up. Now she leaves a nice deposit in her box every day….and frankly, compared to the scant amount Mimzy makes now….well….I am ENVIOUS! 0.o

I let Mimzy have exercise. I try to feed him only what is best for him. But seriously, I’m stumped! >.< WHY would his leavings be so dimiutive and hers so well endowed?? I realize he's going through a molt (yeah, he's still shedding but not as heavy as before) and that he may have a bit of hair ingested, but he is not in any pain that I can see and eats well, if a little less than he used to before his surgery. (Probably because I took all his favoritve treats away except for the papaya tablets.)

I’ve used petromalt to make sure he isn’t blocked up, which increased the bb size for a bit. And the occasional raisin. I groom him everyday. Could this be a result of his neuter? He has healthy stools…just kinda tiny. (I’d say Mimzy’s bb’s are about 1/2 cm in diameter, whereas Pip’s are almost a full cm!)

Should I up the petromalt until the molt is over? Just to be safe? Bring back a few carrots? He drinks water just fine. He even enjoyed a little fresh clean snow last week. (Just once. Didn’t want to freeze his little bowels.) It just seems to me that the water content he previously took in his food needs to be replenished somehow?

And yes, I count the minutes between his feedings every time he eats. And he seems to urinate just fine, although it’s sparser in the mornings and heavier during the evenings/overnight.

 

[bunny04]

Hi,

To help with the hair i would say not to increase petrmalt then what you are normally already giving him because i heard its not too good, especially large amounts.

To hep with hair passing out i would say to increase hay consumption, continue combing, offer more time out of the cage (helps move down hair/food faster). Alot of vets recommend giving freshly squeezed pineapple juice 3 times daily about a tablespoon each time the enzymes in it help breakdown the hair with passing it out. Another thing that is recommended by vets is giving papaya, fresh or in the form of tablets like Oxbows. It helps to loosen up the hair. I use this method myself for my bunny when i notice hair in poops and swhen he is shedding.

Normal poo size should be similar to a pea, if its too small could be a sign of illness, need more fiber (hay), or hair in the body.

In terms of the carrot it does not have much benefit for the bunny since its sugar content so i would not increase the amount that you already give. You can try offering other greens like cilantro occasionally instead of the carrot.

to help increase hay consumption offer less pellets, offer different varieties, add dried herbs to it, squirt fresh apple or any other type of juice out of the fruit onto it. Hay should make up 75% of the diet, should eat about its body size daily.

I think if you try to increase the amount of hay he eats will help out with the hair and his poops, he might need more fiber in his diet.

Hope that helps

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hmm, how is your bun taking to the hay? You might try another kind as it sounds like a fiber thing and not just related to molting. I would not increase the amount of petromalt (it has a lot of sugar too and can throw the GI tract flora off-kilter). While the pineapple juice is O.K., it’s better to try a papaya tablet with no added sugar. You can try some higher fiber veggies as well like kale (give a 2 week break between finishing the bunch that you buy) it is high in oxalates which can build up and harm a rabbit.

[MimzMum]

Okay, size of a pea. Well, they are at least that. They just look so dry.
Pip’s are a bit larger, but I’m beginning to think that it’s just because she’s a different kind of bun. I’m adding different hays to Mimzy’s feed bucket, so maybe the variety will get him eating it. Funny, he’ll just want one kind one week and then switches up the next week…I think he’s just fussy.

I know he’ll eat kale, but it tends to turn his bb’s very dark and I worry the iron content is too high and will make it harder for him to go. He’ll eat broccoli, but it gives him gas. 0.o

*sigh* Too bad they can’t eat All Bran.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Mimz that’s funny. Yeah if he doesn’t do well with kale, then it’s best to leave it out. Little bugger is picky, oh well we love them anyway. : )

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