Purina Rabbit Chow

[Faye37]

Hello all. So I was hoping to get some opinions on the Purina Rabbit Chow. I’ve been feeding my bunny it since we got her (6 months now). It’s great since I can by it at our local farm store for $10. But lately in the news I’ve been reading some bad reviews about Purina dog food and how it’s making dogs sick. I realize there is a big difference between dog food and rabbit food, but since they are both from Purina it’s got me wondering if I should reconsider the rabbit chow I’ve been giving my buns.

I do give her a lot of hay and romaine, so her diet isn’t all rabbit chow. I’m just hoping to get some opinions. What do you guys feed your rabbits? 

[LBJ10]

Purina is okay for young rabbits because it is alfalfa-based, but that means it isn’t a good choice for adult rabbits. Adults should be fed a timothy-based pellet. You can do a pellet-free diet, but it can be tricky. Without pellets, your buns will be missing nutrients from their diet. Therefore, you have to make up for it by providing more veggies and in a much greater variety.

[Sarita]

I agree with LBJ – it’s been a very long time since I’ve even looked at Purina’s Rabbit Chow and I imagine it’s manufactured in a totally different warehouse than the dog products too.

Pellets are the smallest part of a rabbits diet as well. But you should start looking for a timothy based pellet.

[Faye37]

what do you feed your rabbits?

[LBJ10]

Mine get Oxbow. There are others that are good too.

When you’re looking at pellets, read the label. The analysis should be close to the following:

Fiber 18% minimum (20 -25% best)
Fat 1 – 2% max
Protein 12 – 14% max (long-haired breeds may need higher)
Calcium 1% max

[MeketatenBun]

I’d be wary of Purina right now. Apparently they were recently sued for toxins in their dog food that killed thousands of dogs. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/02/24/dog-food-maker-sued-for-allegedly-toxic-chow-but-is-it.html

I haven’t heard any bad news about their rabbit food, but if they’re putting this ingredients in dog foods, who knows what they could be putting in their cat and bunny foods.

I know a lot of people who give their bunnies Oxbow pellets. Currently I get Meki’s pellets from a feed mill that makes Kent pellets.

[Stickerbunny]

I would avoid Purina just because… they are a cheap brand that loves fillers in all their animal products, don’t mind using shortcuts and the company as a whole are kinda meh. I prefer a food from a company I can trust to care about quality. Plus, as they mention, all of the rabbit chow afaik is alfalfa based. This is too rich for non-breeding adult house bunnies.

Personally, I feed Oxbow – it’s timmy based and I can buy it in bulk to save cost (the 5lb bags in pet stores are a total rip off, go 10lb or 25lb bag if you buy, way cheaper). Some feed Kaytee cause it’s cheaper, but again, Kaytee as a company has been shown to not care much about the quality of their product, so I don’t really like the idea of feeding it. I tend to boycott any brand that offers SEEDS for bunnies, even if they offer other options. But, I think they do offer an OK quality timmy pellet at a cheaper price…

I know some breeders feed mannapro, but I think all their pellets are also alfalfa based.

[JackRabbit]

Our vets recommended Oxbow pellets before I ever found BB, and then so many people on here feed Oxbow pellets so I’ve always just bought Oxbow — junior pellets when they were babies and adult timothy pellets after that. I figured that many people couldn’t be wrong!

[MoxieMeadows]

I would DEFINITELY Avoid Purina for now. They are currently being sued for their dog food KILLING over 4000 dogs. We used to feed our cats an apparently “high quality” Purina food, until one of our cats started vomiting. (Although I will say she has always had a very sensitive stomach.) But personally I would just avoid Purina for now. :^/

I am drawing a blank on the name of my bun’s food right now. It’s something like “‘Small World’ Complete Feed For Rabbits.” Although I will state that this is not the best brand out there, but this is actually the best I can buy, and I have to drive over half an hour to get it. Shipping prices are outrageous right now and having to ship 10 pounds of food every 6 weeks is a real pain. :/

[Hazel]

We feed our bun Oxbow, as well.

Moxie, when Oscar was young, we fed him Small World too, since it’s alfalfa based and easy to get. Have you looked at PetFoodDirect? We get our rabbit and cat food from them, and we’ve never paid for shipping. They normally offer free shipping on orders over $49. Of course the Oxbow is still more expensive than the Small World, but if shipping is the main concern for you, this might be something to consider. We usually order rabbit and cat food at the same time, to get up to the required amount for free shipping. Since the canned cat food won’t go bad, we order a couple of cases and throw a bag of Oxbow in.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Probably crazy but I don’t forgive companies that have errors like that-they often repeat-ol’roy dog food has tons of recalls, and not because they notice, but because animals die. So I would totally stop feeding Purina if I were using it, and look at other brands. Where you live will dictate what you can buy but you can see many feed Oxbow and it’s extremely reputable. I think Little Martin’s is another. Just look for a plain timothy based pellet

[Faye37]

Wow, awesome. Thanks for all the replies. I took Faye into the vet today (today is spay day for her, poor buns). The Vet did mention switching to the timothy based pellet since she is getting older and she recommended Oxbow and one other that I can’t think of off the top of my head. So looks like I’ll be gradually changing her food to Oxbow most likely. I’m sort of glad to be changing with the whole Purina thing and dogs. Just makes me nervous to be giving my buns a product from a company that’s harming other animals…. Again thanks of all the great info it’s been very helpful!

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