Senior Rabbit Diet

[pinkiemarie]

I’m wondering if anyone knows if the Oxbow Essentials senior rabbit food is actually better for them than other pellets? It mentions protein and I wasn’t aware that adult rabbits at any life stage had different protein needs. It also mentions ginger, turmeric and chamomile. My buns actually eat a few chamomile flowers as a little treat most days and I could just add in some dried turmeric or ginger to help them with inflammation if that’s actually beneficial for them (although the ginger might be a little spicy lol). Right now they eat oxbow garden select and I’m just not sure if I should actually change them over or not, just trying to do the best thing to keep them healthy. They’re 7 and 8 so definitely getting a bit older but still active and don’t seem to have any chronic pain or other health issues. I’m open to other pellets options available in the US for healthy seniors if something else is actually better!

[Bam]

Some say that extruded pellets are better bc the nutrients are more biologically available in that type pellets. Oxbow are compressed pellets. I dont know which type is best, my rabbit savvy vet says any premium quality grass hay based pellet with a fiber content of at least 20% (insoluble) fiber is good. I use extruded pellets for my bun, but I have used Oxbow too. I recently changed to a little less calorie-dense variety bc my bun is a rex and prone to putting on weight. She cant be allowed any extra weight, it would be bad for her feet (rexes dont have a lot of protective fur on their foot soles).

If your buns eat their pellets and keep a good weight -sometimes aging buns can have difficulty keeping weight on – I don’t think I would change the pellets. Obviously weigh them now and then so you see how they do weight-wise.

I have never given turmeric or ginger to a bun, but Ive read that turmeric is supposed to be good for joints etc. Chamomille grows here, so I often give some fresh flowers to my buns. I also give other supposedly healthy herbs and I dry herbs for use during winter.

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[pinkiemarie]

Thanks for the response. I haven’t heard that about bioavailability but I have heard that compressed pellets are more of a choking risk. They really like what they’re on so I think I’ll stick with it for now then.

[LBJ10]

I think the logic surrounding the extra protein is that senior buns can have trouble keeping weight on, so extra protein may help them maintain. And yes, turmeric and ginger are anti-inflammatory, which isn’t a bad thing for senior buns. There are supplements available though too, so you could give those things to them that way.

[DanaNM]

I would be worried about dosage with adding turmeric and ginger myself, but I did used to give my senior the Oxbow joint support treats regularly. He also seemed to benefit from the Floppers Garden “Old Bones Mix” that had some soothing herbs in it and was formulated by an herbalist. I think a lot of these products are more helpful with prevention and mild symptoms, as they aren’t really treatments when things get severe, so incorporating some type joint support now could be helpful.

I think it’s good to just go off the bun’s current condition. If they are maintaining their muscle mass then I don’t think you need to switch pellets. I opted to do supplemental feeding with Emeraid rather than switching pellets with my bun when he started losing weight.

. . . 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.  

[pinkiemarie]

Thanks everyone for the extra info. I’ll try the old bones mix whenever it’s available again lol you can get dried ginger and turmeric in little squares rather than ground up so if I decide to try that I’ll just do one tiny square. I think the only concern with those in humans is that it can thin your blood a little so that could be a similar concern with buns.

[bunniesditto]

have you noticed any changes needing supplementation as they’ve gotten older?

[pinkiemarie]

I haven’t yet. They just have chamomile because I recently lost a bunny with digestive issues and that was one of the things he could handle as a treat.

[Love my bun]

I have a senior Bun (12-13 yo mini Rex mix) that I just started feeding Oxbow Senior (per my small animal vet) as he is losing weight. Wish I would’ve known to do this sooner; you are smart to start early! I’m looking for ANYTHING to put weight on him so reading up on this post… I have heard about Emeraid as DanaNM mentions but my vet did not mention it. Should I look into this or just keep up with the new pellets for now? He eats almost all Small Pet Select brand stuff (hay, pellets, treats) and still has a good appetite despite his weight loss. Also, he has been on Metacam for about a month or so since he was having a hard time getting up from naps sometimes 🙁

I have to put Vetericyn drops in his eyes periodically for irritation or scratches which I didn’t have to do a few years ago (I adopted him at what the Humane Society thought was the age of 7 but I think he might’ve been younger…). As I was doing this the other day, he jumped out of my arms and landed a little hard on his right side. Although it was only about a 6 inch drop, he started limping on his right front leg. I was worried about a fracture as he is a bit frail but he seems to be better every day so I think I was lucky with that incident. Thanks for responding, Bam! But that brings me back to the fact that he must gain weight and get the right supplements/pellets to support his aging bones. I have never heard of Floppers Garden “Old Bones Mix” but will look into that ASAP!

[Bam]

I hope your bun’s leg is ok now! They can of course hurt ligaments and muscle in their legs if they take a “bad” jump -hopefully this was nothing serious!

Emeraid is recovery food and comes as a maintenance variety and an emergency variety. It’s the maintenance one that Dana has been using, with great results. It’s similar to Oxbow Critical Care, but with the important difference that many rabbits seem to actually like Emeraid and will eat it voluntarily from a plate. I’ve never used it myself, simply because it’s not available where I am. I had a bun that needed daily supplementation with Oxbow Critical Care because his teeth were so bad he couldnt eat as much hatd food as he needed to.

Recovery food for “otherwise healthy” buns (as opposed to acutely ill buns) is often given as a supplement to help the bun keep a good weight on, without having to try all kinds of calorie dense foods (oats, sunflower seeds etc) that could throw the tummy. Elderbuns can be hard keepers, just like some horses can be when they get old.

If you decide to try Emeraid you could use it as a “side dish” and still give him his daily hard food (pellets and hay) because chewing, especially chewing hay, is important for the teeth and the tummy.

 

 

 

 

[Love my bun]

Thanks, Bam! I had a call with a very helpful vet who works at Lafeber yesterday (Jill Murray) and she also suggested that I try the Emeraid Sustain formula. I ordered it on Amazon yesterday and just gave a little to Bun a few minutes ago. Gotta love Amazon! He ate a little but wasn’t crazy about it like he is his Metacam so I mixed the Metacam in it. He ate about half a serving and is sleeping soundly now. I’m keeping an eye on him to make sure he digests it ok. Hopefully he will take to it a little more in the future and gain some weight! I will be using this as supplemental as you mentioned since he does have a pretty good appetite still. At least we have that going for us 🙂 Looks like the Old Bones herb mix is still sold out online but I have some dried herb/flower mixes from Small Pet Select I can give him in the meantime. Appreciate the response and hope to report positive results in the near future!

[pinkiemarie]

I have an update for anyone who might have been curious about this topic. We just saw the vet for a minor unrelated issue and I asked about the senior pellets and she thought it was a good idea to switch them because she says kidney issues can be common in older rabbits and these pellets are good for that. She’s an exotic specialist with an extra exotics certification so I tend to trust her advice and will be switching.

[Love my bun]

Thanks for sharing! Glad I switched…

[Love my bun]

Oh good! That’s great news… I have continued to feed Oxbow Senior pellets for a few weeks now 🙂

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