Spaying and Veggies

[BunnyLiz]

I have a bit of a problem, Lucy will not eat any veggies.  Ive tried everything that Hammer gets one at a time and nothing is eatin.  Last week she nibbled a romaine leaf but never touched it again.  This has been going on for about a month and she gets something twice a day when Hammer gets his salads.  She is a very odd bunny.  Wel now I cant stand her lol, she really really needs to be spayed.  She is the most annoying and destructive thing you can imagine lol.  When she is out my full attention has to be on her so she doesnt ruin everything in my room.  Litter habits in the cage are okay, pee in box poo wherever.  Outside the cage litter box habits dont exist.  I was waiting to get her spayed till she started to eat and handle veggies in her diet.  My thought was that it would be better for recovery, that she would eat veggies before pellets and hopefully eat sooner.  What do you guys think? Should I wait till she is eating veggies, however long that might take, or just do the spay now and worry about veggies later? Im not sure it will make a difference so hoping someone has dealt with something similar.

[Beka27]

She may have food issues forever. Some buns are harder to get eating hay or veggies, so I would not wait until that’s in place. You might be waiting years. Spaying sounds like it’s an urgent matter so I would go ahead with that ASAP. I don’t recall, did Hammer give you a hard time when he reached maturity? I think in some cases, females have it harder than males.   As far as food, keep trying.  When she gets older and you reduce the pellets, she will have to eat something.  It’s likely she will turn to hay and veggies at that point.

Did you figure out your vet predicament?

Meadow was a terror too during puberty. As soon as she turned 6 months, it went downhill FAST. She was spayed at 7 months (the soonest I could get her in) and I was counting down the days. I never want to have an unaltered bunny again if I can help it. Babies are cute, but no thanks. ;o)

[BunnyLiz]

Ok good I was hoping someone would say spay asap so I could move out of this awful stage and be confident I wasnt being too selfish. Thats terrible that she might have real issues with eating, bunnies love veggies why would she not eat them? She wont eat treats either. She watches Hammer eat his twice a day so she knows what to do. Yes spaying is very urgent for her, and the worst is she doesnt get “NO!” or the water bottle, only me getting up and chasing after her. Hammer was an angel when he was young, I think he is more of a troublemaker now than then. Yes I have a vet im happy with now, hopefully I dont run into any problems there. Lucy is definitely going downhill fast as you say Meadow did. I type this as I go to retrieve a honking Lucy from the top of Hammers 2 grid high cage while he nips at her feet. Then find 7 poops on my pillow Lucy left for me. I love having bunnies, but im with ya on never ever ever getting a unaltered bun again. No sir no how, no unaltered buns.

[KatnipCrzy]

I would keep trying to get her started on veggies- that is usually what they will start eating first after a spay.  I would try parsley and cut the end of the stem off so it is fragrant and poke it in her mouth, around her lips, etc- and she might either try it or take a snap at it- but get a taste of it.  It that does not work- try the leafy end- ticking her nose, and annoying her so maybe she will bite at it.

Feed Hammer his so Lucy can see him eating his salad.

I am also in the “no unaltered buns” club.  Cotton was a bit of a challenge- and it is tough to see the little bundle of bunny love turn into a raging hormone monster- and then the gradual wind down after spaying is a relief.  It is so nice not to have to worry about them peeing on the couch anymore- now that Cotton and Schroeder have settled being next to each other- there are only poo markings which is fine in my book, I will take that any day over pee!

Cotton was a very picky bun too as a baby- and now at about 1 1/2 years old she is more willing to try new things, so it seems as though she grew out of it- or maybe Schroeder is a good example for her.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Yup I’m a card carrying member of never going through puberty/neuter again! Boy is that a pain-only adoptions for me!

I wonder if she’d eat fresh grass or dandelions maybe? That might get her started on eating fresh food. Have you tried berries-Strawberries may be very tempting.

[BunnyLiz]

Yep ive tried everything! Ive broken the herbs in her face and the only reaction ive ever gotten is chinning. She has had(but not eaten) romaine, green leaf, red leaf, cilantro, flat parsley, italian parsley, mustard greens, dandelion, mint, dill, carrot, raisins, berries, apple, banana, bok choy, carrot tops, collard greens, kale. She does see Hammer eat his, there bowls are facing each other through bars. Ill try some grass KK good idea.

[jerseygirl]

Try making in a small challenge for her to get it instead of serving it up. Like hangs some strands in the cage wire so she has to stretch up to get it. Worth a try. It might be a battle of wills thing. I think once they have a go at veggies, they’re quicker to accept them the next time they’re served up.

[BunnyLiz]

Great idea Jersey!! Lucy seems just the type to go for that too!

[BinkyBunny]

You also might want to have the vet double check her incisors. Pellets can easily be picked up by a bunny’s lips and then munched on by molars, but with greens, many times they need their incisors to slice it first to bring it back to their mouth. She’s probably just a picky bun, but it won’t hurt to double check her incisors just in case.

[BunnyLiz]

Well she did eat some grass through the night yesterday! But no progress on any real veggies and she wont eat any more grass now. Thanks BB ill have to take her in. It can be a pre spay and first new vet visit. She had gone to my old vet once, but that was the one I dont trust much now so ill get her rechecked.

[BunnyLiz]

I had a thought today while day dreaming in class. Baby food, can I give that to maybe get Lucy started on veggies? Not a major part in her diet but maybe a third of a jar twice a day (I have no idea how much is too much for this, so any ideas there would be great too) like Hammer gets his salads? Maybe she will like the taste of the veggie and then eat the real thing. I know they can have some, its in my bun aid kit but is it alright for this purpose when she is healthy? If she really likes it I could even put a little on the veggie to encourage her to eat it. She has nibbled some things lately wont eat but a third of a sprig of parsley sometimes or a tiny piece of lettuce if im lucky.

[Sarita]

No, I don’t suggest baby food. It’s not the same at all. I think you need to just be persistent in giving her a few fresh greens.

I would also think baby food might give her runny cecals.

It just really doesn’t seem like a natural transition to me.

[BunnyLiz]

O darn. Back to brainstorming. Lucy sure is giving me a hard time!

[jerseygirl]

Maybe cruel to be kind suggestion…take out most of her hay and don’t give pellets one day (While you’re home all day) until she goes for the veggies either thru hunger or boredom. Then obviously, give her back her hay! Once she’s really tried them, I would think she’d eat them again. I don’t know if it’s truly bad if she doesn’t eat veg…if she gets hay and pellets (which have the vitamins in it) then…*shrugs*

Perhaps she will after the spay when she’s older. Even she might pick it up from Hammer. I found Jersey started eating more hay after observing Rumball doing it.

[Beka27]

How about sticking a few sprigs of parsley or cilantro in her hay, maybe she’ll grab it by mistake? ;o)

[BunnyLiz]

Im littering her cage with cilantro tonight! Its in a bowl, in her hay (good idea Beka!) , hanging from the ceiling of the cage. Last night she ate one sprig that was hanging but ignored the others. So maybe she will get annoyed with it all and eat a few. But dont worry I didnt put enough in their to cause any digestive upset even if she eats it all. So far its all been ignored though. Jersey- hopefully it wont come to that, but if she doesnt get it in a few weeks maybe ill withhold hay and pellets for a few hours and only offer veggies, the most I would do that would be 4 or 5 hours though so idk if she would even get hungry/bored enough.

[BunnyLiz]

Havent been on here in forever- to busy with the end of my senior year. But Lucy will eat up to 3 sprigs of parsley now. Most of the time at least, sometimes she ignores it still. But she refuses to eat it unless its hanging from the top of her cage. And honestly thats a bit annoying. Just now had an idea! If she will only eat it if its hanging, I have a little hay rack I dont use anymore. Ill put some in that tonight and see if she takes to it.

[Author]

Messages