switching pellets

[olliebun]

hi everyone, so I’m getting mylo on Friday and its so exciting!! I just ordered a bag of Sherwood’s young rabbit food(I think thats the name lol) and I plan on using the same brand unless there is a issue and I need to change. I asked the breeder what food he was on so I can buy a small bag and slowly transition him. how ever when I went to buy some there was only 25 lb and 50 lb available. I checked online and it was the same, nothing smaller than 25 lb. I don’t want to buy so much because I’m scared it would go bad and I also don’t like the brand. I’m hoping the breeder will give me a small baggy of the old food. I wanted to transition over a few weeks but it looks like I might not be able to. can I transition to the new food in a week or so? I probably won’t start the transition until he’s settled and comfortable. thanks in advance! 

also is there anything else I need? I have:

-a dog crate condo with a x-pen( going to hold off using the pen, other than play time, until he is mostly peeing in the litter box) 

-litter box with equine pellets

– willow tunnel, some willow balls stacking cups, water bowl, food bowl and water bottle and a cat tunnel

– blankets 

-puppy pads

– lots of cardboard boxes and toilet paper tubes 

– grooming supplies

– Timothy and orchard hay 

– food is on its way. 

[Bunny House]

Hi! You can’t transition them in a week, you run the risk of him developing a severe dysbiosis of the gut and going into stasis.

See if the breeder can sell you a 10pound portion of the bag so you can transition over a month. If not, then you’ll need to buy the big bag and then you can donate it to your local bunny shelter.

Bunnies need a minimum of 4-6 hours a day of play time so he will need to have the pen to run around in. You can line it with puppy pads every time he goes out.

Buns under 6 months should be fed alfalfa hay as it is really rich in nutrients to help them grow and then Timothy after 6 months.

[Harley&Thumper]

How large is Mylo? If you do it right, a large sandwich baggy full of their old food is enough to safely transition them to the new pellets. And for what it’s worth, the bunnies at my local shelter end up having their pellets switched abruptly quite frequently(based on what people donate to the shelter) and I have never seen them have issues with the new pellets. But these are usually adult bunnies and therefore less sensitive.

[olliebun]

ok, I just asked to buy about 5 lbs of the current food he is on when I come pick him up so I think I should be good for a slow transition. the Sherwood’s young rabbit food is alfalfa based so would alfalfa hay still be necessary? I heard its harder to transition from alfalfa to Timothy so many people just feed Timothy if the pellets are alfalfa based. is this true?

[olliebun]

mylo will be little over 8 weeks when I pick him ups he won’t be very big. both parents were under 5 lbs so I don’t expect him to grow very big but since he is a mix, we will just have to wait and see

[sarahthegemini]

If he’s on alfalfa pellets, alfalfa hay isn’t necessary

[Harley&Thumper]

If his parents are under 5lbs a large sandwich bag should be good enough. And I agree with sarah, giving alfalfa pellets and alfalfa hay is just going to result in excess cecotropes and calcium.

[Bunny House]

I agree, as long as the pellets are alfalfa then no alfalfa hay but I know many breeders don’t do the recommended diets for baby buns so see if you can get a look at the ingredients on the bag

[olliebun]

the food the breeder is currently feeding is the purina rabbit chow complete(green bag)

INGREDIENTS: Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Wheat Middlings, Ground Soybean Hulls, Dehulled Soybean Meal, Ground Corn, Wheat Flour, Cane Molasses, Ground Oat Hulls, Lignin Sulfonate, Salt, Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, DL-Methionine, Choline Chloride, Iron Oxide, L-Lysine, Sodium Selenite, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Supplement, Dried Aspergillus Niger Fermentation Extract, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Dried Yeast, Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Ferment Product, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Cobalt Carbonate, Manganese Sulfate, Ethylenediamine Dihydroiodide, Zinc Sulfate, Dried Yucca Shidigera Extract, Copper Chloride, Dicalcium Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate.

the one I am transition him to is sherwood baby formula

Ingredients: Alfalfa hay, whole oil seed blend (flax included)*, whole millet*, Monodicalcium phosphate, salt, choline chloride, Essential amino acids, Chelated minerals, B-vitamins, cobalt carbonate.

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