veggie specifics……..

[dreamlessforever]

ok well i have read  over and over the recommended veggies for buns. the list however is rather long am i suppose to feed all of them to the buns? how many of them shoud i feed and within that which ones should i feed to them? it seems kind of ridiculous to feed like 20 different veggies at once i also think it would go over the 2 cup limit……i would like a smaller set list to focus on for them so that i can perhaps step out of the confusion here.

[Beka27]

I’d say that half the stuff on the list, my store does not even carry. Some veggies are more readily available than others, also prices vary among the different veggies. I feed 2 lettuces a week (either romaine, escarole, endive, red or green leaf lettuce), 1 “green” a week (collard, dandelion, mustard), and 1 herb a week (curly or flat parsley, cilantro). So there are 10 or 11 veggies I rotate in and out frequently. They would have to be introduced one at a time. You may find that some buns like a veggie, others may not touch it. I suggest printing out a copy of the list so you can make notes on it, who likes what or who has a bad reaction to something.

I buy enough for the whole week (or usually for about 5-6 days) and I divide everything up into piles, one for each day. I refridgerate it already divided up, so in the morning I can just grab a bunch and I’m set. The 2 cups recommendation is a guideline for 5-pound bunnies. Larger bunnies may eat more. I have seen where some recommend betw/ 2 and 4 cups for a 5-pounder. It may vary from day to day, week to week, how much they each get but you do want to keep it somewhat consistent. And of course, Hay is the most important part.

[dreamlessforever]

ok so you feed them green stuff once a day? is it you separate it by day or bunny? or both maybe? with  as many buns as i have i will need my own fridge just for them….which isnt a bad i dea actually maybe i will geta  mini fridge for the bunny veggies……well i know that all of mine like the romaine, collard, and the musterd…but i wouldnt even begin to know where to find dandelion and i will have to look for a bit to find those herbs…. i am still a little confused can you make an example of all this on a multiple rabbit home? i cant seem to make it click.with this many to feed and not knowing if they all will like it and how to organize and how much to feed and im going a lil crazy…….i need a structured example plz

[Beka27]

They share about 6 cups of veggies, between the two of them, per day.  I feed them veggies in the morning.  They eat them thru out the day, as well as a lot of hay.  They get a 1/2 cup pellets to share at bedtime.

I buy approx 3 medium/large heads of romaine, 1 or 2 medium/large heads of another lettuce, 2 or 3 bunches of an herb, and 1 or 2 bunches of a green.  This lasts me between 5-6 days. 

Since my buns are bonded, I divide veggies up by day.

Here are my week’s veggies, fresh from the store.  They are all still bunched together.

I lay out a paper towel for each day… in this case, 6 days.

I break the veggies apart with my hands and each paper towel gets equal parts of romaine, equal parts of escarole, equal parts of… etc.  If it is a large head of romaine, I might break it into 3 chunks (one for each day), smaller heads get broken into 2 chunks.  Same with all the other veggies.  I try to give an equal amount of each every day.  It may look like a jumbled mess, but it’s not, it’s actually very precise.

Once that is all done, each “day” gets rolled up into paper towels.  This is the best way I have found to keep them fresh in the fridge.

When everything is rolled up, I am left with 5 or 6 “easy to grab” bunches of veggies.  In the morning I can grab one roll of veggies, open it up.  Wash them and feed to the buns.  All the hard, time-consuming work (dividing!) is already done.

 

THIS works for ME!  I tried different methods to get a system that worked for me and was not as time-consuming.  Like I said, my two share these veggies.  If you were to do this, you could either do larger bunches and divide up later, or do one bunch for one day for each “cage of bunnies”.  I used to keep everything separate in the fridge, one paper towel roll of parsley, one of romaine, but I was having to handle it all multiple times.  Start with fewer veggies and see how it goes.  I would not expect them to be at 2 cups overnight.  It will take you some time to get a system that works for you and your buns.

The veggies I feed, that is just an example of what MY store has.  Print out a copy of the list and take it with you and make check marks next to what your store carries. 

[dreamlessforever]

thats alot better thanx and i’ll update on the progress i have with them.

[KatnipCrzy]

I have 3 separate bunnies right now- and my set up with veggies is a little different.

I shop about once a week- romaine, another green like endive or collard greens, usually a herb (like parsley or cilantro) and then a veggie like broccoli or fennel.  I rough chop the greens when I get home- usually into thirds- rinse, spin the the salad spinner, lay on a paper towel to dry and then bag in a green bag.  (If it is hot outside- I use a desk fan to speed the drying process so I can get enough moisture off of them to bag them before they wilt).

Every day when I make “salads” I get the bags out of the refrig and fill the bowl (ceramic crocks).  My husband would never feed the buns their greens if he had to clean them first- but he will make a “salad” of washed greens.

When I go out of town- last time I only had 2 bunnies and it was for 4 days- I premade the salads and put them into green bags so the petsitter only had to give what was in the bag and it was already cleaned.

We eat a lot of salad using Romaine as a base- and our chopped lettuce is usually in the salad spinner.  Works out well- it is cheaper to buy romaine hearts in bigger bags- and the buns get the cores and the very tips (usually bent) from the romaine hearts that we eat.

You will have to experiment to see what you bunnies like- and you might even have to offer it all week before they will even try it.  My buns are so-so on asparagus- I would never buy it just for them since they will only nibble and never finish the ends that we give them from what we have prepared for ourselves.  Green pepper was not well liked either.  Alfalfa sprouts are new this week and the very last thing to be eaten.  But they love snow peas (peas that you eat the pod) and broccoli- but these are only served in small portions daily- 1-2 pea pods and 1-2 small pieces of broccoli.  they get the bulk of their daily veggies from greens, lettuces and herbs.

[Balefulregards]

Katnip – Coco seriously turned her nose up at alfalfa sprouts too – and I thought she would LOVE them.

I love Bekas system. I only have the one bun, so she has a big Plastic tupperware container that I rip and mix the greens into – enough for two or three days.

Don’t toss the cores of the lettuce – It is often Coco’s FAVORITE part!

[Beka27]

Absolutely give the lettuce cores to the buns! We do the same thing when we make romaine salads for us. We save the cores for the buns and they devour them!

[jerseygirl]

haha Dreamless, those list are long aren’t they! I have read various list and don’t even know what half on the things on them are! On the HRS/BB list there is a recommendation that you feed at least one on the veggies that are high in Vit A daily (They are indicated in bold type) Most of what I’ve read suggest serving a variety of 3 veggies daily – around 2 cups per bun. Not everyone does this, depends in the buns digestion, fussiness or appetite & what your local stores have available. Yours may not eat this much to begin with so don’t rush out and buy too much. You’ll find in time you’ll get it down to a couple of winners that the buns will love and you can get year round. Then you can treat them occasionally by throwing in of a herb or some sort.

So, in short, from the list feed any combo of three, at least one high vit A item in that three.  I find romaine and endive and flat leaf parsley good value and they seem to last well. Also broccoli and brussel sprouts.

[dreamlessforever]

yea i am going this upcoming weekend to look for stuff…..for now they have romaine (which they all love)and collard greens (and of course bun~bun gets his green beans lol)…..no herbs yet tho. we  are thinking we might  grow some of our own stuff though (without pesticides obviously).

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