What’s a good diet for a baby bunny?

[amandafaith90]

Now, I know that baby bunnies (I am talking about a bunny who is 7 weeks old and just weaned) are supposed to have unlimited, good quality pellets, no veggies, and as much hay as they can get those nibblers on. This being said, I was wondering if the kind of hay matters. Some sites I read suggest Timothy, just like senior bunnies, while others reccomend Alfalfa. This confused me a little as I know that Alfalfa hay isn’t good for grown up bunnies, but I suppose it could be good for a growing bun. I am picking up my baby Holland Lop Bambi in 2 weeks (YAY!) and need to know what kind of hay to buy him before I pick him up. The breeder I am getting him from feeds him and his brothers and sisters normal hay (as in Timothy) along with mom’s milk right now, but I wanted to make sure what was best for him.

Thanks a ton!

 

– Amanda

 

[RabbitPam]

 

Hi, Amanda,

Here is a quote from the House Rabbit Society’s website. I urge you to browse around there for some great advice.

http://www.rabbit.org/

 

• Birth to 3 weeks–mother’s milk
• 3 to 4 weeks–mother’s milk, nibbles of alfalfa and pellets
• 4 to 7 weeks–mother’s milk, access to alfalfa and pellets
• 7 weeks to 7 months–unlimited pellets, unlimited hay (plus see 12 weeks below)
• 12 weeks–introduce vegetables (one at a time, quantities under 1/2 oz.)

 

• introduce timothy hay, grass hay, and oat hays, decrease alfalfa
• decrease pellets to 1/2 cup per 6 lbs. body weight
• increase daily vegetables gradually
• fruit daily ration no more than 1 oz. to 2 oz. per 6 lbs. body weight (because of calories)

P.S. Congrats on Bambi!

 

What quantities of food should I feed young adults? (7 months to 1 year)

What quantities of food should I feed babies and “teenagers?

[Beka27]

I would really recommend doing timothy based pellets all through out. Keep giving timothy hay since that’s what he’s used to, but you can also give alfalfa hay in addition to that. There’s no need to give both alfalfa pellets and alfalfa hay, that will just make it more difficult to transition him once he’s older. They say veggies at 12 weeks, but you can start giving small bits as early as 8 weeks. Just introduce very slooooowly…

[MooBunnay]

I’ve always done alfalfa hay and timothy pellets with my baby bunnies – but I think it is up to you if you’d like to throw in some alfalfa pellets as well. The reasoning behind alfalfa for baby bunnies is that it is supposed to give them extra calories as they are growing.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

They actually can have veggies-the idea that they can’t is a bit outdated. Just wash really well-they may be more sensitive to bacteria or pesticides then full grown bunnies but they certainly can stomach veggies. And introduce easy ones (parsley, green leaf lettuce, carrot) slowly and in small amounts.

The good thing is it’s easy to feed babies because alfalafa hay and pellets is the only thing some petstores stock! They can have any plain alfalfa pellet and alfalfa hay. You can also feed other kinds of hay-especially good to get them liking timothy if you can- but alfalfa is high in calories and calcium and good for growing bunnies.

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