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Eating cardboard

carolineclair

Warren Scout
Just read in another post about rabbits eating cardboard causing stasis. Maple eats everything! She doesn't just dig up my carpet she eats it ( I don't allow her to do this but sometimes I'm not quick enough to stop her) and she chews holes through all her cardboard boxes leaving no evidence behind. She loves all her cardboard boxes to hide in and chew through but now I'm worried and wondering should I be using an alternative to cardboard boxes and if so, what do you suggest!!?
 
Is she actually ingesting it? Or just nibbling and destroying it? Does she have plenty of hay to eat all the time?
 
She is injesting it. There's no bits of cardboard anywhere to be found round about, just big holes!! She has Timothy hay and another hay constantly being changed and replenished and constant access. She isn't a big hay eater though and I often did myself hand feeding her hay just so I know she's eating it! I was considering getting the sample packets from hay for pets to see if she can be tempted by a different type but not sure if that will help. She drinks plenty and eats pellets and veg/herbs but she can't stop on the cardboard!!
 
Hmm, that would concern me. I know stasis bunnies when they crave fibre will sometimes chew at cardboard. Have her teeth been checked recently? I would take away any cardboard from her for the moment and take her to a rabbit savvy vet and explain that's she's not eating hay and is craving other things.

She needs to be eating the hay to get the fibre through her gut. I think what happens is if they don't get that fibre from the hay, they crave the cardboard to push everything through their systems.

Hope that makes sense.
 
Hmm, that would concern me. I know stasis bunnies when they crave fibre will sometimes chew at cardboard. Have her teeth been checked recently? I would take away any cardboard from her for the moment and take her to a rabbit savvy vet and explain that's she's not eating hay and is craving other things.

She needs to be eating the hay to get the fibre through her gut. I think what happens is if they don't get that fibre from the hay, they crave the cardboard to push everything through their systems.

Hope that makes sense.

This is pretty much exactly what I was going to say. Pie used to go through cardborad like no tomorrow (she still does if I make it available) and it was causing her terrible stasis episodes.
Take her to the vet, voice your concerns, if nothing medical can be found she may just like the texture to chew on.
Oberon loved anythign that is soft plastic (tv remote buttons for example and will happily munch these down if I'm not careful).
 
I agree with you about the risk of stasis. Cardboard & paper have glues & inert chemicals in them to make the wood pulp hold together. These are not poisonous but prevent proper break up of the wood pulp in the gut, so they are more prone to blockages.

In addition to what others have advised about check ups, etc. I & others found that free feeding Thumper bunny safe tree leaves with his hay, satisfied his craving for wood pulp safely.

It is said that the craving for woody fiber can be a sign of an inherantly slow gut particularly the caecum. Tree leaves seem to help to correct this.

I would also say that to help them to overcome the cardboard habit & latch on to the tree leaf habit we sometimes have to remove cardboard from them, until they get the hang of eating leaves instead. Most buns prefer hawthorn which is thankfully comon.

There is another behaviour of trying to enlarge entrance holes to safe places, so they can turn to hide in a box more quickly. They often try to "round off" 90 degree corners as well. This is to reduce the risk of a potential predator from ambushing them from behind a sharp corner.

My bun still tugs up carpet 6 years on, but only when he's frustrated now. He stopped eating it when given tree leaves & is completely safe with cardboard. :)
 
Thank you. So do you just feed hawthorn leaves or the twigs attached too? I've taken away all cardboard, she has enough hidey holes to use for now.
The carpet thing is mainly a game she thinks were playing! She scrambles and pulls it up I run over there she binkies away and runs rings around me... If it wasn't destroying my house it would be extremely cute! She also eats my curtains and today the corner of the wall. All this leads me to think she's just a chewer but were going to the vets tomorrow anyway because she keeps sneezing so I'll mention it.

Thanks for the advice x
 
Thank you. So do you just feed hawthorn leaves or the twigs attached too? I've taken away all cardboard, she has enough hidey holes to use for now.
The carpet thing is mainly a game she thinks were playing! She scrambles and pulls it up I run over there she binkies away and runs rings around me... If it wasn't destroying my house it would be extremely cute! She also eats my curtains and today the corner of the wall. All this leads me to think she's just a chewer but were going to the vets tomorrow anyway because she keeps sneezing so I'll mention it.

Thanks for the advice x

There are very thorney hawthorns & some where this years twigs haven't got thorns on. We must remove the berries/flowers/buds. I can get non throney hawthorn easily. I'd just feed the leaves if I couldn't.
 
I agree with you about the risk of stasis. Cardboard & paper have glues & inert chemicals in them to make the wood pulp hold together. These are not poisonous but prevent proper break up of the wood pulp in the gut, so they are more prone to blockages.

In addition to what others have advised about check ups, etc. I & others found that free feeding Thumper bunny safe tree leaves with his hay, satisfied his craving for wood pulp safely.

It is said that the craving for woody fiber can be a sign of an inherantly slow gut particularly the caecum. Tree leaves seem to help to correct this.

I would also say that to help them to overcome the cardboard habit & latch on to the tree leaf habit we sometimes have to remove cardboard from them, until they get the hang of eating leaves instead. Most buns prefer hawthorn which is thankfully comon.

There is another behaviour of trying to enlarge entrance holes to safe places, so they can turn to hide in a box more quickly. They often try to "round off" 90 degree corners as well. This is to reduce the risk of a potential predator from ambushing them from behind a sharp corner.

My bun still tugs up carpet 6 years on, but only when he's frustrated now. He stopped eating it when given tree leaves & is completely safe with cardboard. :)

:thumb:
 
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