Uneaten Caecotrophs New 8 Week old Mini Lop

Hi, I have posted this here and in diet as I was unsure which one to stick it it.

But we have our new bunny and he is producing a fair few uneaten caecotrophs, we have only had him 3 days so we are putting these in a separate tray and throwing them away if uneaten within 24h.
Obviously the odd one gets squashed before you get up.

But I wanted to check it was not a diet problem, we are giving him the low recommended amount of Excell Junior and Dwarf which is 60g (30g twice a day) he is eating plenty of hay?

Is 60g too much?

Hi there. 3 days is not long enough for a bunny to settle in so I would carry on as you are doing. Is he eating the same food as he was when with his Mother?

tonibun said:

Hi there. 3 days is not long enough for a bunny to settle in so I would carry on as you are doing. Is he eating the same food as he was when with his Mother?

Click to expand...

Hi, yes same pellets, different make of hay but the same type (green grass type rather than straw type.)

Congratulations on your new addition

Tonibun is right, three days isn't particularly long for a little bunny to settle in so I wouldn't be too concerned yet. As for the pellets - I cannot visualise what 60g looks like, but because he (?) is a young bunny, he'll still be growing so will need more pellets than the average fully-grown bun as well. I give my adult Mini Lop about half an eggcup full per feed in a treat ball.

Sometimes I've accidentally given him too much (dropped the container or something) and he's scoffed more than he usually gets; this gives him excess caecotrophs. Excel is quite rich, I think, compared to other brands. Alfie only gets excess ones when he over-indulges, but I know that some owners have given their buns Excel and found it upset their tummies even when they don't had loads.

When you say you give your rabbit green grass type of hay, do you give him readigrass? Again, some rabbits struggle with readigrass as I think that is fairly 'rich' as well. Also, do you give him any veggies?

:wave:

JemimaH said:

Congratulations on your new addition

Tonibun is right, three days isn't particularly long for a little bunny to settle in so I wouldn't be too concerned yet. As for the pellets - I cannot visualise what 60g looks like, but because he (?) is a young bunny, he'll still be growing so will need more pellets than the average fully-grown bun as well. I give my adult Mini Lop about half an eggcup full per feed in a treat ball.

Sometimes I've accidentally given him too much (dropped the container or something) and he's scoffed more than he usually gets; this gives him excess caecotrophs. Excel is quite rich, I think, compared to other brands. Alfie only gets excess ones when he over-indulges, but I know that some owners have given their buns Excel and found it upset their tummies even when they don't had loads.

When you say you give your rabbit green grass type of hay, do you give him readigrass? Again, some rabbits struggle with readigrass as I think that is fairly 'rich' as well. Also, do you give him any veggies?

:wave:

Click to expand...

Hi

It is this grass/hay, but is basically what he has been eating
http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/hay_and_bedding/hay_small_pets/48095

No veggies, was instructed to leave it until after 6 months

60 grams looks quiet a lot but Dwarf/Junior excell is very a very light pellet. 30g is around 1/4 of a standard 13cm food bowl such as below
http://shop.justforpets.uk.com/Stoneware_Rabbit_Dish-M8704

Mini-lop said:

Hi

It is this grass/hay, but is basically what he has been eating
http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/hay_and_bedding/hay_small_pets/48095

No veggies, was instructed to leave it until after 6 months

60 grams looks quiet a lot but Dwarf/Junior excell is very a very light pellet. 30g is around 1/4 of a standard 13cm food bowl such as below
http://shop.justforpets.uk.com/Stoneware_Rabbit_Dish-M8704

Click to expand...

Hi,

That hay looks OK, I can't think that'd be causing the problems. You're right with the veggies as well, most people tend to introduce them around 4 months ish but it depends on the bun. And it's not as much food as I was expecting - it may just be down to the fact that he's still settling in.

If it's still continuing in a week or so, it's probably worth looking at a bit more, but for now I'd just see how he goes and wait til he's settled in a bit

I had this problem when I first got my mini lop! He too was leaving LOADS of cecals everywhere, and was producing more cecals than normal poops. Then he would walk through them all and squish them into EVERYTHING with his feet, it was such a stressful time. Rabbits tend to leave excess cecals due to their diet being too rich. Excel nuggets are known to make bunnies produce excess cecals, so you could make a slow transition on to a different brand of food.
However that being said my mini lop is on the excel junior nuggets, what worked for me was limiting the amount of pellets. For example I would weigh out the 60g of pellets but feed him tiny tiny portions of pellets throughout the day, so when he had finished a portion and still had an appetite he would begin eating his hay and his poops! It might not work for you, as every bunny is different. But it's worth a shot....
He could also be leaving excess cecals as he is still settling in, he might be a little bit stressed still, I'd give him a couple of weeks and see if anything changes....
My mini lop rarely leaves his cecals now, but when I first got him it was a huge problem!
Good luck

Forgot to say, I also didn't feed him any veggies whilst he had this problem. All he was allowed was fresh meadow hay (unlimited), a small handful of dried herbs, and his 60g of pellets daily, now the problem has settled down I have began introducing veggies to his diet and everything is going fine (touch wood).

To be honest his normal pooing is fine, he just does about 4-5 cecals a night (which he seems to leave)
He eats plenty of hay so perhaps just a stress thing.
Either that or after leaving his Mom, brothers and sisters he is getting more pellets than he is used to, being an only child now.

Mini-lop said:

To be honest his normal pooing is fine, he just does about 4-5 cecals a night (which he seems to leave)
He eats plenty of hay so perhaps just a stress thing.
Either that or after leaving his Mom, brothers and sisters he is getting more pellets than he is used to, being an only child now.

Click to expand...

He will probably grow out of it, some bunnies are too busy playing and exploring to be eating cecals! Just keep an eye on him, he probably just needs longer to settle in and adjust to his new surroundings! My mini lop stopped leaving cecals after a couple of weeks of being here, he just needed time to get used to me and his new home, keep us updated on how your bunny is doing