• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Source of fibre 4 bun that won't eat hay & most pellets

N

Nicola3

Mama Doe
Hi again :D ,

Harvey, my incisorless bunny has been having trouble with his tummy slowing down. He has been having trouble with his mouth recently where his tongue was sore and is being treated for that.

What he really needs is to eat more fibre. He won't/can't eat hay. He won't eat any of the high fibre pellets. The only rabbit food he will eat at the moment is excel for dwarf bunnies. He will eat dandelions, chopped up carrot. I can't go messing around trying to change his diet drastically at the moment by cutting out his excel as he isn't eating much as it is.

Is there anything else I can give him that he may find equally irresistible to encourage him to eat more fibre? I know some people give their buns cereals etc.

I would also be interested in any foods I can give him to tempt him to eat more fullstop. Anything that he may find super scrummy and palatable? I'm just trying to help his tum get back to normal.


Hoping you can help.

Love and hugs,

Nicola and Harvey.
 
Does he eat fresh grass?

Hay you tried chopping the hay into short lengths? He might find it easier to eat then, when he doesn't have to pull the long strands into his mouth.
 
Hi Rallybunny :D ,

Yes, he occasionally will eat fresh grass. I cut it up for him.

As far as hay goes. I have bought so many different vairieties and I spend ages cutting it all up with scissors. So far I've tried oxbow timothy hay, local hay, super forage and many others.

Any hays that I have missed that he may find super scrumptious? Or grasses? Or cereals? Any other food stuffs to get him eating properly again?

Hugs,

Nic and Harvey xxx
 
I have just bought Evo the sample selection from http://www.thehayexperts.co.uk. It's £2.50 and you get samples of 5 of their different hays. So far Evo has loved all of them - I have one bag left to try.

You could also try Oxbow's oat hay. Evo loves it, especially the seed heads with the oats in. I've only been able to buy it in the small bags from the internet so far, but I'm sure you could get it in bigger bags if you asked.
 
Oooooohhh....that sounds good. I will try it.

Thing is cos Harv had his accident I think this is what makes it difficult for him to eat hay.

I will try and get some of that sample hay. I don't have a credit card but I can send a cheque. Will take a look. Thanks xxxx

Any other yummy sources of fibre?
Or any other food that will encourage him to eat more on his own?

Hugs,

Nic and Harv xxx
 
I have just had some bags of the field fresh and the orchard timothy hay arrive from the Hay company, they smell wonderful.

I am trying to organise some samples of a variety of different hays for people to try on their rabbits for our open day in May.
 
,

If he is not eating enough you could ask your vet for some critical care. syringe feed him this for a couple of days..will boost him generally and...I think..it contains an appetitie stimulant.....good luck!
 
Hi,

He has only been eating a small amount of excel. He's also been eating dandelion leaves and a small amount of grass.

I have been syringe feeding him critical care for several weeks now as he has had a sore tongue and have been trying to cut down on the syringe feeding now. My vet is hoping that his tongue is gradually healing . I have cut down on the syringe feeding to try and encourage him to eat more on his own but he is just not eating enough on his own to keep his tummy working properly.

Is there any food that he will find irresistible to encourage him to eat more on his own? Any bunny food that is particularly palatable and scrummy?

Love and hugs,

Nic and Harv xxx
 
trouble is, the scrummy stuff tends to be 'treats only' . Benny really enjoyed porridge mushed up with a few science selective pellets in winter. Just a splash of boiling water to soak the oats a few minutes, and the pellets made it taste nicer. I've put all my rabbits straight onto science selective (due to not having any food from the rescues) and no tummy problems - they go mad for it, so that's what I'd recommend.
 
Hi Elve,

I agree...thing is I'm just trying to get him to eat for himself again.

Before he had his poorly tongue I'd almost finished transferring him over to Science Selective from excel-dwarf bun variety, but since he's not been right he will only eat the excel for dwarf buns.

I've tried him on porridge oats but he wouldn't touch them. I will try putting a few SS pellets in with it and mush it up.

Anything else I can tempt him with to encourage him to eat more on his own?

Thank you for all your help,

Nic and Harv xxx
 
Science Selective doesn't seem as hard as the excel pellets, and has a nice herby smell. My rabbits have a mixture of excel and SS, and they always eat the SS pellets first - they love them! It was one of the first proper foods Hope would eat after stopping eating/having a dental check-up.

Other than that, fresh herbs are always popular, and I think parsley and mint help stimulate the appetite and settle the stomach.

Anna x
 
Evo turned his nose up at SS for ages, would always leave it and only eat the Excel that it was mixed with. Then one day he was crazy for it, don't know why. :roll:

Maybe it's the shape of SS that's putting Harvey off eating it......it's quite long whereas the Excel is smaller round balls. Maybe you could make the SS smaller for him?
 
Hi Laura,

Well before he had his sore tongue I had almost finished transferring him over to SS and I was really chuffed. Then he got his sore tongue and he would only touch the dwarf excel and wouldn't touch the SS. I put SS out for him every day but he won't go near it now.... :(

I did try breaking it up a bit but it won't break up as weeny as the excel dwarf which is why I think he is opting for that. He has always loved his excel but I know that SS is better for him.

I just want him to eat enough to keep his tum ok.

Hugs,

Nic and Harv xxx
 
ah well - that is strange :? Sometimes I think you have to accept that you have done your best (which you have!) and leave them to it - He might pick up in general when he's outside though - both Tia and Maa have been a lot happier outside, simply because it's what they were used to before I got them. If he's not thriving I would put him outside and see if a familiar environment helps, but if he's doing OK and not losing weight, then I wouldn't' worry - there's only so much you can do! :)
 
Hello :D ,

I've tried that before and he just turned his nose up as if to say " You expect me to eat that muck?"

He's such a fussy monster.........

Nic and Harv xxx
 
Hiya
Think ive told you before about alfie,he wont eat hay,but loves his allen & page pellets (there 23% fibre) and ive been buying him timothey hay cakes i break them up into small peices and he will actually eat it, have you tried them for harvey?
 
Hello,

Have tried the Allen and page pellets but to no avail.

I will try mushing the SS pellets up again but i have done it before.

Thank you for all your suggestion,

Nic n Harv xxx
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

KCG
Daily willow and pellets
Replies
9
Views
187
KCG
KCG
P
Bunny still off food and hay, drooling and teeth chattering
2 3
Replies
49
Views
922
twistedtiggerz69
twistedtiggerz69
twistedtiggerz69
Chief is breathing noisily again!
2 3 4
Replies
76
Views
816
twistedtiggerz69
twistedtiggerz69
Back
Top