Could this be a solution to greedy rabbits?

[RampantRabbits]

Baby is putting on weight nicely and is loving her food but it won't be long before i have to start cutting back.

I was wondering if there is a food, apart from hay that i could feed more of. Confused? :?

I was ticking over in my mind the idea of feeding a little extra cucumber, or something that doesnt really have much nutritional content/calories to help fill her up.

As it is she has unlimited amounts of hay, a high quality mix (yes a mix, but i have checked that it contains all the important nutrients and theres nothing in there thats bad for buns either!) a cup a day of fruit and veg and her water.

Would feeding extra cucumer (or something smilar) make her not want to eat her hay? This is probably a ridiculous idea, i just had my horse owners head on at the time and thought about how we feed bran mash to fat horses to fill them up. It has barely any nutritional qualities to it at all.

Just thought i'd check

 

[Nicola1]

celery is good, it has hardly any calories in and I think is quite filling :wave: I've heard cucumber is a bit watery for buns, but I'm not sure if it is, if your rabbit is doing ok on it, should be fine. I would cut right down on mix so she is only getting half an egg-cup full if you cut something down x

 

[Hoppit!]

If I were you I'd replace all fruit with celery and cucumber. Buns aren't really supposed to eat fruit anyway, it can make them poorly, so it'd be a great way of cutting right down on calories without putting them off their hay.

 

[RampantRabbits]

celery is good, it has hardly any calories in and I think is quite filling :wave: I've heard cucumber is a bit watery for buns, but I'm not sure if it is, if your rabbit is doing ok on it, should be fine. I would cut right down on mix so she is only getting half an egg-cup full if you cut something down x

Yeah its the mix that i would cut down on, but its the veggies and fruit that makes them put weight on when theyre older.

I wasn't really using my common sense when i posted this...if im going to increase anything to keep her weight down it should be hay!! :lol:

Was having a flossy moment there! haha x

 

[RampantRabbits]

If I were you I'd replace all fruit with celery and cucumber. Buns aren't really supposed to eat fruit anyway, it can make them poorly, so it'd be a great way of cutting right down on calories without putting them off their hay.

They dont get a lot of fruit, maybe a few slices a week as a treat

I was just saying i didnt really use my head when i posted this post...i even read somewhere that to keep their weight down you decrease dry food and increase hay!! deuhhhh :?

Sorry about that...bit of a daft thread really!! I should stop comparing my animals with horses!

 

[Mackers]

but its the veggies and fruit that makes them put weight on when theyre older.

I'm not too sure about this. Fruit is obviously very sugary but veggies, in the main, are mostly water (aside from some root veg which contain sugars). My rabbit-savvy vet said that hay is actually quite calorific because it's concentrated ie. contains no water so although they need to eat lots for fibre and tooth wear, it's quite fattening too. Grass, on the other hand, is very low in nutrients, low in calories and high in water content. Surely green veg would be similar to grass? But then again, I'm no expert so I could be totally wrong.

 

[RampantRabbits]

It seems i've sparked off a bit of a discussion here. The information i had was from the house rabbit society. So as an owner, i would expect it to be pretty accurate. Although i can see where your coming from Mackers.

Im sure everyone has their own ways of doing things. The way i look at it now is that hay is obviously an essential part of a rabbits diet. It should always be on offer. Pellets aren't so much of a necessity but are fed as a balancer, to ensure the rabbit is getting all of the essential nutrients.

There are other people who would say that veggies aren't really necessary and that pellets and hay should be unlimited. I think some breeders take this approach.

Personally i think everything in moderation! A varied diet is best, to reduce stomach upsets and to keep it interesting. I would have thought that having the same food, day in and day out would get pretty boring!

Soph. x

 

[Mackers]

Im sure everyone has their own ways of doing things. The way i look at it now is that hay is obviously an essential part of a rabbits diet. It should always be on offer. Pellets aren't so much of a necessity but are fed as a balancer, to ensure the rabbit is getting all of the essential nutrients.

There are other people who would say that veggies aren't really necessary and that pellets and hay should be unlimited. I think some breeders take this approach.

Personally i think everything in moderation! Soph. x

Totally agree. Despite hay being calorific, I still feed it ad-lib. Mine also have a large volume of fresh veggies daily, as well as access to grass. But they have a very small amount of pellets - no more than a tablespoon per day between each pair. Pea and Pod are quite porky but I suspect that's more because they're lazy little devils as well as being outright pigs!

 

[RampantRabbits]

Totally agree. Despite hay being calorific, I still feed it ad-lib. Mine also have a large volume of fresh veggies daily, as well as access to grass. But they have a very small amount of pellets - no more than a tablespoon per day between each pair. Pea and Pod are quite porky but I suspect that's more because they're lazy little devils as well as being outright pigs!

Mine are still young rabbits though, 4 and 5 months, but it wont be long before i do cut down on pellets. Marley, who is now 18months old only has 1/4 of a small childs plastic beaker. I think this is roughly the the same amount. Whereas the other two have half. I think its also ok to feed a little more the netherland drawfs because they have a high metabolism. Mine are certainly always on the go, whereas clarence is much more inclined to sit around being fussed all day long! :lol: