Daisy has just choked on a science selective pellet

[Lady Logamorph]

Daisy is doing good this morning had some veg , hay and pooped and is moving about ok. I just hope she didn't inhale any of the food. She's definately a tough cookie this one. I will be contacting supreme on Monday as hopefully if we can all report it they may consider changing the shape.

 

[Lady Logamorph]

Thanks everyone for the get well vibes. I will upload a picture of daisy later as I don't think I've introduced her!

 

[Captain Helen]

How scary Glad she's OK. Sending lots of vibes for Daisy xx

 

[daphnephoebe]

Must have been so scary for you.
Glad she is doing okay x

I guess SS means Science Selective?

 

[Jack's-Jane]

Must have been so scary for you.
Glad she is doing okay x

I guess SS means Science Selective?

Yes xx

 

[Santa]

Must have been incredibly scary for you - I'm glad she seems to be ok!

There seems to be a lot having this problem? Why don't they change the shape I wonder.

I think there will be a whole host of reasons...first, if you look at the other thread (and other threads on the subject) rabbits seem to choke on all sorts of different pellets not just SS (yes there do seem to be more choke on SS, but they are the market leader so more people feed them so you would expect to see more incidences) - and all of those pellets involved in various choking incidents are different shapes and sizes. So if they change the shape from one thing to another, then rabbits who are more susceptible to choking on a different shape pellet will choke, so it doesn't actually solve anything. A&P is another one listed a number of times in the other thread, and that is totally the opposite to SS, very small and uniform, and those are fed far less frequently than SS so potentially that shape is no better or maybe even worse.

Add into that the costs of doing so as that would involve significant equipment changes, and I wouldn't have thought that the business case for doing so would stack up, especially as it looks as if changing the shape wouldn't actually solve it, it would just shift it to a different cohort of rabbits who are more likely to have problems with a different shape.

 

[mini lop1]

Must have been incredibly scary for you - I'm glad she seems to be ok!



I think there will be a whole host of reasons...first, if you look at the other thread (and other threads on the subject) rabbits seem to choke on all sorts of different pellets not just SS (yes there do seem to be more choke on SS, but they are the market leader so more people feed them so you would expect to see more incidences) - and all of those pellets involved in various choking incidents are different shapes and sizes. So if they change the shape from one thing to another, then rabbits who are more susceptible to choking on a different shape pellet will choke, so it doesn't actually solve anything. A&P is another one listed a number of times in the other thread, and that is totally the opposite to SS, very small and uniform, and those are fed far less frequently than SS so potentially that shape is no better or maybe even worse.

Add into that the costs of doing so as that would involve significant equipment changes, and I wouldn't have thought that the business case for doing so would stack up, especially as it looks as if changing the shape wouldn't actually solve it, it would just shift it to a different cohort of rabbits who are more likely to have problems with a different shape.

agree with this

glad Daisy seems better today x

 

[Lady Logamorph]

Must have been incredibly scary for you - I'm glad she seems to be ok!



I think there will be a whole host of reasons...first, if you look at the other thread (and other threads on the subject) rabbits seem to choke on all sorts of different pellets not just SS (yes there do seem to be more choke on SS, but they are the market leader so more people feed them so you would expect to see more incidences) - and all of those pellets involved in various choking incidents are different shapes and sizes. So if they change the shape from one thing to another, then rabbits who are more susceptible to choking on a different shape pellet will choke, so it doesn't actually solve anything. A&P is another one listed a number of times in the other thread, and that is totally the opposite to SS, very small and uniform, and those are fed far less frequently than SS so potentially that shape is no better or maybe even worse.

Add into that the costs of doing so as that would involve significant equipment changes, and I wouldn't have thought that the business case for doing so would stack up, especially as it looks as if changing the shape wouldn't actually solve it, it would just shift it to a different cohort of rabbits who are more likely to have problems with a different shape.

I agree that choking is bound to happen to any pellet of any shape but I think the fact that SS pellets are so long means that when they do choke on them it's much more severe as they are much bigger, swell up larger and press on the windpipe harder which also makes them more difficult to go down. I've never used Allen & Paige are they a different shape also? I do also agree that it will be a huge cost for supreme like you say the equipment etc. but it seems like many people are breaking them up or blending them which seems very time consuming. I have emailed the incident over to the contact we have at supreme at work as I work at PAH support office so will see what response I get.

Choking on something is going to happen in a small number of cases with anything it's not something that can be avoided but I just think that if they pellets are smaller and they go down whole the choking effect will be much less severe.

I suppose rabbits usually graze all day on grass/forage so it's unnatural for them to eat something like pellets and also they love them so much as hay must be pretty boring that they eat them quickly. I suppose there is also the option to not give pellets at all which I am considering especially over summer when I can collect forage.

Anyway I think the moral of the story is....don't rush your food and chew it properly! I've had a word with Daisy and she promises to do both of these from now on :roll:

 

[tulsi]

So glad to see that Daisy is on the mend. Hope she is able to stick to her promises!

 

[Lady Logamorph]

So glad to see that Daisy is on the mend. Hope she is able to stick to her promises!

To be honest she won't eat any dry pellets at the moment so I'm having to soak them. I hope I'm not doing this forever :?

 

[MightyMax]

I agree that choking is bound to happen to any pellet of any shape but I think the fact that SS pellets are so long means that when they do choke on them it's much more severe as they are much bigger, swell up larger and press on the windpipe harder which also makes them more difficult to go down. I've never used Allen & Paige are they a different shape also? I do also agree that it will be a huge cost for supreme like you say the equipment etc. but it seems like many people are breaking them up or blending them which seems very time consuming. I have emailed the incident over to the contact we have at supreme at work as I work at PAH support office so will see what response I get.

Choking on something is going to happen in a small number of cases with anything it's not something that can be avoided but I just think that if they pellets are smaller and they go down whole the choking effect will be much less severe.

I suppose rabbits usually graze all day on grass/forage so it's unnatural for them to eat something like pellets and also they love them so much as hay must be pretty boring that they eat them quickly. I suppose there is also the option to not give pellets at all which I am considering especially over summer when I can collect forage.

Anyway I think the moral of the story is....don't rush your food and chew it properly! I've had a word with Daisy and she promises to do both of these from now on :roll:

I agree with you about the size being a factor. As I mentioned, my rabbits (with small mouths) can't manage them. I use other sorts of pellets, including Burgess and Oxbow. The Oxbow are not only full of good fibre, but really tiny and so are only a small mouthful at a time.

I hope Daisy forgets her bad experience and comes back to eating pellets soon

 

[Lady Logamorph]

I've had a response from Supreme and they are not planning on changing the shape but at least I've passed my concerns across as well as other people have.


Thank you for passing on your colleague’s e-mail. We are always very grateful for feedback on our products, whether good, or not so good.
I am very sorry to hear that your colleague and their rabbit has encountered an instance of choking with our Selective Rabbit food. Clearly the quick reactions are to be commended and I certainly hope the rabbit has made a full recovery.

Please be assured that the safety and design of all of our products is given a significant amount of consideration during their development stages. Our Selective Rabbit food has been an extremely popular product for at least the last 15 years, during which the product has sold millions of bags and always received a substantial amount of praise for its quality, consistency and added benefits for dental wear and environmental enrichment. We regularly review our products with consideration to direct feedback from our customers, along with feedback that is also available online.
We are aware of a very small number of other instances of similar nature, however whilst we would not wish to deny the severity and importance of matters such as this, the frequency of occurrence would certainly suggest this is very simply a case of an unfortunate accident. I trust you will appreciate that an animal, or fellow human being, may choke on even the most unsuspecting of foods or even drink. Generally the item being consumed is very rarely the genuine reason for the choking.

It would certainly be evident that the information available online does not only relate to our Selective Rabbit food, but also other rabbit foods under a number of different named brands. Importantly, this information does confirm that choking may occur with foods in a variety of shapes, sizes and textures. As such, I hope you will understand my conclusion that the size of the Selective Rabbit food was not the sole reason for this unfortunate occurrence. Instances have also been reported with smaller/shorter ‘nuggets’ as well as traditional high density pellets, and it is therefore with careful consideration that I would again suggest this case to simply be a very unfortunate accident.

It goes without say that should there be an issue that requires our review, then we would certainly act accordingly. Perhaps you could pass my details onto your colleague, as I would be very happy to speak with them further about this should they have additional information or suggestions that may help further understand this very unfortunate issue.

I would certainly like to thank you and your colleague for bringing this matter to our attention, and allowing us the opportunity to explain our position on this.

 

[LilacBunbun]

In my opinion, it's not only the shape & size of SS pellets that cause so many choking incidents, but also the fact that SS pellets expand rapidly upon contact with liquid. All pellets can of course choke, but I prefer to feed sticks to be on the safer side. Besides, Beaphar & Bunny-Nature offer great options.

 

[Lady Logamorph]

yes I forgot about fibre first as another option as they have to crunch them up so less likely to choke

 

[Obibun]

Daisy is doing good this morning had some veg , hay and pooped and is moving about ok. I just hope she didn't inhale any of the food. She's definately a tough cookie this one. I will be contacting supreme on Monday as hopefully if we can all report it they may consider changing the shape.

This food just killed our bunny it was an horrific death. So sad

 

[InspectorMorse]

This food just killed our bunny it was an horrific death. So sad

So sorry for your loss

 

[Obibun]

Daisy is doing good this morning had some veg , hay and pooped and is moving about ok. I just hope she didn't inhale any of the food. She's definately a tough cookie this one. I will be contacting supreme on Monday as hopefully if we can all report it they may consider changing the

So sorry for your loss

it’s the second time this happened with ss food

 

[InspectorMorse]

I had the same thing happen. Thankfully my Bunny did survive. This was him just after the terrifying incident.

 

[Omi]

I'm so sad to read this. That must have been both traumatic and distressing for all of you. Sleep tight little bunny.

 

[bunniemum]

So very very sorry for your loss xx