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Feeding advice appreciated please

Sarah1989

Sarah1989

Warren Veteran
Hi, :wave:

Last week I picked up two 8 week old adorable mini lion lops - Badger & Blueberry :love:

I have been keeping rabbits off and on since I was about 8 or 9, but it's only very recently I joined this forum and realised I know nothing about properly keeping bunnies :oops:

I want to do what's best for my babies (obviously!!) and I was just wondering how much I should be feeding them? I've always had single bunnies before, and also have a two year old dwarf lop named Slipper. I am also trying to right any accidental mistakes I may have made with Slipper as well, because I don't think he likes me too much, but I am seeing some gradual signs of improvement :D

Badger and Blueberry live together, Slipper lives in the cage next door - they are all indoor bunnies. I got them partially because I thought Slipper seemed to be lonely when I am at work all day and although they don't live together, they are near enough to see/talk to each other if they want and partially because I wanted a more loving bunny than one who attacks me every time I go near his food bowl to fill it :shock:

So I was wondering how much food I should be giving my buns each day? Slipper gets a bowl full of Wagg bunny brunch - he used to be on pets at home junior & dwarf nuggets, but then my ex got to keep him for a year whilst I was trying to get back on my feet and get somewhere suitable to live - loooooong story which I won't bore you with - and now I got him back a couple months ago, he is now eating this Wagg. He also has Timothy hay available in his hay rack at all times, although he rarely eats it for some reason. Guess he's like me and doesn't like anything that's good for him :lol: I also give him a carrot a day in the morning and I used to alternate it with lettuce until someone told me it wasn't good for bunnies so I stopped. I just read on another post that carrots aren't good for them either as they're sugary? I always hand feed him the carrot to try and get him to like me, but if they're not good for him, he won't be getting them any more. As an occasional treat, he also gets a treat stick for bunnies from pets at home.

I prefer bunnies to be on pellets rather than museli, but Slipper is definitely not a picky eater (he must be a permanently hungry bunny by the way he attacks when removing food bowl and putting it back in when full of food!) so I was wondering in this case if it was ok to keep him on the museli? I'm very aware he's had a lot of disruption in his life in the past few months, coming back to me and then going for vaccinations and neutering and bunny boarding due to a holiday I had booked before I knew I was getting him back. So I don't want to disrupt him any more than I have too.

Badger and Blueberry won't be neutered until they're six months old and only once they've settled in will I take them for their vaccinations and ask the vet to trim their claws - Blueberry's are like little razors :lol: I don't want it to be too much too soon for them as they are so young. The last baby rabbit I had came down with E. Cuniculi within a week of coming home with me and sadly passed after only a few months so I'm terrified of history repeating itself with these guys. My OH gets exasperated with me at times for pannicking every time a bunny seems slightly out of character, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Badger and Blueberry always have hay available in their hay rack and I have seen them eat it, although they too don't seem to keen and prefer their food. They're on Burgess Excel adult rabbit nuggets which is what the breeder had them on. As they're only babies, and there are two of them, I don't really know how much I should give them. I guess I should have asked when I collected them last week, but it didn't occur to me until I got them home and picked up the bowl to feed them and it was a bit of an "oh dear" moment :oops: The first night I filled their bowl up, but it took them a while to polish it all off - it was still there the next evening when I fed them again - got rid of the previous nights and only half filled it. They ate that pretty quickly, so that's what I've been giving them. I haven't given them anything extra apart from one of Slipper's treat sticks which I had spare - there's two in a packet so Slipper got one and they got the other. I know they can't eat any greens until they're 6 months old - or is that an outdated rule from when I got my first rabbit?

So if anybody can advise how much these guys should/shouldn't be eating or any hints/tips to get them eating more hay as I know they should be mainly eating that, or any suitable treats I can give them, it would be much appreciated :D

Guess I should also buy a bunny manual too so I don't have to keep bothering you guys with dumb questions :oops:

Thanks! :D
 
I think the general rule is to feed a bunny as much as it can eat in 10 minutes, that's what I've read anyway.

I think most people on here either feed SS or Excel. I use Harringtons as it's a bit cheaper. Definitely stick to rabbit pellets/nuggets, rabbit mix is no good, it just looks nicer because of the colours.

Also rabbits should automatically eat hay really. It could be the type of hay you are using. If you are using meadow hay, perhaps switch to timothy hay and see if it makes a difference? The hay should be green, rather than all yellow, my rabbits won't eat hay that isn't very fresh.
 
I use timothy hay from pets at home, but it's not what I'd call green, it looks like more of a yellow/brown colour to me. Slipper will only eat it when there is nothing else available i.e. during the day and he's finished his carrot and it's not tea time yet so I'm guessing he's hungry and that's the only thing around that's edible.

Badger and Blueberry don't eat it often, but I'm guessing I must be giving them too many pellets then if I go by your guide. By that, Slipper is on the right amount and I'm overfeeding the babies. So tonight, they won't get so many pellets.

Different people keep recommending different foods to me. I was talking about Slipper and his bunny brunch when he went to bunny camp and she said what he was on already was very good and that I should keep him on that. Then the breeder I got Badger and Blueberry from, said the Excel was the best. So I'm totally confused really :? It would be easier if all three were on the same food though - I don't care whether it's pretty or not as long as they like it and it's good for them, that's all that matters to me.
 
BigBunnyBenji said:
Also rabbits should automatically eat hay really. It could be the type of hay you are using. If you are using meadow hay, perhaps switch to timothy hay and see if it makes a difference? The hay should be green, rather than all yellow, my rabbits won't eat hay that isn't very fresh.
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See, mine prefer the yellow stuff! It gets me down because I'll get really lovely green, sweet smelling bales and they won't touch it! My new bales are stalky and yellow/green .. the ones that will eat the baled hay love it! Picky things :roll:

P@h hay isn't the best hay imo, it's rather choppy and dusty from what I remember (don't go in there anymore). Mine have hay for pets hay though, you can get sample packs off their website :) you just pay the postage. There is meadow hay, ings hay and timothy and rye hay. Baled hay from horse supply shops are cheap and good quality too, I pay £6 a bale.

http://hayforpets.co.uk/products.html

Rabbits don't need loads of pellets, if any at all, mine were on a hay only diet for a while but since having a small handful of pellets a day again, it seems to kick start them into carrying on eating hay afterwards :) When mine were babies I used to give them half a bowl full, leave it for 5 minutes and if there were pellets left then I would take it away and they had it in the evening. I wanted to get them used to eating a lot of hay. As long as they have hay, they won't be hungry.

Greens wise, if they're used to it then it's okay but still keep it to a minimum as to not upset their delicate tums. If not, then I would wait until 5-6 months old. Stick to green things, carrot is full of sugar. Iceburg lettuce is a big no no for bunnies so avoid that. Romaine (sp?) is okay but I prefer feeding things like kale, parsely and dill. I also tend to stay with forage stuff like hawthorn and raspberry leaves etc. As with any new food though (pellet or anything) it should be changed very gradually, especially with them being so young.

Excel has been known to cause messy poops but it all depends on the rabbit, all of mine are on science selective.
 
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Great, thanks, I'll definitely check that website out. Is cabbage ok? Slipper really loved his lettuce so I felt bad taking it awa from him and I won't be giving him any more carrots now either. Oh, he's going to really love me now :lol:

I don't think Badger and Blueberry had any greens, the breeder gave her buns the occasional bit of breadstick, so I probably should get some of those for them. I won't be giving them any greens until they're six months, I don't want to upset them. I'll also cut down their pellets and see if I can persuade them to eat their hay that way. Same for Slipper too, once I've changed him over to pellets. I've never done that, but I've got a leaflet from pets at home telling me how it's done so fingers crossed it won't upset him.
 
Wouldnt bother with bread sticks tbh. No food value for rabbits. You may want to gradually introduce a few herbs and wild forage (brambles, dandylions). Can we see pics of your little sweeties?
 
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Regarding cabbage, it can cause gas, which isn't ideal in buns as they have no way to deal with it. Herbs would be the best bet, and hopefully he won't sulk too much.

I was just wondering judging from the names of your new buns, are they a boy and a girl? Sorry if I'm wrong :lol:
 
RavenMoon said:
Regarding cabbage, it can cause gas, which isn't ideal in buns as they have no way to deal with it. Herbs would be the best bet, and hopefully he won't sulk too much.

I was just wondering judging from the names of your new buns, are they a boy and a girl? Sorry if I'm wrong :lol:
Click to expand...

No they're both boys, brothers. Obviously I realise at 8 weeks old, it's hard to be definite, but they're thought to be boys. Badger was supposed to be a girl and the breeder was going to keep him, but then she realised he was a boy so I got him :D I was really happy as these were the two I wanted & I was really disappointed when I was told I couldn't have Badger.
 
They are real little fluff balls! Much more than my Levi was at 9 weeks. Are they double manes lion lops?
 
Ailstar said:
They are real little fluff balls! Much more than my Levi was at 9 weeks. Are they double manes lion lops?
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I know, they're adorable, I love them to bits already :love: your two are nice and fluffy too, I've see them in your signature before and meant to compliment them.

I'm not sure what kind of lionhead they are. Their dad was a mini lion lol a d the absolute spit of my Slipper and their mum was a BEW lion head, I believe. I did see the parents, obviously they were only four weeks old when I first saw them & still with their mum. I'm new to the different type of bunnies so I'm not sure if they're single or double maned. I'll upload some pix of Slipper later, who although a dwarf lop x lionhead, so not the same is identical so these guys should look like him, but a bit smaller, so you can judge for yourself :)
 
Aw thanks! :) I do love them to bits! :) if they are mini lion lop and lion head crosses that might explain it. Plus to get a double maned lion lop you need to have two parents who are lion lops. I think the technical description of a double mane is something like, you can see two V shapes on the back of their necks. But I've never seen it, to me they just look 'fluffier' than the single maned lion lops :)
 
Awwwww such little sweethearts :love: Thanks for the pics. I nearly squeeed out loud when I first saw them :love::love:
 
tulsi said:
Awwwww such little sweethearts :love: Thanks for the pics. I nearly squeeed out loud when I first saw them :love::love:
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Awww thank you, "even more proud of my babies now :lol:"

They're such little characters :love: Blueberry seems to be the dominant one - Badger was grooming him earlier and he is a lot more confident and outgoing, he always gets to the food first and has to bring Badger out to it as Badger seems to spend more of his time hiding. Whenever I bring Blueberry out for grooming, Badger always goes and hides, even if they're both out in the main area of the cage at that time. So then I have to drag him out for his grooming. When cuddling them, he sits still more whereas Blueberry likes to wriggle out of my arms and over my shoulder, trying to explore/escape the little monkey :lol: Badger is calmer when I have Blueberry on my lap too. I've also noticed that no matter how much I brush them, as soon as they go back in, they cover themselves in sawdust again and immediately wash themselves. It's like I smell or something and they have to get it off :lol: Blueberry gives me the occasional lick, which I love!! Dexter used to lick me constantly and I've never had a rabbit show me any affection before, it's why he was so special. The only bunny I've ever had who loved me back. Although Blueberry licks my OH more and I'm trying not to be insanely jealous especially as he (OH not Blueberry) is not over keen on bunnies, or pets in general :shock:

Anyhow, I can't tell if they have a V on the back of their necks, it's hard enough finding their eyes to check they're not full of fur :lol:

I can't remember what their mum was, other than a BEW. I was too busy cooing over the baby bunnies hopping around :lol: and trying to persuade the breeder to let me have Badger. He was a proper little character then, bouncing around and very inquisitive - he kept coming up to me and she kept moving him away as she was going to keep him and knew how much I already wanted him. Strange how he's so shy and scared now :( but I'm hoping he'll settle in and gain confidence soon.
 
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