How much veg?

[Pix]

I have a pair of mini lops. I'm super-careful with their pellets as I remember being warned not to overfeed them their pellets when we got them. I was told no more than 2.5 ounces each a day - that's 125g to share. But I thought that was too much and they now have 70g a day to share. I weigh out 14 portions every other Saturday, and store them in little tubs.

But, as I think has been the problem with my own waistline. I like to treat them and I've been avoiding feeding too many fenugreek crunchies etc, but I worry I'm giving them too much fresh veg.

The boybun has a bit of a delicate tummy and occasionally suffers from sticky bum.

How much fresh veg is recommended??

((They always have unlimited meadow hay and readigrass and have a couple of handfuls of a posh hay (Timothy or oxbow orchard grass) every day.))

 

[Britannia]

How much fresh veg is recommended??)

Mine have one cup (US) each twice a day, this was one of the most difficult things to work out when I first got Kizzy. The only books/web sites gave measurements in either handfuls or cups - which is an American measurement of volume rather than weight. As for handfuls - well my handfuls are half the size of my OH, so it wasn't really helpful. The websites all seem to say that "An adult 6 lbs rabbit should have between 1 ½ and 2 ½ cups of fresh vegetables a day."

Luckily an American friend had gifted my OH with US measuring cups after he had mistakenly used a tea cup for a recipe. For those that don't have OH's with every cooking utensil and gadget in the known universe (all of which I have to wash up ***grumble...grumble**) It works out at about 8 fl oz per 1 Cup (US) - ie roughly chopped veggies, up to the 8 fl oz mark on a measuring jug equals one cup US.

However between 1 ½ and 2 ½ cups is a huge difference for a rabbit and two rabbits of the same weight might need different amounts depending on whether they are indoor or outdoor buns and how active they are, (just like humans that do clerical sit down jobs compared with builder's laborers) and how many pellets they have. So start off with whatever is average for your rabbit's weight and then keep a careful eye on their weight and adjust up or down depending, to maintain their weight.

As for treats, mine love their pellets so much that I keep a few back from their daily allowance to use as treats. The other treat I give them is mint leaves or whatever herb I have to hand - seriously one mint leaf of a lemon balm leaf and they look much the way I do when given Godiva chocolate.

Sorry if that was a bit of a ramble - hopefully someone else will have a more concise answer for you.

 

[nessar]

There is no answer to this that will suit every bunny :wave:

It depends on what your buns can tolerate. If they have pellets and a good quality hay with a variety of different grasses in it they do not need anything else. If you want to feed greens but they are too rich for his tummy try feeding lower sugar veg, so no carrots or peppers or fruit. Also switch to more forage foods, like apple/pear sticks and leaves, herbs, hawthorne, bramble leaves and dandelions, as these are much gentler on the tummy and more natural for them to eat. They also tend to be more abrasive for their teeth.

This thread may help: http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...not-feed-greens-veg-at-all&highlight=feed+veg

In case you dont want to trawl through it all I posted this on there which is general advice on a rabbits diet, and relevant to the veg question...

The best diet for a bunny is one that is as close to their natural diet as possible - which is grass as the main part, supplemented with various wild plants and wood. As pet owners, it is impractical to give them this diet, which is why commercial foods were created and people feed veg and hay. Most bunnies that are owned by people that know what they are doing with diet (e.g people that read the forum a lot) usually have a diet of unlimited hay, maybe a bowl full of greens/veg/herbs everyday and around an eggcup of pellets.

But this diet doesnt suit every bunny. Some cant tolerate pellets/veg/herbs/greens, or any, some cant even tolerate grass. This diet also means that buns fill up on veg and so dont eat as much hay, so dental bunnies often are given less veg and pellets to up their hay intake. On the other side of it, some bunnies cant eat hay, and so have to eat much more veg/pellets, and some buns have problems putting on weight so need to eat more. I read on here that a healthy bunny SHOULD be able to maintain their weight on a diet of grass and hay, but everybun is different, just like us.

Certain 'greens' are also better than others for the teeth and gut - leafy greens and herbs have higher fibre levels so are better for tummy and teeth than, say, carrots or broccoli. Some are also high in calcium so should be fed sparingly. The same with sugar, my two only get one or two days a week when they will have fruit or sugary veg like apple, pepper or carrot. Generally speaking, things like hawthorne, bramble and herbs are more similar to what they would come accross in the wild, and so better to use, they tend to be easy on the tummy and high in fibre.

Its all about finding what suits your bunny best, bunnies with problems or who are likely to get problems you need to be a lot more careful with their diet. Of course, outside and indoor bunnies need slightly different diets as well, indoor buns dont get as much Vit D from sunlight so should have pellets, outdoor buns may have access to grass which is higher in sugar than hay, so they may need less additional feed than one that doesnt to keep their weight. But in the winter they need more additional food to maintain their weight. I think the diet you are feeding is fine as long as he is healthy and not having any problems with it, although you dont need to feed him so much, but you may want to cut back on the sugar a bit.

 

[Elena]

Bwteen spring and autumn i fill a salad spinner with stuff from the garden, wash it and divide that between the four of them. In winter they get the odd treat here and there of dried stuff like brambles and plantain.

 

[megansmummy]

I dont feed it regularly but I do offer it as a treat every now and then If they get carrot (very rarely) then i offer about an inch long piece each, they love broccoli (they get about 2" bit each) and they also love spring greens (they get half a large leaf each)