Not eating enough hay?!

[Jacqueline122]

I don't think Molly eats enough hay, she's more in to pellets & veg. My question is, can I take the pellets & veg away for a day or two to encourage her to eat more hay?

 

[elmoandfern]

How much in pellets and veg do you feed? You could cut out the veg and slowly decrease the quantity of pellets and it should encourage her to eat more hay :thumb:

 

[Babsie]

Don't make any sudden change to feeding (pellets) as this can cause digestive problems. How many pellets are you feeding? The generally recommended amount for an adult rabbit is an aggcupful a day. If you are giving more than that, aim to gradually reduce over a period of 2-3 weeks. Worth persisting as hay is so important and obviously a rabbit filling up on pellets will not eat hay. I wouldn't reduce greens unless you are giving a very large amount, as most rabbits do enjoy their greens.

 

[Jacqueline122]

I give her a palm full of pellets a day, Id say it's about two flat tablespoons. I also give her a kale leaf every 2nd day and herbs every day (2/3 basil leaf & some parsley). She only eats the curly bits of kale and parsley though, not the green root.

She does eat hay but from some posts on here it's about half of what other rabbits eat. She is dwarf though, not sure if that makes a difference? She weighs 1.4kg.

 

[Angie B]

Don't suddenly remove other foods in an effort to get her to eat more hay as that will do her more harm than good.

I am assuming she drinks okay and her poops are alright, as in evenly round shapes and either a golden colour (ideal) or darker, but not like black and certainly not black and squidgy. Black and squidgy poos are a sign she needs the vet.

In theory, a rabbit should eat its own body weight in hay/grass each day. Some days my girls follow this rule, other days they don't.

Are you sure the hay is alright? My girls turned their noses up at about 2 bales in succession, refused to touch it. I know it was the hay which was the problem as I bought some different hay from a different pet shop and they munched the lot! Just because it smells okay and looks okay to us, to a rabbit's discerning palate it may not smell/taste okay and therefore they won't touch it.

Have you tried her with different hay, or even just bought it from a different shop? I would; it's worth a shot!

How about Readigrass, have you tried her with that? I get mine off eBay; just watch your prices on there as it can vary dramatically and some are just trying to rip you off, quite frankly. Mine love their Readigrass. If you do get some, remember to introduce it gradually; just a pinch for the first few days, then a couple of pinches and so on, until you can give a decent handful or two. It smells divine; I'm resisting the urge to try some :lol:

 

[Jacqueline122]

Don't suddenly remove other foods in an effort to get her to eat more hay as that will do her more harm than good.

I am assuming she drinks okay and her poops are alright, as in evenly round shapes and either a golden colour (ideal) or darker, but not like black and certainly not black and squidgy. Black and squidgy poos are a sign she needs the vet.

In theory, a rabbit should eat its own body weight in hay/grass each day. Some days my girls follow this rule, other days they don't.

Are you sure the hay is alright? My girls turned their noses up at about 2 bales in succession, refused to touch it. I know it was the hay which was the problem as I bought some different hay from a different pet shop and they munched the lot! Just because it smells okay and looks okay to us, to a rabbit's discerning palate it may not smell/taste okay and therefore they won't touch it.

Have you tried her with different hay, or even just bought it from a different shop? I would; it's worth a shot!

How about Readigrass, have you tried her with that? I get mine off eBay; just watch your prices on there as it can vary dramatically and some are just trying to rip you off, quite frankly. Mine love their Readigrass. If you do get some, remember to introduce it gradually; just a pinch for the first few days, then a couple of pinches and so on, until you can give a decent handful or two. It smells divine; I'm resisting the urge to try some :lol:

She drinks around 50 to 100mls a day which I thought wasn't a lot but she is 5 and always been the same. Her poo is round, dry and light brown.

I recently changed her to Timothy hay and she does seem to eat more of that than the pets at home stuff I used to give her but I worry it's still not enough.

Thanks for your replies & I will definitely try readigrass and possibly try a different hay as her bag is almost finished

 

[Angie B]

She drinks around 50 to 100mls a day which I thought wasn't a lot but she is 5 and always been the same. Her poo is round, dry and light brown.

I recently changed her to Timothy hay and she does seem to eat more of that than the pets at home stuff I used to give her but I worry it's still not enough.

Thanks for your replies & I will definitely try readigrass and possibly try a different hay as her bag is almost finished

Sounds like perfect poo to me!

I'd try her on a different hay; afterall, we all like a change don't we

 

[moi]

I give her a palm full of pellets a day, Id say it's about two flat tablespoons. I also give her a kale leaf every 2nd day and herbs every day (2/3 basil leaf & some parsley). She only eats the curly bits of kale and parsley though, not the green root.

She does eat hay but from some posts on here it's about half of what other rabbits eat. She is dwarf though, not sure if that makes a difference? She weighs 1.4kg.

Bunny and Benji eat loooooads of hay, but Peggy, Tonic and Timmy do not eat half as much as them x

 

[FrenchBunny]

I am assuming she drinks okay and her poops are alright, as in evenly round shapes and either a golden colour (ideal) or darker, but not like black and certainly not black and squidgy. Black and squidgy poos are a sign she needs the vet.
:

Can you explain why this is please?

Sometimes my two produce really soft dark poo. I'd say it's a 50/50 between how they're supposed to be (light/dry/golden in colour) and dark and soft.

They're fed two handfuls of pellets a day and two handfuls of veg (most days). They always have access to hay but never seem to eat it, and instead prefer to wee in it. I realise they're fed too many pellets so I've been trying to decrease the amount they get slowly, but they always seem to be so hungry for them. They're both around 6 months old. Any ideas?

 

[Babsie]

Can you explain why this is please?

Sometimes my two produce really soft dark poo. I'd say it's a 50/50 between how they're supposed to be (light/dry/golden in colour) and dark and soft.

They're fed two handfuls of pellets a day and two handfuls of veg (most days). They always have access to hay but never seem to eat it, and instead prefer to wee in it. I realise they're fed too many pellets so I've been trying to decrease the amount they get slowly, but they always seem to be so hungry for them. They're both around 6 months old. Any ideas?

You have to be cruel to be kind! Most (if not all) rabbits will choose pellets over hay if given the choice! Hay is so important to keep their teeth and digestive systems in good order. At 6 months you can certainly start to gradually reduce pellets to about an eggcupful each every day. I put loads of good hay in my newspaper-lined litter trays - rabbits do love to eat and pee at the same time! Have you tried different types of hay? - HayforPets do a sample pack (free, you just pay postage).