Wild bunny diet

[a reader of books]

I was wondering something... It's usually recommended to have our bunnies' diets be as close to wild bunny diets as possible, and this makes sense, I think. But at the same time I often read that big, golden poops are the ideal for bunnies and shows they're getting enough fibre, while dark, small poops are not as good. But the wild bunny poops I've seen have always been small and dark, not big and golden. Have the bunnies whose poops I've seen been unhealthy, or is something not making sense? :?

 

[Omi]

The colour of bunny poo will be related to the type of food they have eaten. So golden poo will be a result of lots of hay eating, something that wild bunnies don't normally do. I find the more grass and forage my bunnies have eaten, the darker their poo. In the winter when their diet contains more hay, the colour reverts back to golden.

I'm not certain about the difference in size, but I would imagine it might be due to the fact that wild bunnies probably get less moisture. Most of their moisture will come from the food they eat, rather than water. Imagine though during the heatwave that we had this summer. They must have found it very difficult to stay hydrated.

 

[Graciee]

I was wondering something... It's usually recommended to have our bunnies' diets be as close to wild bunny diets as possible, and this makes sense, I think. But at the same time I often read that big, golden poops are the ideal for bunnies and shows they're getting enough fibre, while dark, small poops are not as good. But the wild bunny poops I've seen have always been small and dark, not big and golden. Have the bunnies whose poops I've seen been unhealthy, or is something not making sense? :?

It's because they eat mainly grass and plant stuff, so it's mostly fresh which makes them dark and smaller ime. Whereas we feed hay which makes them golden and larger.

I used to have two buns who never had hay, they had a like chicken coop type enclosure which got moved around once a week, so they had a new grass patch once a week basically instead. Their poops were smaller and dark. Incidentally, they both lived to 10 years old and never had gut stasis once... I'm sure that was fluke tbh, but they were incredibly healthy considering the care I gave them. Also I used to feed them muesli rabbit food for a while, but did switch to excel just because I liked the pictures better [emoji38][emoji38]

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[a reader of books]

Thank you for explaining that it's related to the food they eat, and the water content, too, Omi and Graciee. That makes sense! Shouldn't dark, smaller poops be seen as better than golden ones, then, though, since it means their diet is closer to that of wild bunnies, like when your bunnies eat more grass and forage, Omi, and your past bunnies that ate lots of grass instead of hay, Graciee? Because I often read that if their poops are dark and small they're not getting enough fibre, but bunnies eating lots of grass and forage like wild bunnies do surely get enough fibre?

...but did switch to excel just because I liked the pictures better [emoji38][emoji38]

What a great reason. :lol: The marketing team at Excel did a great job, I see. :lol:

 

[joey&boo]

Even knowing diet affects poop I'm still happiest when my bunnies lay golden balls :lol: I suppose texture & uniformity in size is more important than size & colour. If my buns were on a 95% hay diet Id expect golden poop. I notice different hay can affect the colour too

 

[a reader of books]

Even knowing diet affects poop I'm still happiest when my bunnies lay golden balls :lol: I suppose texture & uniformity in size is more important than size & colour. If my buns were on a 95% hay diet Id expect golden poop. I notice different hay can affect the colour too

I admit that I'm always hoping for golden poops, too. :lol: I have noticed the type of hay can affect the colour, too, yeah. Nice green timothy hay usually gives Sophie and Casper lighter poops than meadow hay.

 

[joey&boo]

I think its those irregular poops you can't crumble that are the worry.

Thinking about it forage is growing ever more popular - the older style healthy diet of predominantly hay is probably where the golden poop quest originated. Maybe in years to come rabbit owners will sneer at owners who exhibit their rabbits golden poops for feeding too much hay & not enough forage. Incidentally from what I've observed wildies are very much grass focussed, in rabbity areas I seldom see ground level plants that have been nibbled. I reckon they must follow a 95% grass rule

 

[Graciee]

Thank you for explaining that it's related to the food they eat, and the water content, too, Omi and Graciee. That makes sense! Shouldn't dark, smaller poops be seen as better than golden ones, then, though, since it means their diet is closer to that of wild bunnies, like when your bunnies eat more grass and forage, Omi, and your past bunnies that ate lots of grass instead of hay, Graciee? Because I often read that if their poops are dark and small they're not getting enough fibre, but bunnies eating lots of grass and forage like wild bunnies do surely get enough fibre?



What a great reason. [emoji38] The marketing team at Excel did a great job, I see. [emoji38]

I think that's because most pet buns are having hay as most their diet, so dark small poops would be bad for most people. But if you're feeding more veg or forage or grass and yours go a bit smaller and dark I wouldn't be worried at all!

I think the large golden boulder thing is because that's what most of us look for based on mainly hay nomming buns.


In my defence I was about 10! [emoji38] They came with museli but I went to pets at home with my mum and begged her for excel nuggets coz they had a cute rabbit on the packaging and I remember saying it looked really healthy hahaha I remember her saying they were way more expensive but then agreed to get that instead [emoji28]

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[bunny momma]

I have never had golden poos, not even in the bunnies who lived long lives.
Nutrients vary in soils and hay, and as noted already the type and cutting season has an effect too. I also heard the microbes in the cecum can impact the color-not sure if that is true.
I do look for poo that is an appropriate size for the bunny, poo that is a consistent size and shape, and most of all poo that is friable and will crumble when rolled between my finger and thumb.

My first bunny was a baby wildie my neighbor caught in his garden. She had a poor diet by today's standards.

 

[a reader of books]

I think its those irregular poops you can't crumble that are the worry.

Thinking about it forage is growing ever more popular - the older style healthy diet of predominantly hay is probably where the golden poop quest originated. Maybe in years to come rabbit owners will sneer at owners who exhibit their rabbits golden poops for feeding too much hay & not enough forage. Incidentally from what I've observed wildies are very much grass focussed, in rabbity areas I seldom see ground level plants that have been nibbled. I reckon they must follow a 95% grass rule

Ah, that makes sense. I have to admit I don't tend to try to crumble their poops...

That's really interesting. Maybe pet bunnies are actually eating more forage than wild bunnies do... I read in a little book a few days ago that wild bunnies eat more plants than they eat grass, and I thought that couldn't be right...

I think that's because most pet buns are having hay as most their diet, so dark small poops would be bad for most people. But if you're feeding more veg or forage or grass and yours go a bit smaller and dark I wouldn't be worried at all!

I think the large golden boulder thing is because that's what most of us look for based on mainly hay nomming buns.


In my defence I was about 10! [emoji38] They came with museli but I went to pets at home with my mum and begged her for excel nuggets coz they had a cute rabbit on the packaging and I remember saying it looked really healthy hahaha I remember her saying they were way more expensive but then agreed to get that instead [emoji28]

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Ah, I see! I guess if you are feeding lots and lots of hay, you wouldn't be expecting dark, small poops, right... It's good to know that it's nothing to worry about if they have smaller and darker ones when getting a lot of greens.

That's a funny story. :lol: Being 10 is a good excuse, though! :lol:

I have never had golden poos, not even in the bunnies who lived long lives.
Nutrients vary in soils and hay, and as noted already the type and cutting season has an effect too. I also heard the microbes in the cecum can impact the color-not sure if that is true.
I do look for poo that is an appropriate size for the bunny, poo that is a consistent size and shape, and most of all poo that is friable and will crumble when rolled between my finger and thumb.

My first bunny was a baby wildie my neighbor caught in his garden. She had a poor diet by today's standards.

I can relate to that. Casper and Sophie very, very rarely have golden poops; their poops aren't very good, really. I can't remember if past bunnies have had them...
What you say makes a lot of sense, and that seems to be a better way to judge whether their poops are okay.

Did your first bunny ever get used to people, being a wildie?