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Repeated gas/stasis and long stem hay replacement

B

BlindXX

Young Bun
Hi folks, just wondering how diet may affect a bunnies digestion (outside of the obvious). We have 3 little ones, all roughly 2yrs old. Their diet is pretty consistent with spring greens and kale being fed every day, with a mixture of different additives (peppers, spinach, lettuces of all types etc, depends on what we have in the fridge). In the last few months, at different times, we have had all three buns at the vets with a bad bout of gas. We are lucky in that they are house buns and as me and my partner work different shift patterns, we normally spot any issues like this very early (within a few hours) so we are able to jump on it pretty quick.

Thing is, their diet hasn't changed, we haven't introduced new foods to them and other than moulting things are all the same. The vet seems to think the diet is good and we've just been unlucky. They are fine the rest of the time and they all eat the same stuff. I'm now altering their pellet intake from excel to excel/excel dual care mix so they get more fibre (combined total 1egg cup per day each bun) and I got some fibafirst sticks to help as well (fed as treats). Just wanted peoples opinions really as its stressful when they get ill.

Second question, I'm after peoples opinions on hay/grass pellets
https://www.easypackhaylage.com/product/easy-pack-meadow-graze-pellets/

I give my buns compressed timothy blocks (pure timothy hay -search meadowbrix) which they love and was wondering about some of these pellets to cut down on the amount of long stem hay i give them. They tend not to eat it and drag it all over their room.
Many thanks
 
Some rabbits can’t cope with fresh foods in any amount, and spinach, kale and spring greens can cause some bunnies to be gassy. The only lettuce I would ever feed is romaine personally. I would advise reducing the amount of vegetables they are having, and try to find long stemmed hay that they like. A lot of rabbits are fussy about hay and once you find a hay they like they will eat much more. My rabbit favourite hay is Timothy hay from Timothy hay.co.uk, they eat far more of this than any other hay and there is hardly any waste or mess from this. A lot of rabbits don’t eat so much of the compressed hay blocks as loose hay. I’ve found herbs and forage, dried or fresh, causes less problems than the vegetables you mentioned. I also feed fibafirst sticks, and apple branches without issues.

The hay experts do a sample pack of hay, and Timothy hay.co.uk will send samples out too, as will a lot of other companies:thumb:

I’ve never fed grass pellets but wouldn’t advise them as a hay replacement.
 
Hi, sorry for my late reply. thanks for the advice. Yeah, I've noticed the buns do like some hay more than others, but none as much as the compressed hay blocks! I'd love to forage, but in a suburban area its a bit more tricky. We do have plenty of dandelions, mint and rosemary in the garden they sometimes get if I have enough. I'll keep on with the long stem hay, but probably try the pellets too. If they associate them with treats as they do their normal pellets, all the better! Just another way of getting hay into them!
 
I would go for more loose hay as they are likely to eat more of it. There are many types available so it is worth finding what they prefer. It is the best form of fibre for their guts and teeth, and probably cheaper than more processed alternatives. Increasing their fibre naturally intake will help reduce gut issues and help if they ingest more fur during a moult. It is also worth combing them thoroughly every week to remove loose fur that might otherwise be ingested.

For other ideas, try the booklet by Twigs Way:
https://shop.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/product/foraging-for-rabbits-by-twigs-way/

or several pages on diet by Frances Harcourt-Brown, starting here:
https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/articles/free-food-for-rabbits
 
BlindXX said:
Hi folks, just wondering how diet may affect a bunnies digestion (outside of the obvious). We have 3 little ones, all roughly 2yrs old. Their diet is pretty consistent with spring greens and kale being fed every day, with a mixture of different additives (peppers, spinach, lettuces of all types etc, depends on what we have in the fridge). In the last few months, at different times, we have had all three buns at the vets with a bad bout of gas. We are lucky in that they are house buns and as me and my partner work different shift patterns, we normally spot any issues like this very early (within a few hours) so we are able to jump on it pretty quick.

Thing is, their diet hasn't changed, we haven't introduced new foods to them and other than moulting things are all the same. The vet seems to think the diet is good and we've just been unlucky. They are fine the rest of the time and they all eat the same stuff. I'm now altering their pellet intake from excel to excel/excel dual care mix so they get more fibre (combined total 1egg cup per day each bun) and I got some fibafirst sticks to help as well (fed as treats). Just wanted peoples opinions really as its stressful when they get ill.

Second question, I'm after peoples opinions on hay/grass pellets
https://www.easypackhaylage.com/product/easy-pack-meadow-graze-pellets/

I give my buns compressed timothy blocks (pure timothy hay -search meadowbrix) which they love and was wondering about some of these pellets to cut down on the amount of long stem hay i give them. They tend not to eat it and drag it all over their room.
Many thanks
Click to expand...
dear blindxxx,--I tried the timothy blocks,and they preferred the loose timothy grasses/orchard,etc.-the gitract requires 70%timothy,h20,-20%-quality pellets,some treats..--the timothy grasses are fiber[non,digestible]-this one can think of as keeping the gi tract flora operational.--the quality pellets are for a digestible food and vitamins,lots of water and grasses..--sometimes teeth become a problem whereas they consume softer foods,-watch for this because it only gets worse,and poops get smaller..infant simethicone works well for gas/pain...rabbits lack stomach muscels[to throw up] and cannot expel gas.-- http://www.medirabbit.com -sincerely james waller from across the great pond usa
 
I would cut down on the amount of Kale and perhaps just feed one vegetable at a time. Some good advice above!
 
I would also definitely suspect the vegetables. I'd be tempted to cut them out altogether then gradually try to reintroduce and see what happens.
 
Hi, sorry, I realise its been a while since I posted. Quick update - veg intake decreased, all seemed fine until we fed one of their "treat" veg - very small quantity of cauliflower and one of them stopped eating a few hours later so we've entirely cut that out of their diet. Hay wise, still trying different types, but Tesco meadow hay appears to be their favourite so far (along with the timothy hay blocks that they love - https://www.simplesystemhorsefeeds.co.uk/products/viewhorsefeed.asp?id=43&name=MeadowBrix for anyone interested). Many thanks for all the input - we will slowly but surely work out the veg they are sensitive to!
 
Gah, don't believe it. Happened again. Diet has been consistent (not too much veg, kept it the same for the last two weeks, stuff they've been eating for over a year). Our boy Dusty was eating hay at 6pm yesterday, but stopped eating shortly after (wouldn't have dinner at 10pm) and the same this morning. The only change is he started moulting yesterday (we know he wasn't moulting on Monday cos we gave him a haircut and groom - he's a fluffball lionhead!). That seems to be the only constant - they always seem to stop eating when they moult. Could this be the issue? I didn't think hair could cause gas.

Edit: We have had the bunnies for a couple of years now, but all this only seems to have started this year (5 bouts of gas between 3 buns since January). We didn't notice we'd altered anything in particular.
 
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I would give them all extra grooming sessions (every day if needed) during the moulting period. It is not just their own fur - they ingest fur from other bunnies that they groom.
 
Quick update - he's fine now, eating well. Got home from work ready to contact the vet only for him to start eating again. We're lucky that we generally notice very early when they are off colour so we can try and sort things early. Ridiculous amount of fur came off him today, so daily grooming and hoovering of their room. Whatever causes it, we will work it out eventually. It's too upsetting to see our little fur babies ill! Also, thanks to an earlier post, 9kg of high quality timothy hay is on the way... Just hope they like this batch!
 
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