Winston Update- a few questions.

[LabAgility]

First, thank you ALL for the assistance with Winston.  This forum and your reponses have been a wealth of knowledge to get a non-bunny person up to speed. I have learned so much and the quality of Winston’s life reflects that.

Winston was neutered on Wednesday.  It went well and the tech on his case informed me that she held him the entire time that he came out of the anesthesia, after the surgery. Not sure if that is common for all rabbits, but it made me feel better. He was fully awake by 10 am.

I bought him some herbs (cilantro and italian parsely) to get him eating.  He has eaten wonderfully since coming home- fresh veg, hay, pellets. The vet suggested keeping him in his cage for the first 24 hours, which we did. We took 6 feet off his expen, making it smaller so he could come out and stretch out last night.  He is still in his tub cage and doesn’t have a huge amount of room- plus he loves to come out and lay. We plan on putting him in his dog kennel this weekend, we just didn’t want to change too much too fast while he was healing. On that topic; when can Winston have his second level? A week after surgery? 

I haven’t gotten him out to actually check the incision area- but he feels fine, eats a ton and even binkied a small amount this morning when he was out eating his pellets (we were shocked). We have gotten a birds eye view of the area when he was standing on his back feet – but not up close.  I am not sure its worth him stressing out and trusting us less to actually flip him to get up close and personal.  What would you suggest? It’s a delicate balance and he definitely trusts us less already, but he is getting over it.

Also, on all the veggie lists I read there are some conflicting info… like Kale; is it ok to buy a bunch and feed it to him until its gone and then rotate in something else? Or do I have to limit Kale to 3x/week?  The most kale he has eaten in a day is one leaf.  We are doing veggies slowly. He now gets  a handful of the herbs twice a day and is doing find with the fresh…  he LOVES it.

With one rabbit it would be a lot easier if I could buy a bunch or two a week and feed it until its gone and then rotate so that we can have variety.  

Again, THANK YOU ALL!

[Sarita]

You do not need to limit kale – there is alot of conflicting information and old information out there – he can eat this everyday. Kale is not high in oxalates nor does it cause “calcium buildup”. If you want to buy bunches of one kind at one time and rotate should be just fine.

I think after a week it should be fine to add the second level for him.

[Sarita]

Here’s a link about veggies from the House Rabbit Society that I encourage you to read, it will dispel some of the bad rap that kale has – there are some veggies that should be rotated and kale is not one – I encourage you to read this article in it’s entirety, not just the food list:

http://www.rabbit.org/care/veggies.html

[LabAgility]

You are right, there is quite a bit of contradictory information. I have read that article and you are right, it does dispel many myths. Can I just take that list as the be all/end all of veggies and quit obsessing over the discrepancies in other places? Oh, that would be so nice!

[Sarita]

I have – it is written by a vet who specializes in rabbits and is probably one of the foremost rabbit vets out there – she is also the Health Director for House Rabbit Society so I think she knows her rabbit stuff.

[LabAgility]

Thank you!

Can you recommend refrigerator hearty greens? We shop once a week and I know certain veggies don’t have staying power. I would like to make sure that we always have something fresh on hand for Winston.

I will say that Winston is gradually becoming a pickier eater, or perhaps just making his preferences known… he is now turning his nose up at the Oxbow Timothy and Orchard Grass hays in favor of the local oat/wheat/grass mixed hay that I bought for my horses. I still rotate all the hays, but I can see that he only picks at the Timothy and completely ignores the Orchard.

[Sarita]

Rabbits can definitely be finicky eaters!

I would recommend the kale – I get the dinosaur kale from Whole Foods – it is expensive but what I like about it is that it lasts and it is flat, not like regular kale although regular kale would be fine. Kale seems like last a long time in the fridge for me. Also Romaine and Green Leaf Lettuce.

I can get my cilantro to last for awhile too but that is really iffy – that would be best to eat at the beginning of the week. Curly and Flat Leaf Parsley seem to be long lasting too for me.

Mint is VERY long lasting too. Basil, not so much though, the rabbits love it, but it’s hit and miss and expensive too.

If I can find dandelion greens they last awhile too – right now I cannot find them much – seems like there are two kinds of dandelion leafs too.

So pretty much what I get (and I have 4 rabbits) is cilantro, parsley (either kind), green and romaine lettuce, mint, dino kale and dandelion greens (if I can find them). I don’t deviate too much from this but do on occasion get basil and arugula as well.

You can also try the mixed spring lettuces however, in my experience, those little red lettuces, they turn to mush very quickly.

[mia]

You can search past threads on what ppl use to keep their vegetables. I use http://amzn.com/B000OUY2QO and have two of them for my buns. I haven’t really had any vegetables go after after I started using it unless it got stuck to the bottom and then gets soggy. Usually both tubs are filled to the max and it lasts at least two weeks if I take from both tubs rather than one tub as a time.

[LabAgility]

Thanks Sarita! I printed the food list and highlighted the hearty ones. Now I have a platform. Luckily for us, we eat quite a bit of cilantro so that is pretty easy. We have never used an entire bunch for the family so Winston should be set. I will definitely look into mint for the staying power and basil for the love.

Believe it or not, I have actually been checking the veggie storage thread. My issue is the fact that in a standard size refrigerator we have to pack food for a family of 4 (including the toddler who eats like a man! OMG, the kids pack food away in this house!), including large amounts of fruits, veggies, milk, yogurt, etc. We also always have meat defrosting in the meat drawer for my two raw-fed labs. They go through about 15 pounds of meat each week. I am a little worried about space… but with one rabbit, the tailings of our veggies AND a few items for Winston I think we can be in business. I will look into the lettuce keeper- we could work one of them in the fridge if we got creative!

[Sarita]

I hear you about space! which is why I really like the Dinosaur (Tuscan, Black, Italian, Lacitano – different names) kale – here’s a link to what it looks like:

http://localfoods.about.com/od/cook…r-Kale.htm

I know that photo is small, but you get the idea – it’s really a gorgeous veggie – I know that sounds weird, but I love the way this stuff looks.  And it lasts a long time and the rabbits love it.  I have never tried it myself, but I understand it’s very yummy sauteed with some garlic and alot of people use it in their salads – I really need to try it sometime.

One of my friends who has a rabbit as well seems to grow this pretty well too, so if you have a garden or like to garden, it would be worth trying to grow.

[jerseygirl]

Oh Sarita, I’m a fan of that kale too. It’s called Tuscan or cavolo Nero around here. You can also make kale crispies with it, drying it in the oven. For the buns or people. My 2 & 5yr old niece and nephew love there kale chips. Lol.

LabAgility, I like curly endive for the rabbits. It seems to last well in the fridge.

The oat/wheat/grass mix hay would be fine for him if he ate that exclusively.

[RabbitPam]

Regarding checking his site to see if it’s not swollen or moist and healing well, I can suggest this:
Get a hand mirror or a flat mirror (like a cheapie from a dollar store if you don’t have a hand one) and set it on his cage floor near him. Hold a treat above his head so he has to periscope up to grab it. Look in the mirror while he is standing and check out his site area. If you can’t see it enough, you could gently lift his front paws up so he is balancing on his hind legs and your hand and angle the mirror so you can see his lower half with it with your other hand. You are only checking for redness, swelling or ooze, and from his behavior I’d say he’s out of the woods by now already.

[BinkyBunny]

Posted By LabAgility on 02/22/2013 11:51 AM

Thank you!

Can you recommend refrigerator hearty greens? We shop once a week and I know certain veggies don’t have staying power. I would like to make sure that we always have something fresh on hand for Winston.

One trick to make your greens last longer — about a full week. is to separate greens into large handfuls, wrap them in a paper towel , then put them in a plastic bag. Poke a few holes in the bag.   All my greens, even cilantro, stays fresh for a week. 

And this is the list of common greens I use that stay fresh this way:  Cilantro, dill, dandelion, parsley, mint, romaine, endive.  

Here is also a great older thread where members share there green keeping tips!  https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tab…fault.aspx

[LittlePuffyTail]

So glad to hear Winston made out well with his neuter!

I do what BB suggests about storing the veggies, although I don’t separate them into handfuls, I just remove the twist tie or rubber band. Important to make those veggies last this time of year since they are so expensive.

[LabAgility]

Winston is now affectionately being referred to as “King Winston.” We moved him to his 48×30 dog kennel last night and he is in rabbit heaven. I don’t think he had ever been outside of a small cage when he was turned loose as it took him a while to learn that he could stand up, stretch out, binky, etc. It has been so funny to watch him get comfortable with his body and learn just what he is capable of doing.

After all the reading on this forum we decided to make the switch to large cage go slow… Right now the tub cage is in the bigger cage, door open, ramp covered with a towel- of course, this doesn’t leave much room! Alongside the tub cage he has a rug to lounge on, toilet paper tubes, a box, wood to chew, a few bird toys. We figure we’ll remove the cage top in a day or two. Then we’ll remove the cage bottom for a litter box in another day or two, then in another day or two we will add in the second level and ramp, etc.

I appreciate all the veggie tips – both storage ideas and veggies that will last the long haul. With two little kids we do not just run off to the grocery on a whim. Each trip is a well planned excursion! Knowing we have something in the fridge for Winston is fantastic! I will check out the ones you folks recommended… and I am excited to make Kale Chips!

[Sarita]

Sounds like Winston is doing well and you have a good plan :~)

Would love photos of Winston some day too.

[LabAgility]

I promise to upload pictures, I am way overdue for downloading.

[Author]

Messages