Feeding amount & schedule?

[CoolBeans]

Hello everyone, apologies for the long post.
Zeus is 4.5 months now, and had his vet visit last week. He weighs 1lbs and 9 ounces (netherlamd dwarf). The vet did not recommend any feeding amount but simply mentioned that pellets are like candy bars for bunnies and overdoing pellet intake can cause him to eat less hay, resulting in his sharp molars that need filing.
I give him unlimited hay, 1/8 cup of pellets a day, half at approx. 7am and 7pm and veggies around 3pm afted his nap.
I feel he overeats if i give unlimited & eats like hes starving when i give him pellets on a schedule. I dont want to stunt his growth, but at the same time i want to prevent obesity, i doubt his little limbs can take him being overweight.
Ive read that rabbits are prone to obesity after spay/neuter, his neuter is scheduled for 2 weeks from now.

He is currently on oxbow essentials young rabbit pellets, alfalfa based & oxbow timothy hay, im switching over to oxbow adult pellets when he is 6 months.

Do you guys keep to a feeding schedule or freefeed?
Did you give your buns unlimited pellets until they were 6 months?
Have your buns ever needed their teeth filed, and how often?

[Wick & Fable]

I am fortunate that the closest exotic vet to me is one of the most experienced rabbit vets in the area, so I very much trust their advice and knowledge. Wick was not healthy when I received him, but he’s now successfully neutered and infection-free, so below is what Wick’s feeding and dental procedures have been. Hopefully this helps!

1) Teeth filing: Due to the small jaw structure of NDs, your rabbit will eventually need to have his molars filed, just because teeth don’t stop growing and it’s an eventuality for most. My vet has NDs coming in as often as once every 3mo, Wick most likely being one of them. He’s only 9mo, but Wick does not chew anything besides hay, so he already had some molar spurs filed down at 6mo. He’s getting an appointment scheduled this coming week to examine his mouth again because he’s showing the same frustration signs as before! There’s a ton of things you can do to elongate the time between fillings though, like encouraging hay consumption and chewing of toys! Wick is just an inconvenient exception with his teeth because he lacks destructive drive.

2) Pellets: Wick went through one week of getting Critical Care to attain a healthier weight, which he has sustained with no issue since. Being underweight at the beginning most likely came from having limited pellets due to his health problems and how the calcium was passing through him. In short, aside from when he was at his breeder most likely, Wick always had limited pellets. I think generally all rabbits approach a pellet bowl like they’re starving, even if they are actually fine. Many rabbits enjoy pellets, so no matter their hunger level, they’re like famished wolves once they hear pellets hit a bowl.

3) Feeding Schedule:
A. 6AM – Receives 3/4 of total daily veggie serving
B. 4PM – Receives pellets (1/8 to 1/4c)
C. 8PM – Receives 1/4 of total daily veggie serving

A. 5:45AM – Hay in litter boxes are thrown in the hay box, mixed around with old hay and new Timothy hay, then replaced in litter boxes.
B. 2PM – Litter box hay are thrown into hay box again, shuffled around, then redistributed. No new Timothy hay added (to efficiently go through old hay first)
C. 8PM – Oat hay and orchard hay are mixed into the litter box hay, to encourage hay appetite in the evening. Usually Wick gets light on hay eating at night because he just had veggies and is active, thus has more energy dedicated to being selective. Adding the new hays makes the litter box hay attractive again.
=== Hay Box: Vessel to freshen already-picked-through hay with newly added Timothy hay. Cleaned out once a week by scooping the small hay strands and dust from the bottom, because Wick won’t eat that stuff and it makes me and him sneeze.

— I hope this helps you find a schedule that works for you and your rabbit. This schedule is catered more to my work schedule and availability, not because I was told there needs to be a certain number of hours between meals.

To encourage hay eating, I definitely advise against giving into your rabbit’s pestering for treats or more veggies. It’s important to stand your ground. If your rabbit is hungry, it will eat the hay, and you don’t need to feel bad.

Someone else will need to advise you on when and how much to back down on pellets since I don’t have experience with it unfortunately.

And shameless plug to Wick’s Instagram, but it may help you see my set-up with him: wick_theboogeyman

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[CoolBeans]

Lol, i love the plug to Wick’s IG. Hes a cutie! How much does he weigh?

Zeus is destructive, but picky. He chews cords if they are out. When he wasnt free roam, he would chew the coroplast in his cage. He tears up carpet, but doesnt bother with chew toys of any sort.

Now the only issue is his desire to pee on the couch and bed.

[Wick & Fable]

Neutering will help with the bed and couch wetting, but it won’t solve it until you make it clear it’s not allowed, so still have a watchful eye and get ready to shoo him off if he’s about to pee.

Wick weighs about 800-875g now I believe, which is about 1.7lb, which again, is probably lighter than most his age since he’s smaller. When he had weekly vet appts for treatment, he’d be around 650-750g (age 12wo to 6mo).

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Wick & Fable]

(Double post)

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

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