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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum DIET & CARE Bunny Menu

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    • Marissa & Louie
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        Hi guys! I’m fairly new to bunnies as you may or may not have seen in my introduction post. I had a mini rex when I was a kid and have done lots of research but I just want to be sure I’m on the right track when it comes to Louie’s diet. I made a “Bunny Menu” to help me organize his meals and keep track of when to feed him, so I’m just curious on your guys’ thoughts about it! Too much food? Not enough food? Good variety? Etc? Keep in mind he is a juvenile rabbit (5 months old).

         

        DAILY

        – 1/2 cup of a leafy green veggie high in Oxalic Acid (ex: parsley, spinach, mustard greens, swiss chard, radish tops, sprouts)

        – 1/2 cup of a leafy green veggie low in Oxalic Acid (ex: arugula, kale sparingly, red/green lettuce, romaine, mint, basil, cilantro, watercress)

        – 1 tablespoon of a non-leafy green (ex: carrot, celery, bell peppers, brussel sprouts, cabbage, zucchini)

        – Unlimited alfalfa hay (I will change this to unlimited Timothy hay once he’s 7 months and of course wean him off of the alfalfa)

        – 1/4 cup of Juvenile Rabbit Healthy Support Diet Pellets (1/4 cup usually lasts him 2 days, he eats more alfalfa than pellets)

         

        TREATS

        – 2 tablespoons per week of fruits (apple, cherry, pear, peach, plum, kiwi, papaya, mango, berries, pineapple, banana, apricot, nectarine, currants)

        – 1 handful of Kaytee Gourmet Variety Diet Mix (I have not opened this package yet, I got it for free and was told to use them as treats but haven’t felt the need to give him a store mix when I could give him fresh fruits/veggies and hay)

         

        What do you guys think? Am I on the right track? Is this a good bunny menu?


      • gingerg
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        123 posts Send Private Message

          Is that Louie in the photo? Is he a mini lop or a holland lop, and do you know about how much he weighs?


        • Marissa & Louie
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            Yes that is Louie in the picture! He is a holland lop, and weighs about 3 pounds. I enclosed another picture of him


          • Peapod026
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              Hey!
              That sounds like you’re on the right track, but the amount of greens and pellets you need to give him should be based on his weight (I’ve read anywhere from 1-2 cups greens per 5 lbs of bunny, and something like 1/4-1/3 cup pellets per 5 lbs of bun). If he’s a mini breed then it sounds like your amounts work for what weight he would be!But I try to rotate what I give my bun and definitely only feed one type of veggie that is high in oxalic acid per meal! I also usually skip the “non leafy green” category and give those things (zuchinni, bell pepper ect) more sparingly and as treats. I think your limited quantites for that category is on the money though, so probably ok to feed at every meal! I’m curious to see what other folks say though, cus your menu sounds just like my bunny’s menu!


            • Sarita
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                I would introduce him now to grass hay rather than wait. Ideally they should be started on grass hay right away and just given some alfalfa hay to supplement – nibbles of it. Their pellets at this age are alfalfa so you are really double dipping.


              • Marissa & Louie
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                  @Peapod – thank you! how many meals do you feed your bun a day? A serving of pellets usually lasts Louie a couple days, so I wouldn’t say I feed him “meals”; I just feed accordingly to his eating patterns and of course give him unlimited hay. I read somewhere that you should give 1 cup of veggies per 3 pounds of bunny, so thats where I got those numbers from!

                  @Sarita – the breeders told me to wait until 7 months to wean him off the alfalfa. Also, since he doesn’t eat much of the pellets, I wanted to keep him on alfalfa for another couple months.


                • Peapod026
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                    I usually give my bunny two meals a day: a bit of pellets in the morning, then we play together and he gets some outside time from his pen. Then I give him half his salad (1/2 cup greens) as a reward for coming back into his pen when we are done playing! Same routine at night! That way he has “treats” to look forward to each morning and evening, but is never hungry as his pellets are sort of his breakfast and dinner, and after some romping around he gets his “dessert” (his salad!)
                    Yeah, I’ve heard between 1 cup veggies for 3 pounds anywhere up to 5 pound bunny. So a cup should be right!


                  • litheandgraphic
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                      Hello and once again welcome to the forums and to the wonderful world of bunnies!  

                      Okay, so here’s my thoughts on your current menu.

                      Oxalic acid: I’m not sure if / where you found something that said it was a good idea to serve bunnies veggies high in oxalic acid, but if you did, I’m going to go ahead and put that theory to rest. Too much oxalic acid in the diet will eventually wear down their kidneys, so I would cut back a lot on those veggies that are high in oxalic acid. You can keep maybe one or two if you feel it’s necessary, and if I were you I might keep the parsley but cut it down significantly, but if I were really you, I’d nix the lot and up the amount of low-oxalic-acid greens. The ones you do have currently are great, and it’s good that you have a wide variety of them. c:

                      Veggie amounts: 1 cup per 3 lbs of bunny seems right to me, and is confirmed on the HRS site (they say 2 cups per 6 lbs, same thing). Theodore is about 4 lbs and I feed him 2 cups per day without issue, but he also only gets 1/8 cup of pellets per day.

                      Other veggies: I’m a little strict on my bunny’s diet, so take this with a tiny grain of salt, but I would suggest lowering the amount of carrots and make this serving every other day instead of every day. The rest of this medley is fine, but nix the celery – it’s kinda pointless. You can, however, include celery leaves, which actually carry some nutrients. Watch out for large quantities of brussel sprouts as well, as they’ve been known to cause gas in more sensitive bunnies. Same goes for cabbage.

                      Pellets and hay: I believe Sarita knows more than me on this, but going off of what the HRS says, it’s fine to wait until 7 months to ween him off of alfalfa hay and pellets – however, if you start seeing uneaten cecal droppings, then this may clue you in to start changing the diet to Timothy, as this is usually an indicator that there is too much protein in the diet from the alfalfa. Since he’s getting closer to this cut-off age, you may want to start decreasing his amount of pellets anyway, to 1/6 cup or so.

                      Fruits: These are good options and seem like safe amounts. c:

                      Kaytee mix: Honestly, I’d toss this. You got it free so it’s no wasted money, and this stuff is basically just full of little garbage bits that aren’t good for bunnies at all, like seeds and corn. TOSS IT!

                      Again, welcome! Louie is sooooo cute.


                    • Marissa & Louie
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                        Thank you Theodore and Mommy for your tips! Just to clarify, does this sound a little healthier than my original menu?

                        DAILY

                        – 1/2 cup of a leafy green veggie low in Oxalic Acid (ex: arugula, kale sparingly, red/green lettuce, romaine, mint, basil, cilantro, watercress)

                        – 1 tablespoon of a non-leafy green every other day (ex: carrot, celery, bell peppers, brussel sprouts, cabbage, zucchini)

                        – Unlimited alfalfa hay (I will change this to unlimited Timothy hay once he’s 7 months and of course wean him off of the alfalfa)

                        – 1/4 cup of Juvenile Rabbit Healthy Support Diet Pellets (1/4 cup usually lasts him 2 days, he eats more alfalfa than pellets)

                        TREATS

                        – 2 tablespoons per week of fruits (apple, cherry, pear, peach, plum, kiwi, papaya, mango, berries, pineapple, banana, apricot, nectarine, currants)

                        – 1/4 cup of a leafy green veggie high in Oxalic Acid (ex: parsley, spinach, mustard greens, swiss chard, radish tops, sprouts)

                        I think I’ll take the Kaytee treat mix to Petco, maybe I can get store credit and buy him some bedding or pellets or a toy instead


                      • litheandgraphic
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                        608 posts Send Private Message

                          Posted By Marissa & Louie on 9/27/2014 11:36 PM
                          Thank you Theodore and Mommy for your tips! Just to clarify, does this sound a little healthier than my original menu?

                          DAILY

                          – 1/2 cup of a leafy green veggie low in Oxalic Acid (ex: arugula, kale sparingly, red/green lettuce, romaine, mint, basil, cilantro, watercress)

                          – 1 tablespoon of a non-leafy green every other day (ex: carrot, celery, bell peppers, brussel sprouts, cabbage, zucchini)

                          – Unlimited alfalfa hay (I will change this to unlimited Timothy hay once he’s 7 months and of course wean him off of the alfalfa)

                          – 1/4 cup of Juvenile Rabbit Healthy Support Diet Pellets (1/4 cup usually lasts him 2 days, he eats more alfalfa than pellets)

                          TREATS

                          – 2 tablespoons per week of fruits (apple, cherry, pear, peach, plum, kiwi, papaya, mango, berries, pineapple, banana, apricot, nectarine, currants)

                          – 1/4 cup of a leafy green veggie high in Oxalic Acid (ex: parsley, spinach, mustard greens, swiss chard, radish tops, sprouts)

                          I think I’ll take the Kaytee treat mix to Petco, maybe I can get store credit and buy him some bedding or pellets or a toy instead

                          Of course!

                          I think you could probably up his low-oxalic greens to a full cup per day, maybe a little less pellets, nix the high-oxalic greens altogether, and cut out the celery except for the leaves; one thing that concerns me with celery is the same thing as iceberg lettuce – too much water and not enough nutrients, which can cause stomach issues.

                          But otherwise yes, this is better! I hope you end up being able to exchange the Kaytee mix for a toy!

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                      Forum DIET & CARE Bunny Menu