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Forum DIET & CARE Bigger poops on timothy, smaller on oat

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    • sarahthegemini
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        Hi guys, Buttercup’s poops are pretty consistent regardless of what type of hay she eats. Peanut however has for the longest time had fluctuations. I’ve noticed lately that most of the time, when his poops are larger (much like Buttercups) it’s after eating primarily timothy or orchard. They seem to be smaller after eating oat hay. Is this a sign that his tummy is better on timothy? Or is it just a case of different hays make different poops and neither is better or worse? I tend to feed less of the oat anyway as it’s lower in fibre than the other hays but I’m wondering if I should cut down a little more. I currently give just a few small handfuls of the oat each day, but obviously copious amounts of the other hay. Thanks guys!


      • joea64
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          Do Peanut’s poops look OK aside from size – color, texture, etc? Panda and Fernando have always turned out poops about the size of a small Cocoa Puff and more or less the same color, dry, odorless and hard/crumbly as they should be, but until recently I’ve been feeding them mixed local farm hay. My supplier (Friends of Rabbits) recently switched to Standlee as their hay supplier, and I’m currently working my way through a giant 60-pound bale of compressed “pure” timothy hay. So far, though, I haven’t noticed any significant difference in their poops.


        • Wick & Fable
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            For Wick, poop size correlates WTH hay consumption. When he eats a lot of fiber, it’s bigger. Vice versa for smaller. Perhaps on oat hay your rabbit eats less total fiber.

            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.


          • joea64
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              Posted By Wick on 12/14/2017 7:01 AM

              For Wick, poop size correlates WTH hay consumption. When he eats a lot of fiber, it’s bigger. Vice versa for smaller. Perhaps on oat hay your rabbit eats less total fiber.

              That seems a bit counterintuitive to me, since I’ve read that oat hay is particularly good for fiber and has been recommended as so by several branches of the HRS.


            • Wick & Fable
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                It could be just from sheer quantity. Even if it’s higher in fiber, they may not be eating as much of the fiber rich pieces as compared to the Timothy/orchard combo.

                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.


              • sarahthegemini
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                  I’m not sure if quantity of hay makes it fluctuate (tho I know that would make the most sense) he’s got quite the appetite for all 3 hays, but because I limit the oat, both tend to gobble it up a little faster.

                  His poops are always rounded, quite dark and sometimes more crumbly than others but it’s the size that concerns me the most. I’ve never been able to pinpoint what causes the fluctuations but his have definitely been larger more often lately.


                • sarahthegemini
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                    Posted By joea64 on 12/14/2017 7:09 AM

                    Posted By Wick on 12/14/2017 7:01 AM

                    For Wick, poop size correlates WTH hay consumption. When he eats a lot of fiber, it’s bigger. Vice versa for smaller. Perhaps on oat hay your rabbit eats less total fiber.

                    That seems a bit counterintuitive to me, since I’ve read that oat hay is particularly good for fiber and has been recommended as so by several branches of the HRS.

                    The Orchard has 32% fibre, timothy I’m not sure but timothy is usually 30-32% whereas the burns oat hay has 26% so although it’s not low in fibre, it’s lower than the other two.


                  • Deleted User
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                      Bombur has smaller poos when he eats oat hay too, so you are not alone. That’s why I tend to limit oat hay for him as a treat. Little man has already had enough GI troubles.


                    • sarahthegemini
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                        Posted By Asriel and Bombur on 12/14/2017 9:04 AM

                        Bombur has smaller poos when he eats oat hay too, so you are not alone. That’s why I tend to limit oat hay for him as a treat. Little man has already had enough GI troubles.

                        Poor little bean, I’m lucky that Peanut has never *touch wood* had GI troubles. He’s the one that tries eating plastic! 


                      • Deleted User
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                          Hahaha silly Peanut. It’s so hard to get mad or stay mad at them cause they look at you with those eyes after and you just wanna kiss them all over instead.


                        • sarahthegemini
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                            Posted By Asriel and Bombur on 12/14/2017 9:17 AM

                            Hahaha silly Peanut. It’s so hard to get mad or stay mad at them cause they look at you with those eyes after and you just wanna kiss them all over instead.

                            That little rascal’s new idea of fun is to chew on inappropriate things and not allow me any sleep. You’re right tho, you just can’t get mad at them! It’s a good job he’s a cutie. Buttercup has been an angel in comparison and I never thought I’d say that 


                          • princessbookworm
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                              I’m not sure about size, but the color of Jake and Yulie’s poops change DRAMATICALLY when I include even a handful of oat hay with their Timothy. They love oat hay; they even like discarding the pieces they don’t like. ☺️? But even a little oat hay and their poops lighten up dramatically. It’s crazy.


                            • Q8bunny
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                                She may simply be eating less oat hay??


                              • sarahthegemini
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                                  I decided to test my theory and cut oat hay out for a day or two and he still had poop fluctuations so I was wrong lol. I don’t think I’ll ever get to the bottom of this!


                                • Q8bunny
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                                    In that case maybe there are certain hours when he eats less hay??


                                  • Wick & Fable
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                                      Generally speaking, Wick has fluctuating poops. When it’s more consistently a smaller size, it’s usually time for a molar grinding.

                                      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.


                                    • sarahthegemini
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                                        I thought that Q8bunny but actually both buns do the majority of their hay eating overnight and his poops are often small in the morning. Buttercup’s are always the same size even tho she doesn’t eat much during the day. I’m thinking of decreasing their breakfast veggies a little to see if they’ll both eat a bit more hay. It can’t hurt!


                                      • joea64
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                                          I’m not as familiar with their hay-eating patterns in the early morning, though I always refresh the supply at the same time I give them their pellets, but in the early evening both Panda and Fernando are very active in going after the evening hay, interspersed with nibbling at the greens and doing other bunny things. They’ll spend up to a quarter-hour or even half an hour at a time in those hours foraging for the nicest strands of hay, and then throughout the rest of the night hop back into the condo every so often to have themselves a little hay snack. So I’d say that’s their normal behavior and expect it’s the same in the morning. I don’t see any significant difference in poop size according to time of day, but I’ve been noticing that since I switched to Standlee timothy hay from mixed grass hay, the poop color is often lighter (from medium/dark brown to tannish brown) while the shape and texture remain the same.


                                        • Q8bunny
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                                            Hmm… Maybe lack of physical activity overnight, then??


                                          • DanaNM
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                                              Hmmm, can you post a pic so we can see how big of a fluctuation we’re talking about here? Maybe with a coin or a ruler for scale?

                                              Bertha’s poops got bigger at first with oat, but then shrunk a bit when she got used to it/ bored of it. They are smallest on orchard, and seem to be the most consistently large on first-cut timothy (which has lots of crunchy stems and long pieces). It does seem like the size is most related to the amount of hay she’s eating, which is linked to preferences of type.

                                              Moose’s poops are more all over the map, but they are also the best size and shape when his teeth are feeling good and he’s eating lots of hay. They are looking pretty good right now with first-cut timothy as well (but still not as uniformly beautiful as Bertha’s). He’s never concerned me with GI issues though, because even when his teeth were hurting him, he’s been ravenous for everything else.

                                              I know oat is sometimes good for buns that will not eat hay, so I tried it when Moose’s hay consumption was down (before we knew it was for sure his teeth). But, I think they were both just picking out the oat seeds, so their overall consumption went down after a few days once the novelty wore off. I also noticed SO much in the litter box vs. timothy.

                                              I have noticed that when I feed too many veggies they don’t eat as much hay, or when we give them extra “snacks” of veggies or pellets throughout the day.

                                              . . . 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.  


                                            • sarahthegemini
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                                                Posted By Q8bunny on 12/20/2017 10:50 AM

                                                Hmm… Maybe lack of physical activity overnight, then??

                                                Hm, I hadn’t thought of it being linked to his activity. I’ll have to pay close attention and see if there’s a correlation. He does tend to be quite chilled overnight…til the 5:30am sprinting begins 


                                              • sarahthegemini
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                                                  I’ll try and get a photo DanaNM, the fluctuation can be a bit drastic. It shouldn’t be too hard as he’s pooping everywhere at the moment!

                                                  I’ve cut down massively on all other foods and I think it has encouraged both buns to eat a little more hay during the day so that’s progress. The trouble with my two is they get bored easily. I’ve got 3 types of hay for them – the oat, the timothy and some Orchard. Unfortunately the timothy I have is actually getting quite brown now as I’m delving further into it so the buns are being picky with it. So now I’m switching between orchard and oat (Peanut’s poops are still fluctuating) I’ve ordered some Oxbow timothy which I’m hoping will be more greener and more enticing for them. Sorry bit of a tangent there!


                                                • sarahthegemini
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                                                    I’ve got a photo but I’m having difficulties with picture hosting sites. Would anybody like to offer their email address and post it for me? 

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                                                Forum DIET & CARE Bigger poops on timothy, smaller on oat