Rabbit Care
Feed
Pellets are a bunny super food. A good commercial pellet contains everything your rabbit NEEDS to thrive. Please beware of purchasing 5-10 pound bags of rabbit food from walmart, a pet store or other grocery store. These bags are much more expensive, usually are not as fresh and often contain junk food ingredients. Be especially wary if it contains colorful "treat pieces." Most rabbits do well on a feed 14-16% protein, and 17% or more of fiber. We personally feed and recommend Purina Complete (see above left photo). You can find this at tractor supply or other farm store, or feed stores. Locally it runs me $13-18 per 50 lb bag, depending on if I buy it in bulk or not. I also feed Timothy or Orchard grass hay to our rabbits to promote good gut health by enabling them to eat all day long if they please, and to provide some enrichment. We feed hay through feeders attached on the outside of the cage that they have to work to pull the hay through. It is important to understand that feeding hay will slow growth rates some as they are eating more hay and therefore less pellets. If growth rate is important to your stock, I would recommend limiting hay or only providing all you can eat pellets to growouts.
We DO NOT recommend free feeding rabbits unless they are growing juniors (growouts) or lactating does nursing a litter. Rabbits are very efficient animals and they pack on internal fat very quickly. Rabbits may not look or feel overweight, and yet they may have a serious internal fat problem that may significantly shorten their life span and affect their fertility. Therefore, we recommend feeding a measured amount once daily. Please reference your individual feed bag for how much you should feed your rabbit. We feed Purina Complete which recommends 1 oz per pound of body weight. For grown Mini Rex and Holland Lops, they usually weigh between 3-5 pounds so we feed 1/4-1/2 cup per rabbit, per day. For New Zealand, Satins, and Rex, they usually weigh between 8 pounds and 12 pounds, so they are fed 1 cup (8 oz) per day. We have a couple very large does including a 12 pound NZ doe we feed more at 10-12 oz per day.
We are often asked what we supplement our rabbits. We also feed a mixture of black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS), flax seed, Calf Manna, Quaker Oats and YQ+. The specific ratios depend on the animals being fed, and the reason we are feeding it. We tailor our supplements specifically to each animal, their role and purpose, and their life stage. We also supplement Kale and or TUMS which is high in calcium to our nursing and lactating does to help ease birth and to prevent hypocalcemia after birth, especially for large litters.
DO NOT FEED young rabbits or newly acquired rabbits anything but pellets, hay and the treat mix we provide initially. They can and do die VERY EASILY due to food changes. An adult rabbit you can feed some fruits and vegetables AFTER they have acclimated to the environment and switched over to your new feed (if desired), and they are eating all of their measured food you provide each day and they are eating and drinking well, and producing a normal amount of feces and urine.
We do not recommend that young rabbits be fed fruits and vegetables until they are six months old as they have fragile digestive systems and can become ill or die easily due to changes in feed. Even then, we recommend mostly leafy green vegetables in moderation and introduced slowly (with the exception of iceburg lettuce, do not feed it). We recommend only tiny amounts of fruit and even then, rarely.
We DO NOT recommend free feeding rabbits unless they are growing juniors (growouts) or lactating does nursing a litter. Rabbits are very efficient animals and they pack on internal fat very quickly. Rabbits may not look or feel overweight, and yet they may have a serious internal fat problem that may significantly shorten their life span and affect their fertility. Therefore, we recommend feeding a measured amount once daily. Please reference your individual feed bag for how much you should feed your rabbit. We feed Purina Complete which recommends 1 oz per pound of body weight. For grown Mini Rex and Holland Lops, they usually weigh between 3-5 pounds so we feed 1/4-1/2 cup per rabbit, per day. For New Zealand, Satins, and Rex, they usually weigh between 8 pounds and 12 pounds, so they are fed 1 cup (8 oz) per day. We have a couple very large does including a 12 pound NZ doe we feed more at 10-12 oz per day.
We are often asked what we supplement our rabbits. We also feed a mixture of black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS), flax seed, Calf Manna, Quaker Oats and YQ+. The specific ratios depend on the animals being fed, and the reason we are feeding it. We tailor our supplements specifically to each animal, their role and purpose, and their life stage. We also supplement Kale and or TUMS which is high in calcium to our nursing and lactating does to help ease birth and to prevent hypocalcemia after birth, especially for large litters.
DO NOT FEED young rabbits or newly acquired rabbits anything but pellets, hay and the treat mix we provide initially. They can and do die VERY EASILY due to food changes. An adult rabbit you can feed some fruits and vegetables AFTER they have acclimated to the environment and switched over to your new feed (if desired), and they are eating all of their measured food you provide each day and they are eating and drinking well, and producing a normal amount of feces and urine.
We do not recommend that young rabbits be fed fruits and vegetables until they are six months old as they have fragile digestive systems and can become ill or die easily due to changes in feed. Even then, we recommend mostly leafy green vegetables in moderation and introduced slowly (with the exception of iceburg lettuce, do not feed it). We recommend only tiny amounts of fruit and even then, rarely.
Feed transitions
I provide transition feed with newly purchased rabbits. Please feed only the transition feed the first day, after that mix 50% the feed provided and 50% the new food until gone (1 scoop new and 1 scoop old food). Specific instructions on amount of feed will be provided at the time of purchase, specific to that animal.
I recommend making all future feed changes slowly to avoid problems. Always transition animals slowly from old feed to new, throughout their life. This means do not wait until you are out of food to buy more. Buy more food BEFORE you run out just in case they are out of what you usually feed so you have some left to transition.
I recommend making all future feed changes slowly to avoid problems. Always transition animals slowly from old feed to new, throughout their life. This means do not wait until you are out of food to buy more. Buy more food BEFORE you run out just in case they are out of what you usually feed so you have some left to transition.
