# 10 week old bunny diet



## audrinasmommy88 (Sep 20, 2012)

My sister just got a baby bunny. 10 week old male. She told me that all they feed him is pellets and i told her that wasn't right he was to have hay. I know the pellets and hay are unlimited. But I need more info. I have never owned a baby rabbit so I dont know exactly what their diet should be and when it changes. Let me know so I can let her know. Thanks  Here is her and her bunny


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## LakeCondo (Sep 20, 2012)

It should be unlimited hay & alfalfa pellets until they're nearly full-grown. That's later for giants than for other breeds. 

Veggies must be introduced slowly. I'm not sure at what age people usually start doing that. Not yet, though.

PS - For a more secure hold, the lower hand should probably be in the rump or feet area.


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## audrinasmommy88 (Sep 20, 2012)

Does it matter what kind of hay? I told her alfalfa pellets, but not the pellets with the colored pieces. I told her to get oxbow. Also, I said to not give him any veggies until I got more information. i also explained to her how to hold him after I saw that picture. Her boyfriend bought her the rabbit so she never got to do any research before she got him. So I am trying to teach her as much as can but its hard because she is 4 hours away at college. But she is bringing him home with her for thanksgiving so i can really teach her about him. She is saving her money to get him neutered, so that is good.


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## audrinasmommy88 (Sep 20, 2012)

definitely didnt notice I put this is the housing section. Meant to put it in the nutrition section...can a mod please move this...thank you


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## ldoerr (Sep 20, 2012)

I would feed Timothy hay to the bunnie. I raised many litters on Timothy and they all turned out great. If she does not want to buy a bale of hay and Oxbow hay is too expensive then tell her to buy Vitakraft hay. I got a 28oz bag at Petsmart for $4. Shiny Things LOVES it. Beauty is a pill and will not eat ANY hay (I have bought 2 full sized bales and 2 mini bales and still nothing).


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## audrinasmommy88 (Sep 20, 2012)

thanks


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## Blue eyes (Sep 20, 2012)

I pulled this off of the House Rabbit Society's page:

*What quantities of food should I feed babies and "teenagers"?*
Birth to 3 weeks--mother's milk 
3 to 4 weeks--mother's milk, nibbles of alfalfa and pellets 
4 to 7 weeks--mother's milk, access to alfalfa and pellets 
7 weeks to 7 months--unlimited pellets, unlimited hay (plus see 12 weeks below) 
12 weeks--introduce vegetables (one at a time, quantities under 1/2 oz.)
 *What quantities of food should I feed young adults? (7 months to 1 year)*
introduce timothy hay, grass hay, and oat hays, decrease alfalfa 
decrease pellets to 1/2 cup per 6 lbs. body weight 
increase daily vegetables gradually 
fruit daily ration no more than 1 oz. to 2 oz. per 6 lbs. body weight (because of calories)


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## lauratunes12 (Sep 20, 2012)

Yes, no veggies/fruits until 12 weeks


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## Nancy McClelland (Sep 20, 2012)

We use orchard grass instead of timothy--way less allergy problems and less dust too.


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## Blue eyes (Sep 20, 2012)

*Nancy McClelland wrote: *


> We use orchard grass instead of timothy--way less allergy problems and less dust too.


Do you know if Bermuda is also fine to use as a timothy substitute?


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## Imbrium (Sep 20, 2012)

any grass hay will work in lieu of timothy - bermuda, orchard grass, coastal, oat hay, etc.

~~~

I would feed alfalfa to a young bunny (or a combo of alfalfa and timothy) as the extra calcium in alfalfa is very good for growing bunnies.


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Sep 21, 2012)

Unlimited pellets are not best at any age. In adults, it can cause obesity, but in young rabbits it can cause enteritis or other digestive imbalance. When I am weaning young kits, I offer 2x their adult ration daily. Once they are weaned (10-12 weeks of age), they're offered 1.5x their adult ration. This is plenty of pellets to help them grow, but also encourages them to eat hay throughout the day.

Along with that, I feed strictly timothy hay (to any age). Rabbit pellets are formulated to be a nutritionally complete food. As long as you're feeding an age-appropriate pellet, supplements are not necessary. For a younger rabbit, the feed should be higher in protein and fat than what you would feed an adult rabbit (as far as pets go, anyway). Adding alfalfa on top of an already balanced alfalfa pellet can make the diet too rich in calcium and other nutrients, even for babies.

Also, as far as veggies go. If he was not raised on veggies, I would hold off on introducing them until closer to 4-6 months of age. When rabbits are raised on them, it's fine to introduce them a bit earlier. But otherwise, it's better to hold off until they're adults and their digestive systems are less sensitive. After all, there is no reason to rush it.

Hope that helps!


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## Imbrium (Sep 21, 2012)

well, I offer unlimited pellets, but that's really only 3/4c a day (for two bunnies combined) which is actually pretty much exactly 1.5x their adult ration. I had to limit when they were on the pellets the breeder sent home with me because they'd scarf them down and Gaz was getting chubby but on the sherwood forest food they don't seem to overeat when it comes to pellets.


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Sep 21, 2012)

Some rabbits will ration themselves, so leaving a bowl full of food isn't a problem in all cases. I was only speaking generally because unlimited (which to me says, "as much as they will eat") is often recommended for young rabbits and can have devastating consequences. Fiber is just as important, if not more important, for babies than adults in my experience. There is always an exception to every "rule" though because animals are very individual.


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## LakeCondo (Sep 21, 2012)

*OakRidgeRabbits wrote: *


> Some rabbits will ration themselves, so leaving a bowl full of food isn't a problem in all cases. I was only speaking generally because unlimited (which to me says, "as much as they will eat") is often recommended for young rabbits and can have devastating consequences. Fiber is just as important, if not more important, for babies than adults in my experience. There is always an exception to every "rule" though because animals are very individual.


What evidence is there for devastating consequences for growing bunnies? Lucile Moore in Rabbit Nutrition ... mentions only obesity as something to look for& adjust for when giving unlimited pellets.


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Sep 21, 2012)

LakeCondo wrote:


> *OakRidgeRabbits wrote: *
> 
> 
> > Some rabbits will ration themselves, so leaving a bowl full of food isn't a problem in all cases. I was only speaking generally because unlimited (which to me says, "as much as they will eat") is often recommended for young rabbits and can have devastating consequences. Fiber is just as important, if not more important, for babies than adults in my experience. There is always an exception to every "rule" though because animals are very individual.
> ...



Digestive upset is fairly common in young rabbits, if that is evidence enough to take precaution. It can be caused by a variety of factors, but one that I've noticed is that it seems to be more common in herds that don't regularly get hay. Pellets are more enticing to most bunnies than hay is, so even if hay is available, having an unlimited supply of pellets is going to entice the babies to gorge on those instead.

Rationing pellets encourages a better balance between pellets and fiber, which is important to both babies and adults. You can still offer a more nutrient-rich diet to growing youngsters without needing to offer large amounts of it.


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## Imbrium (Sep 21, 2012)

if it's about the fiber, I think it depends on what food you feed, too. some foods have < 20% fiber, whereas the stuff I feed has 25-29%, which is nearly as much as hay.


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Sep 22, 2012)

Yeah, a different type of pellet may be fed differently. Typically breeders have young rabbits on a 16-17% protein feed which is lower in fiber- I'd say generally maybe 17-18%? So that's why having the roughage is so important there.

With your higher fiber feed, hay probably isn't as much of a concern. The only thing I'd wonder is whether it has enough protein/fat in it for babies? I haven't come across a "grow" formula yet that had that much fiber. What do you feed?


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## Imbrium (Sep 22, 2012)

I feed the sherwood forest adult formula, as it said the baby version was for 12 weeks and younger and they're 17 weeks/16 weeks now. they seem to be growing well and eat a lot of hay (I normally offer alfalfa and timothy at all times, though this week they've also got a little bit of oat and orchard grass hay as a treat)... gaz eats less hay 'cause she loves her veggies but Nala tends to turn up her noes and eat hay instead unless it's kale or cilantro.

looks like the sherwood baby food has 15% protein, 8% fat and 19-24% fiber


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## OakRidgeRabbits (Sep 22, 2012)

Their site was kind of difficult to navigate, but I finally found the ingredient list! Looks like a good pellet for pet rabbits, if you can get it locally. Otherwise it might be a bit expensive with the shipping added.


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## Imbrium (Sep 22, 2012)

yeah, the actual percentages (in non-graph form) were a bit hard to find... located at https://www.naturalrabbitfood.com/rabbit-food-labels/

I believe it's only sold online... shipping's not too bad if you buy the larger sizes. I just divided it up into four gallon ziplock bags and have them in the fridge so they'll stay fresh longer.


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