Hi! To give some context for my concerns, I recently (1 week ago since writing this post) brought a new young Mini Lop rabbit thatβs 8 weeks old home, and where I live itβs very difficult to get local and brand-new alfalfa, and just hay in general so at first I fed her regular Timothy hay with alfalfa hay pellets with her greens. (About 1 1/2 handfuls of greens, 1/4 pellets Iβd estimate)
Yesterday I found alfalfa hay online and ordered it to feed for my Freja, and I fed her it for the first time. She seemed to like it a lot, but now the issue has come up; Me and my boyfriend notice that her poops have gotten smaller and darker.
We got concerned and looked it up, and I got the scare for possible GI stasis symptoms,, but they didnβt really seem to add up since my bunny is a very social one. She runs around everywhere in excitement, eats everything she is given and greets us every time we step through the door. She is an indoors free-roaming bunny, and she is still getting used to her new place, but we can clearly tell that she feels right at home. Freja also poops EVERYWHERE (sheβs still getting litter box trained) constantly, so perhaps it could be the first state of GI stasis,, but I also suspect that I mightβve been feeding her too much protein and probably too much fruit since Iβve been trying to teach her the important stuff and been rewarding her a lot.
I havenβt been giving her any processed food/snacks with pellets being an exception, and she mostly snacks/eats parsley being her favourite with occasional cubed apple and banana.
She drinks water a lot, having a ceramic bowl standing in her little pen area in which she hangs around a lot.
She isnβt neutered or vaccinated yet, Iβve been looking into saving money up until she turns 5 months, so litter box training has been a little tricky because of her territorial instincts.
Sorry that this is so long, but Iβve been really concerned for her since we noticed her poops got dark and small this morning. Sources say that this could be caused by stress/too much protein and that limiting this should make those poops get back to normal. However I really canβt help but panic, knowing how young Freja actually is and how deadly GI stasis can be.
I bought an 8 week old holland lop the other day from a breeder. I took it to the vet the morning after getting him to find out he has an upper respiratory infection (URI), so heβs currently on antibiotics. He came with some pellets but theyβre not meant for a young rabbit and I was trying to transition him to the oxbow young rabbit. He refuses to eat it. He also ONLY eats alfalfa and wonβt eat Timothy hay or orchard grass. Since heβs severely underweight Iβve also been trying to give him dry Timothy hay based treats to ensure heβs getting something. Heβs got lots of toys and room to play but doesnβt seem interested in anything? Iβve tried stuffing treats inside Timothy hay balls or a Timothy based house and he doesnβt really care. Iβm also currently giving him oxbow critical care while he takes his medicine to hopefully help him gain weight. Are there any recommendations to help him eat Timothy hay or the new pellets? He canβt live in alfalfa forever and doesnβt seem very willing to try new things. Pls help
My bunnies only only eat alfalfa hay. Anything alfalfa based. Pellets alfalfa and hay too. The oxbow brand. This makes it so hard. They eat nothing else? Theyre together two of em and theyr elike 7months old. Theyre finally adults and Iβm supposed to switch to timothy hay based pellets, they hate it, even the hay they donβt touch, this led to them not eating the whole day, and they get salads twice a day, they cry for that, chase me all over for fruits! But its so sad :( my bunnies donβt enjoy food if its not alfalfa. Ive tried everything, orchad hay, mixed hay, mountian, 3rd cut, 2nd cut, western timothy hay. They donβt come near it! Ive mixed it up, nope. And theyre poops came out tiny one day and sticky i knew its cause both of em skipped food the whole day, so Iβm so confused? What can i do? Should i stick to timothy hay and pellets only? Can i not move back to alfalfa based? Pls let me know! Thanks :)
Do you have to bale alfalfa to use it or can you store it in a shed, also can you do it with a harvester or mower or both? Also do you need to replant alfalfa every year once harvested?
We will be picking up my mini pop on Sunday and I wondered what your opinion is on this. Everywhere I read alfalfa hay was recommended but the breeder told me she doesnβt feed the baby buns alfalfa hay as itβs already included in the pellets. Instead she recommended a mix of meadow and Timothy hay.
Iβm so confused! What do you think??
I have alfalfa sprouts seeds.. can i grow them as micro greens instead?
Thanks !
I've been having a hard time finding these. I've tried Walmart, Zehrs, Vincenzo's, and T&T so far. Thanks in advance.
Hi, I am finding it very difficult in my area to get straw to use as a mulch. In the pet store, they do have organic, non-gmo barley and alfalfa hay combined. would it be possible to use this a mulch, as i don't see much difference besides retaining some organic matter and potentially seeds?
Both of my pigs are nearly a year old
