commercial pellet to greens.. too soon?

I just acquired 9wk NZ's. They have only been fed cheap,bulk, commercial pellets up to a few days ago. Since I've had them, they get to free graze on grass all day in addition to the pellets in their hutches at night and morning. I've also given them bits of radish greens, beetgreens, outer cabbage leaves, carrot tops, lettuce, maple branches and leaves, etc.
Am I giving them too much, too soon? do they need more time to transition to this newness of diet?
Also, my neighborhood has raccoons and rats. I can't be sure that they haven't urinated or defecated in my yard. I let the rabbits free range all over. Will this be a problem for my breeders and meat rabbits?

I've seen blips about going totally non-commercial pellet diet. Cool! I have a great garden with early and late season harvests. Also, I live in Western WA where the green goes on forever! How possible is this to raise good hearty rabbits on a bunny salad diet?

I'd slow down a bit, Dandee. Sudden changes of any type in a rabbit's diet can be stressful and lead to GI problems. Be careful especially with the brassicas (cabbage, broccoli etc.) because they can cause gas.

It is certainly possible to raise rabbits without commercial pellets, but it is not something to jump into suddenly. I allow about six weeks for a complete transition... and rabbits do need more than just greens. I feed mine an alfalfa/grass hay free choice along with a small amount of whole grain and lots of green weeds and leaves. I don't know if you have noticed yet, but we have a board just for Natural Feeding and you will find a lot of information there. Another good source is information is on the Homesteading Today rabbit forum, in the "sticky" threads at the top of the page. Many of us were members there before RabbitTalk was set up and there is a lot of information you will find useful. It's a good forum too. Lots more reading for you!

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/forumdisplay.php?f=14

What do you look for in GI problems?

I've just given them the bits of fresh greens a few times throughout the day while they are freegrazing/hanging out in pens. Should I not allow them to be in the yard all day like I have been?

Their poop looks good, to me. looks like healthy rabbit poop. They don't look bloated.

In fact they are bonding with me nicely and seem very comfortable. Cleaning, and stretching and yawning and coming to see me. One of them takes the greens from my hand.

If their poops look fine, then they are doing okay. It was a little hard to judge the quantities of greens you were giving them in addition to grazing. I tend to err on the side of caution. Giving them some hay as well is good insurance against problems.

You may notice the rabbit sitting huddled and being unsociable like they're sulking if the rabbit has a blockage. It won't want to eat and may stop drinking as well. Poopy butt is the most definite sign of diarrhea. You may literally have to look under the rabbit's tail to see it because many times their furry little backsides hide it well and there will be smears of poop stuck to the fur below.

do the flemish giants have hard perfectly round poos like other rabbits?

I just got a buck who's poos look exactly like blackberries! somewhat soft like a blackberry, too.

He also has bad hair loss and flaking on his neck.

You may be seeing the cecal droppings, Dee. They are softer and often look like chocolate-covered raisins that are kind of together. These are the "night dropping" that a rabbit normally consumes straight from the anus. Sometimes they don't eat them and those are the times you will see them in the cage and wonder if something is wrong. They are perfectly normal, if that is what you are seeing. An obese rabbit may have trouble reaching down to eat them. If this is happening all the time, you may want to reassess the rabbit's diet.

The hair loss and flaking sound like fur mites. Isolate him if you can until you sort it out.

fur mites? the breeder assured me it wasn't that. she says it's from him rubbing on his water bottle. but, from my own common sense, it doesn't seem like just that.
oh man, isolate him?
He's been in the run alot in the yard. I just got him yesterday. I've had other rabbits in the run after him. will that be a problem?

how far do I isolate? he is not adjacent to any cages but within a few feet of another cage. All outdoors.
how do i treat the mites? can they get on me? I've been loving him up alot. then I handle the other rabbits a little, too.

Hmmmm... did a little more reading and apparently they can get on people but are not usually a real problem. Here's a link for you. I don't know dosages for the meds, but I'm sure others will be happy to help you out. Or check other threads on the subject... I'm pretty sure there have been some.

http://www.threelittleladiesrabbitry.com/furmites.php

MaggieJ":2cilg6e0 said:

You may be seeing the cecal droppings, Dee. They are softer and often look like chocolate-covered raisins that are kind of together. These are the "night dropping" that a rabbit normally consumes straight from the anus. Sometimes they don't eat them and those are the times you will see them in the cage and wonder if something is wrong. They are perfectly normal, if that is what you are seeing. An obese rabbit may have trouble reaching down to eat them. If this is happening all the time, you may want to reassess the rabbit's diet.

The hair loss and flaking sound like fur mites. Isolate him if you can until you sort it out.

Click to expand...

interesting about the cecal droppings. I had seen you guys mention that and I had written myself a note to look it up but hadn't, yet, lol.
They were eaten. he had one stuck to his butt, but it got eaten. How interesting!

It does sound like fur mites. Not saying for sure that's what it is, but I've dealt with it on our rabbits (thank goodness I had only two at the time!). If the fur loss is in a "V" shape from the back of his neck to his back, then it is for sure fur mites. If it isn't in that shape, that doesn't mean that it is not fur mites, though.

This is what I have used myself: http://www.jeffersequine.com/ssc/product.asp?pf_id=00010

You put a pea-sized bit of it on the end of a popsicle stick. If it's a small rabbit, use a smaller pea size; if it's a large rabbit, use a larger pea size. :lol: If you know how, you can then put the rabbit on its back in a hypnotized state, and then quickly smear the paste on its mouth. The rabbit may not like the taste, but it dislikes the feeling of the medicine on its lips worse, so it will lick the paste off and get the dose. Some people smear it on the inside of a front leg, but I was concerned that it might get smeared on the rabbit's face that way.

You dose again in 10 days, and again 10 days after that. You must do all three treatments in order to affect all the mites on the rabbit, including the ones that haven't hatched when you do the first treatment.

You will need to watch the rest of your rabbits, since fur mites can spread rapidly through a rabbitry... you may need to treat all your rabbits. I would imagine that if they have been romping in the run after him, they could pick them up there as well. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!

You can also use food-grade Diatomaceous Earth for fur mites. It's like flour. You work it into the fur all over their bodies, being careful to avoid the eyes. You treat every 5-7 days for a month or so. Can't remember for sure. I was using it, and it was working, but then something happened and I didn't finish the course. The mites returned.

Others use injectible ivermectin, which gets injected subcutaneously at a certain amount per pound of rabbit, or can be given orally as well, at a certain amount per pound of rabbit.