Pfau feeds out of business?

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imajpm

imajpm

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Dec 22, 2014
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N. Idaho Panhandle
I was just trying to look up a Pfau recall. My feed store had a shipment that had a problem with the binding. Pellets were full of fines, crumbly etc. She was giving it away free so I tried a bag and just sifted it and it wasn't too bad. But when I went looking for the actual recall all I found was an article from Oct 2014 saying the business was closing in one week. FB page is gone, can't find the website either so I guess it's true.

My rabbits eat fodder plus some pellets so any suggestions of a different brand, other than Purina which I will never use, would be appreciated. Thanks :)
 
I use Templeton, which is a regional feed milled at Templeton Feed in California. It is very affordable at only $11 per 50lbs.

Of the "brand name" products, I have used both Manna Pro and Purina Show Rabbit. I never had any problems with the Purina (very consistent product, at least in appearance), but I kept finding corn in the Manna Pro.

The nationwide brands are milled regionally, so there can be quite a variation in quality of the pellets- as in my finding corn in the Manna Pro.

If you can, try to contact other breeders in your area (the best way to do this is to attend a show) and ask if there is a local mill that they buy from. Their prices are usually much more affordable.
 
I tried upgrading my feed from Prime Quality to Manna Pro, and a couple of my rabbits couldn't handle the Manna Pro well -- soft poops that stuck to the wire. I just switched from that to Purina Complete (which I used a few years ago), and they seem to be handling it just fine. It has a better ingredients list than Prime Quality.

The cheapest feed around here is Country Acres at $13.50.
 
I'm on the opposite side of the country from MSD, and I had to switch off manna pro because I kept finding corn in it, and sometimes even mold. :cry:

I had all kinds of digestive problems on every kind of manna pro. For all I know, the mold might have been caused by shipping and storage, but...if I'm paying $21+ a bag for their Sho feed, it needs to not surprise me with corn. :evil:
I really dislike purina corporation for some of the the poor quality feeds they produce for cats, but...
The purina complete for rabbits IS really consistent. I turned to it after trying every other available feed (aside from the bottom dollar stuff with animal fat and no dedicated formula.)

Mortality rates among my meat kits have actually dropped to near zero since starting on it last spring. Not one enteritis or digestive problem based death from them. I give them good hay and forage, garden scraps when we have then, and boss to nursing does and oats to kits.

My biggest problem with the purina is that it can really pack the fat on. So the goal is to minimize how much of that they get...
 
Hmmm... I'll have to notice whether there's a fat issue with my new stock on the Purina Complete. I didn't have trouble with it before.
 
Oh boy. I don't think there is a mill close enough to me to warrant the drive for a few bags of pellets per month. I'll have to check my feed store and trial and error I suppose.

I have not used Purina for many years due to the recalls and ingredients. I did forget about that and tried some cat food last year when I put my cats on a diet and one of my cats lasted 3 days before she began to vomit EVERYWHERE. She got very sick on Purina and I pulled it right away. She was back to normal in two days. I just don't trust them :(

My rabbits eat mostly fodder but I do want to keep pellets in their diets for the sale litters as most people in my area feed pellets. The last thing I want is to sell young rabbits and have them have problems with sudden food changes. Thanks for the suggestions :) I will look and see if any of those foods can be found in my area. I'm in Northern Idaho and it's pretty darn rural!
 
I agree with you and Zass that Purina is suspect when it comes to dog and cat food, but their rabbit feed seems to be pretty safe. I know that many show breeders use it- in fact that is what my original stock was on when I bought them.

imajpm":14dj84og said:
I do want to keep pellets in their diets for the sale litters as most people in my area feed pellets.
Click to expand...

If you are selling "pet" rabbits, they will likely switch them over to another brand in any case. The "good" pellets are usually only available in 50lb bags, whereas those sold in smaller quantities have lots of added dried fruit and carrots and so forth. :(

imajpm":14dj84og said:
I don't think there is a mill close enough to me to warrant the drive for a few bags of pellets per month.
Click to expand...

Contact your local rabbit club- they may have a buying co-op.

I live an hour away from Bakersfield- which is the nearest large town- and Bakersfield itself is about two and a half hours away from the Templeton mill. One of the club members makes the drive and picks up a ton or two at a time and resells it for $13 a bag. I personally don't buy from him because my "rabbit partner" and I buy a ton each (80 bags total) at a time.

The nice thing about the local mills, at least in my experience, is that the food is very fresh, milled within days of purchase. This means that you can buy enough at a time to last you a couple of months without significant nutrient loss in storage.
 
Looks like there may be a mill about an hour away so I'll go check them out. Doesn't look like they produce rabbit food but they have bulk whole barley as well so it should be worth the trip. I'll ask in the N.ID rabbit breeder group and see what they say.

I know people will likely use different brands of pellets. I am just not sure how a young rabbit would transition from 100% fodder/hay to straight pellets. I don't know if any of the rabbits end up as pets. I raise meat rabbits and Angora's. I always give a bag of pellets for transitioning to whatever brand they are using though I am not sure that is entirely necessary. I do it anyway as I don't really want a rep as a breeder whose buns promptly get the runs when they move!
 
At least in a lot of places, WalMart sells "Small World", which is made by Manna Pro. You might be able to use that.

Even a consistent feed, if kept poorly, will spoil. I know some have had trouble with Purina rabbit food, but every bag of it I've gotten in this area, no matter what store, has been dry and fresh.

It is very good to provide a bag of pellets for transitioning. Some rabbits can be switched cold, but enough rabbits can't make the switch like that without consequences that it's good to transition them anyway. When I haven't had pellets to transition with, I've used oats -- regular rolled kitchen oats, whole oats, or whatever in between.
 
Ok thank you Miss M.

There's a debate going on in the N. ID group now about whether or not pfaus has really closed *sighs* All I know is thier FB page is gone, I can't find their website, and that there was an article I found from Oct that stated they were closing their doors in one week's time. We'll see! i jsut need soemthing decent. It's not their main food source anymore :)
 

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