Rabbits not wanting to eat new food.

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

So, a few days ago I switched my rabbits food (a crappy walmart brand with lots of dust that would settle at the bottom of their bowls and get into their noses and make them sneeze as they ate) to a brand which I've heard people swear by (Manna Pro).

Well, the picky little booger brains aren't wanting to eat it :evil: I've been mixing what was left of their old food (which I'm almost out of) with the new food as I've been told to do and they actually sort through it, eat the old pellets and leave the Manna Pro :| Although the buck, Hoodie seems to be getting used to it (he barely eats as it is lol) but the doe, Elvira, who loves anything edible, will hardly touch it, I've tried mixed other things that they like to eat as well, like peanuts and sunflower seeds, but nothing doing. Btw I don't give them peanuts or sunflower seeds every day, they get them maybe twice a week.

I've been giving them both grass in the mean time and Elvira eats the grass like she's starving Luckily she's not nursing or pregnant right now, so I'm not toooo worried about her not eating a lot but I don't want her to starve either.

I've never had picky animals in my life lol, my dogs would eat anything you put in front of them and my cats are currently the same, rabbits are a new game to me, I mean how much different can pelleted Alfalfa taste anyway!? lol.

Is there anything else I can do to ease them over or should I just tough it out and when they get hungry enough, they'll suck it up and eat it?

 

[a7736100]

I would give them hay and grass and skip a day or two with the pellets before giving them the new stuff. I used to buy Small World feed from WalMart till I found cheaper 50 pound feed else where. If they are eating hay it's a good diet. Pellets are made to put on weight. Maybe the WalMart pellet has a sweetener to make them eat.

 

[MaggieJ]

If you're willing to risk making a bad situation worse, I have a suggestion to make. Get a spray bottle and some blackstrap molasses and make a very weak solution . . . say a tablespoonful of molasses to 16 oz. warm water. Keep it in the fridge (to prevent fermentation) and spritz the new pellets before feeding. Although blackstrap is sweet, it is also nutrient dense, and most rabbits love it. Only give them one feeding of this at a time because in summer temperatures the pellets could easily go mouldy from the moisture.

I suggest this only as a temporary measure. Once they have accepted the pellets, gradually reduce the amount of molasses water you put on them. I've often used blackstrap on a grain mix in winter to give the buns a boost in very cold weather.

:good-luck:

 

[akane]

The cheap pellets tend to have all sorts of sweeteners and salt in them to make them want to eat the pellets despite having lower quality in the important ingredients. In human terms you are sort of trying to go from cheeseburgers and ice cream to steak and milk. Rather than beg them to eat the pellets I just make sure they have some hay to keep fiber moving through them and wait it out. Eventually rabbits want a higher concentration of nutrients than they get in hay and they will forget what the old pellets tasted like. If you don't like feeding hay then slowly phase the hay back out so they eat more and more pellets until they reach a good daily amount. Of course make sure they don't hold out until they cause themselves health problems but it's rare I have any take it that far. If I have some breeding or who need more than hay but won't transition to my latest chosen pellet I give them plain old fashioned oatmeal. Lots of kcals and carbs but no salt or sugar. Most any pellets start to seem great when your diet gets so bland :