Whole Grains

Hi guys. I'm beginning to accumulate more animals now that I've moved to the country (no more truck bed colony! yay!) and have noticed all of the various pelleted feeds seem to have mostly the same main ingredients.

This is what I have readily available local to me, year-round and seasonally. I am working on formulas for my chickens and, soon, goats, so I would love some help formulating a mix for the rabbits.

Whole Oats
Barley
Timothy and/or Brome Hay
Alfalfa Hay, (or alfalfa pellets or cubes)
Beet Pulp
Kelp
Wheat
Peas
Potatoes
BOSS

That's year-round, local fare. I can also buy some things from the feed store in bulk. I can, of course, also get sweet feed, COB, corn, etc but didn't list that because I don't think it's something commonly used.

In the summer, I have unlimited access to lots and lots of great, nutritious weeds and greens and shrubs and trees which I am throwing in liberally. They love it.

I can also special order some things if I really need to, but I would like to keep it as local as possible.

Please keep in mind that the majority of my rabbits are kept in colony settings and so I like something on the high end of the spectrum, protein wise, because at any given time I could have nursing mothers, and all the rabbits exercise a lot, so I worry less about them getting fat.

Thanks!

You've got plenty to work with, Rachel, and should have no problem getting a feeding program you are happy with. If you have the space in your home, growing some grain grass and potting up some of the better weeds to give the buns a bit of fresh stuff in the winter is a good idea. The portions don't have to be large, but it really adds to their enjoyment and keeps their GI tracts used to fresh foods. You can also dry some of those abundant summer greens for winter feeding.

My rabbits get alfalfa/grass hay and whole grains in winter. Oats and barley are usually preferred for rabbits. Mine seem to prefer wheat for some reason. Hay is the main winter feed here. The grain is fed in small quantities - about 1/4 to 1/3 cup per rabbit per day. They don't seem to pig out on it and often don't even finish that. On natural feed, a trace mineral salt block is a good idea.

Peas may have to be soaked or cracked to make them acceptable, but they are a good source of protein.

I know SquashNut on HT has used beet pulp for her rabbits and I believe she was pleased with the results. It would be worthwhile for you to go to her profile and view the threads she has started to find the ones about how she formulated her feeding program. She put a lot of work into it!

BOSS is, of course, very popular with rabbits and should be especially good in your climate. Kelp I don't know much about, but it might supply some of their trace mineral needs.

Potaotes are acceptable as an emergency make-do substitute for grain, but they must be cooked and they must not be green. They were used in wartime Britain for rabbits when grain was not available, but I really don't recommend them as a regular feed.

Thanks! Good info. Will look up SquashNuts posts. For winter greens, I was planning on keeping a couple of trays of wheat grass or grain sprouts going for them. Seems like that may be easier and more reliable than potting up weeds? I'm also discovering Swiss chard excells indoors in containers, so that will be available too.

Chard is good in reasonable quantities. I like to pot up a dishpan with dandelions, sow thistle, plantain... they will keep throwing out leaves all winter with minimum care and it does add to the variety. But it is not essential.

I actually have some info on kelp if I can find it again. It was in relation to chickens...but the bottom line was that it's a perfect salt/mineral supplement. Filled with all kinds of goodness. use as a SALT ALTERNATIVE....so no mineral/salt spool needed.

Ok, so here's the other question:

If I'm just feeding oats, barley, wheat, a bit of kelp (or mineral block), should I offer free choice alfalfa hay or timothy hay, or rotate them? OR both?

The grains are only a small part of the rabbits' diet. They need lots of hay and they need the protein in the alfalfa hay. Alfalfa hay is not always pure alfalfa. If you are getting really high quality alfalfa they should have some timothy hay or grass hay as well for the fibre. If there is a fair bit of grass etc. in the alfalfa, then just feed that.