Can grass be fattening?

[squidpop]

I want one of my does to lose weight. I've cut her pellets back to... almost nothing, just 6 to 8 pellets a day. She has all the hay she wants. But she is also in a large 12 foot by 24 foot outside pen and there is lots of grass growing in there. Do you think she will just keep herself fat by eating the grass? I always thought grass was low calorie for them but I just read an article about horses and it said horses can get fat from eating too much grass, and sometimes to lose weight they take them off of the grass pastures. So do rabbits get fat from eating too much grass? Will I need to take her out of her pen off the grass to get her to lose weight?

 

[Dood]

Short, fresh grass has a lot more calories than hay because hay is cut when the grass is more mature and full of complex carbohydrates and undigestible fibre (called lignin)

Plus there could be weeds higher in protein and lipids in your lawn that the rabbit nibbles on, without killing the plant, so it can have some every day

Your bunny will not loose weight if kept on the lawn.

 

[akane]

Depends somewhat on the grass. In the cooler, wetter areas of north america the grass is richer with more sugar. The genetics of some horses will let them get fat on just grass and some other things like clover that are often found in pastures. People in southern areas often claim our horses have metabolic problems because horses can't get fat on just pasture there.

 

[squidpop]

Well, I guess I need to take her out of her huge pen with all the grass and put her in a cage. Poor girl not only will she be on a diet but she will be in a cage as well, with no treats.

 

[ramblingrabbit]

I wish MY rabbits could get fat on just grass!

 

[JessiL]

I tend to keep most my champagnes on pasture so that they don't become fat! You have one heck of an easy keeper there!

 

[Dood]

Due to the conflicting advice I would like to clarify...

I agree that young kits often grow slower on grass/pasture - mainly do to the lower protein levels (however i have had quite a bit of success with growing rabbits on 70% white clover stand - unfortunately rampant coccidia eventually caused me to abandon the rabbit tractors ) and I also agree that you can maintain weight on resting does on pasture and they could eventually loose weight if not rotated to fresh greens, but I assume the OP would like a more rapid weight loss.

And

I still believe that a mature doe wont loose much weight if kept on pasture - you could put her on a "dry lot" with mostly dirt if you want her to have exercise or off grass completely