Feeders and water - Meat Rabbits

[JOhn B]

I am looking for a J style feeder, but when I go to supplier's site, I see that there are many sizes. My plan is start with 1 buck, 2 does and 2 grow out cages. The breed is New Zealand White or Broken. Should I get a wider feeder for the grow out cage? or should they all be the same? What is an appropriate size for the breed?

Also, seems to be a big divide with water bottle and crocks/bowls. I plan on eventually putting together an gravity fed watering system, is there any potential issues moving a rabbit from a bowl to nipples? Also, I see that most bottles are clear which will create algae. Do they make non translucent bottles? I don't want to spend a lot of time washing bowls or bottle if I don't have too.

 

[MnCanary]

The bottles are clear so you can see the water level---a most important feature to make sure your rabbits have water. Your rabbits should be in shade, which will help deter algae growth. A biofilm will develop inside the bottles in just a few days, and that is barely visible or not visible at all. The bottles need to be washed to removed the biofilm, and that alone will prevent algae growth.

 

[JOhn B]

The bottles are clear so you can see the water level---a most important feature to make sure your rabbits have water. Your rabbits should be in shade, which will help deter algae growth. A biofilm will develop inside the bottles in just a few days, and that is barely visible or not visible at all. The bottles need to be washed to removed the biofilm, and that alone will prevent algae growth.

Thanks @MnCanary Do you use flip top bottles? My thought are they would not hold up very well over time opening and closing every day.

 

[MnCanary]

Thanks @MnCanary Do you use flip top bottles? My thought are they would not hold up very well over time opening and closing every day.

I use bowls. I've read research that says rabbits drink more water if it is offered in a bowl, rather than a nipple or sipper tube. Bowls are perhaps a little more work, but a lot less worry about frozen or plugged up tubes.

 

[eco2pia]

I have used bottles for years and never had algae be a problem. they need to be refilled every day or two for a single rabbit, and twice a day for a mom with a litter. sometimes I use 2 or more bottles for big litters. I now have a gravity feed system hooked to a 55 gallon rain barrel. very nice, but in winter I drain the lines and switch to crocks. Luckily that is only a few weeks for me.

 

[eco2pia]

For J feeders I just get a standard 5-6 inch wide version, and fill it more often for more rabbits. you can always add a second feeder if you find that means you have to fill them too often. be sure to get the kind with a screen on the bottom of the J to filter out dust!

 

[JOhn B]

I use bowls. I've read research that says rabbits drink more water if it is offered in a bowl, rather than a nipple or sipper tube. Bowls are perhaps a little more work, but a lot less worry about frozen or plugged up tubes.

Yeah, I have heard about the frustration of frozen nipples. What king of bowls do you use? Do you have any issue with poop or getting tipped over?

 

[JOhn B]

I have used bottles for years and never had algae be a problem. they need to be refilled every day or two for a single rabbit, and twice a day for a mom with a litter. sometimes I use 2 or more bottles for big litters. I now have a gravity feed system hooked to a 55 gallon rain barrel. very nice, but in winter I drain the lines and switch to crocks. Luckily that is only a few weeks for me.

I live in Georgia so rarely do we get really cold winters. May have a few days of freezing, but nothing like in the north. Eventually I would like to set up a gravity fed system.

 

[jaxmarblebuns]

We use 5.5” feeders for our single Californians and 7.5” for our litters and does with kits. Fully filled with three+ rabbits per cage it lasts 1-2 days depending one the age and number of rabbits in the cage.

Whether a bottle get algae or not depend on your setup (if they are under cover or not.) and remember just because there is algae doesn’t mean it will cause problems. As for swapping from crocks to nipples, most rabbits won’t have a problem at all. If the rabbits is thirsty they will find water. Some people kind of show the rabbits that water comes out of the nipples at first just to make sure they know, but its not necessary

 

[JOhn B]

For J feeders I just get a standard 5-6 inch wide version, and fill it more often for more rabbits. you can always add a second feeder if you find that means you have to fill them too often. be sure to get the kind with a screen on the bottom of the J to filter out dust!

Thanks, this is what I thought about getting.

 

[JOhn B]

We use 5.5” feeders for our single Californians and 7.5” for our litters and does with kits. Fully filled with three+ rabbits per cage it lasts 1-2 days depending one the age and number of rabbits in the cage.

Whether a bottle get algae or not depend on your setup (if they are under cover or not.) and remember just because there is algae doesn’t mean it will cause problems. As for swapping from crocks to nipples, most rabbits won’t have a problem at all. If the rabbits is thirsty they will find water. Some people kind of show the rabbits that water comes out of the nipples at first just to make sure they know, but its not necessary

Thanks @jaxmarblebuns .

 

[jaxmarblebuns]

Thanks @jaxmarblebuns .

Also, make sure to get the feeders with the punched metal for sifting (like the one you already have pictured above) and not wire mesh, the wire mesh wears out extremely quickly.

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Thanks, this is what I thought about getting.View attachment 29592

I have a feeder like this, I'll try and remember to get a picture soon

 

[JOhn B]

Also, make sure to get the feeders with the punched metal for sifting (like the one you already have pictured above) and not wire mesh, the wire mesh wears out extremely quickly.

Yeah, that's what I heard about the mesh feeders. Thanks

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Here

 

[ladysown]

get punched steel traps rather than mesh if you can (they will last longer).
For meat rabbits, an 8-inch feeder will do you better than six inches for grow outs. more mouths at the table mean faster weight gain.

For grow outs you will need more than one bottle on the cage if you want to keep water in front of them.
if you are planning to add an automatic waterer, it's easiest just to switch them from bottles to nipples, but most rabbits make the switch just fine regardless.
for bowls, some bunnies will tip EVERYTHING regardless of the size so they need to be latched down somehow. I've seen holland lops flip huge water bowls, and have meat rabbits happily use a small bowl and never spill it.

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

I always use bottles for water and not bowls

At rabbit shows almost all of the water bowls I see are dirty with pellet dust or hay or something like that

 

[Jackrabbit]

EVERY ONE of my cages has a Pet Lodge J Feeder, Lixit 32oz No-Drip Water Bottle, Blue Bowl from Dollar Tree I’ll attach pix of the items I use that I found online!

 

[JOhn B]

get punched steel traps rather than mesh if you can (they will last longer).
For meat rabbits, an 8-inch feeder will do you better than six inches for grow outs. more mouths at the table mean faster weight gain.

For grow outs you will need more than one bottle on the cage if you want to keep water in front of them.
if you are planning to add an automatic waterer, it's easiest just to switch them from bottles to nipples, but most rabbits make the switch just fine regardless.
for bowls, some bunnies will tip EVERYTHING regardless of the size so they need to be latched down somehow. I've seen holland lops flip huge water bowls, and have meat rabbits happily use a small bowl and never spill it.

Thanks @ladysown. Did not think about extra water bottle for grow out. The j feeder that I am looking at has punched holes.

 

[KelleyBee]

I am looking for a J style feeder, but when I go to supplier's site, I see that there are many sizes. My plan is start with 1 buck, 2 does and 2 grow out cages. The breed is New Zealand White or Broken. Should I get a wider feeder for the grow out cage? or should they all be the same? What is an appropriate size for the breed?

Also, seems to be a big divide with water bottle and crocks/bowls. I plan on eventually putting together an gravity fed watering system, is there any potential issues moving a rabbit from a bowl to nipples? Also, I see that most bottles are clear which will create algae. Do they make non translucent bottles? I don't want to spend a lot of time washing bowls or bottle if I don't have too.

I just recently upgraded my J feeders for growouts to the wider ones. So, I’ve gone from a 4 inch wide feeder to a 12 inch wide feeder and I am so glad I did. If you can afford to get them from the beginning, go for it, I say.

Note: I did not cut open the cages to fit the feeders. Instead, I wire the feeders in. During my initial setup for my main breeder cages, I did cut holes to fit the 4 inch feeders. I will never do that again. Sure, by cutting the holes, the filling side of the J remains on the outside of the cage for ease of filling, but once that hole is cut, adjusting the location of the feeder is no longer an option unless you cover the original hole, etc. so, I will never cut holes again. Besides, opening the cages every time one feeds has more good attached to it than negative: opening the cage slows you down which means more time to assess the resident, to speak, to interact, to make sure all is well. The only positive to not having to open the cage each time we feed is time saving for the feeder. The time saved does not offset all of the benefits gained by the rabbit when you open the cage to feed each day.

I recommend water bottles, but to answer your question about transitioning rabbits from bowls to nipples, the best advice I received when I was faced with this transition is: rabbits can smell water, even in the bottles or in the lines of a watering system. When transitioning, the biggest mistake people make is leaving an easier drinking option in the cage, i.e., an open bowl or the steel ball nipple. The rabbit will always choose the easier course. If you provide the water in the nipple system, provide no other source of water and the rabbit will learn to use it due to not having another choice.

If you’re concerned about algea growth, you can do what I do in warm months: keep 2 bottles per cage, each day remove the first bottle and replace with a freshly filled second bottle, empty first bottle, keep first bottle lid open to air out and set empty first bottle indoors to completely dry out over the next 24 hours. The next day, replace second bottle with first bottle and air out second bottle as described. Do this rotation daily and you drastically reduce algae growth. It also gives you a daily opportunity to look into each bottle to inspect for issues. By following this system, last summer there were only abut 2 bottles that needed extra cleaning efforts.