Feeding question

daycaremom · Jul 23, 2011

At what age do you stop free feeding pellets and start pushing more hay?

ottersatin · Jul 23, 2011

I never push Hay!
I free-feed all Does with litters and weanlings
until they are placed in their own cage.
Then I feed on a one on one basis, some rabbits will require
more or less feed to reach senior weight, when they do they
will be placed on a rationed feed befitting their needs/requirements.
I do not necessarily go by age but also by weight. Though if I went by age
I would say to stop free-feeding when they reach the point where you
are most impressed with their fullness, fur density and type.
That would be when I would pay closer attention to
the feed amounts fed to each individual.
It is a personal call as you are the only one who knows
when to start or stop any feed regimen in your herd.
Ottersatin.

ldtimer:

abby_simson · Jul 25, 2011

my bun is still eating pellets for the support my bun don't eat more veggie
but he like hay.......

ottersatin · Jul 25, 2011

abby_simson":13l43bx4 said:
my bun is still eating pellets for the support my bun don't eat more veggie
but he like hay.......

That is fine! Everything a rabbit requires for proper nutritional
health is provided by a good quality pelleted rabbit feed, grass-hay and water.
Water being the most important part of the rabbits diet.
Everything else should be considered a treat and fed as such,
in limited quantities. Of course this is what works and has worked for me
since 1989. Others have differing opinions which is a fine thing.
I believe that there is more than one way to skin a Cat/feed a Rabbit!
What works for one does not always work for another. You must
experiment a little and find what works best for you and your charges.
Ottersatin.

ldtimer:

akane · Jul 25, 2011

We free feed hay and pellets from day 1 to all does and kits. They have hay and other foods to nibble on as soon as they leave the box. Generally rabbits seem fine at deciding how much of something they need when they are provided with all they want. We've only had one exception. When they are fed limited amounts then they tend to pig out when given more because they want to make sure to get all they can.