how much to feed rabbits?

[ohiogoatgirl]

i'm not sure exactly how to ask this...
i am feeding all of my rabbits pellets (free feed does and kits, keep an eye on bucks to make sure they aint gettin fat) and free feed hay. right now the hay is second cutting from last year. pretty good stuff.

i have been cutting grass for all of them since the weather has warmed up and the grass is growin fast now. i just made a new cage and will be using it as a rabbit tractor sort of until i need to hang it up when seperating the does/bucks. i will be putting them out for a little while at a time in that. rotating them of course. but that will only be while i am out there and can watch it. it being a cage and not a rabbit-tractor i dont trust it completely with the cats and possible loose neighbors dogs.

right now i have been givin about two big fistfuls of grass (i mean like pick it up and grass is like setting on the fistfuls, big big fistfuls) for each cage. so that much for each adult. and that much in each growout cage. one has two (maybe rex)weaned rabbits. one has four about 9 wk old dutch rabbits.

i will have to get some pics of the grass areas i have been cuttin for them.
but about how much grass is about right for them to be eating?
and i have some radish seedlings that i started in my windowsill. they all have their first leaves and are beginning to get another leaf. could/should i feed a few of these as treats maybe? or should i grow them up and feed them then?
thanks! :bunnyhop:

 

[AnnClaire]

LOL as long as they are getting hay along with the greens, and your greens are a variety of grasses and weeds, and you started them out with smaller portions and built up from there, then I don't think you are going to feed them too much. I would suggest that you still want to be sure that they still have pellets to eat, and I have also noticed with the increase of fresh greens my bunnies are getting, they are also working on the mineral blocks too. Not so much like in the heat of the summer, but I still see new gnaw marks, or a bit more to a hollow that is started.

 

[MaggieJ]

If what you've been doing has not caused a problem up to now, I think you can assume the rabbits can handle it. Just gradually increase it from there if you want to. If you need to thin your radish seedlings, by all means offer them to your buns. Otherwise you may as well wait, eat the radishes yourself and give the mature tops to the rabbits.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

thanks. they seem to be good with it so far. i have started them with a few pinches of grass per rabbit then up-ed it a bit each day. they dont always seem to like it. sometimes they will have all the grass eaten lickety-split then another day they will nibble at it but not really seem to eat much.

there are several kinds of grass and i have been trying to get the different kinds.
i also have some that i'm not sure what they are. i need to get some pics and put em up on here to see if they are okay to feed. would be great if they are because the two i'm thinking of there are tons and tons right now.

 

[AnnClaire]

LOL - I have a plastic grocery bag full of other bags in my truck so if I am driving around and find a stand of really varied weeds, I will stop and harvest a couple of bags just to give my buns a variety to choose from ... and folks think it is hilarious when I am asking permission to pull some weeds :lol:

I also find they go through phases of wanting fresh greens, then they want hay, then they want pellets, then they want oats, etc.