Options for a pellet free diet

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Toady

Toady

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Mar 11, 2013
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Mid North Coast, NSW
I am thinking of changing from feeding pellets due to the lack of choice and always changing availability and quality, at the moment I'm feeding my 2 girl (almost 7 months old and about 3.2 lbs) on a pellet with a sprinkling of chaff (chaff is what Australians call hay chop) and my fluffy boy has the same plus some BOSS and rolled oats for his fibre growth. I'll also be hopefully getting an English Angora in the next few months.

The pellets I have used are mainly for meat rabbits and lucerne/alfalfa based, the breakdown is - 16.5% protein, 3% fat, 21% fibre and 1% calcium.

I know of a lady who breeds English Angoras and Satins who feeds all hers on a feed known down here as 'Completo', I managed to find the ingredients and they're listed below:

Steam flaked barley, oats, concentrate pellet containing vitamins and trace minerals, lucerne/alfalfa chaff, oaten chaff, vegetable oil, lupins, molasses and salt. (Sweet Feed, yes?)

But the breakdown is 10% crude protein, 2.5% crude fat, 10% crude fibre and 1-1.25% calcium. If I was to use something like this how much BOSS would I have to add to boost the protein and would free availability of oaten/grass hay be enough fibre wise? Not to mention it's easier to get (lots of horse owners in the area) and cheaper than the pellets I'm buying now.

I have thought about a grain-feed mix but with only a few rabbits it would take forever to go through 20kg (44lb) bags of the grains and in this area they'd probably go mouldy or get bugs by the time I got through it. Any other suggestions for pellet free feeds?
 
Is it very humid where you are? That could indeed be an issue regarding mold. We only have 3 rabbits (for now ;)) but we're classed as "high desert" so it's very arid and therefore moisture is only a problem in that we don't get enough. I make a grain mix which is the base for what I feed both the rabbits and the chickens (we have 6 of them) It's 4 parts barley, 4 parts oats, 1 part BOSS and 1 part beet pulp. I get the 50 lb bags of each and then mix the parts into smaller, 5 gal buckets. The rabbits get the mix plus access to a salt/mineral block, as much grass hay as they want and a couple good handfuls of alfalfa hay each day. Plus lots of greens and fresh veggies. The chickens get the same feed but we also scatter cracked corn for scratch for them. They, too, get whatever greens and veg trimmings are available depending on the season. I also supplement their protein with things like cooked dried beans, yogurt, cheese and meat scraps.

Whatever grass hay you can get is good for them...they need that long fiber to keep the gut healthy. Alfalfa is an excellent source of protein for them; it's generally a large portion of what goes into the pellets. Is it available in your area?

We store the grain and hay in water tight plastic totes and barrels, and even though it gets hot in the summer, it all keeps very well...but then we don't have that humidity that can wreak havoc on things.
 
Mickey I am about 3-4 miles (as the crow flies) from the coast here, so it gets very humid, particularly in summer... two weeks ago we had our second flood for the year and there's more rain due (we've probably had over 2 feet of rain this year already, so we're over it) which is why I'm very cautious about buying big bags of anything, especially seeds. I live in town so storing several bags can be a problem too which is why I was thinking about going with a sweet feed, 1 bag filled with most things.

I'm also having issues sourcing greens due to the fact that the markets I was getting them from closed down and the things from our supermarkets I wouldn't feed myself (goes to mush in a few days) which is why I'm looking at the Fodder System as my attempt of a garden is waterlogged and the plants are growing.

Anyone used this feed for angoras/fibre rabbits?
 
You could feed an alfalfa hay based diet, if you can get decent alfalfa hay where you are. If you have a freezer, you could buy one bag of grain and store most of it there, just keeping out enough for a couple of weeks. You could use the same grain for your fodder growing. I realize you are in town, but if you have a good-sized lot them you could also feed healthy weeds. We have a whole forum for discussing natural feeding for rabbits and at the top of it is a list of plants I have found to be safe for rabbits. I don't know how much use that will be to you, since your are "down under" but it won't hurt to take a look.

One more point... If you are feeding a natural diet then you will need to provide a trace mineral salt block for your rabbits. I use the reddish brown ones for general livestock, but I believe some other people prefer the ones for goats.
 
Unfortunately Maggie both my freezer and yard are tiny, the only greens that seem to be growing at the moment is my foam box of chicory. We are limited down here and especially on the coast, those further west have a bigger range of grains etc. Thankfully my area has a lot of horses so hay sourcing is not too problematic.
 
If you can get good hay (alfalfa for the protein if possible) and one kind of grain plus the mineral block and sprouted fodder, you can go pelletless. Not trying to push it at you, just saying with good organization it is possible. I'm wondering if you have air conditioning to deal with the humidity. If so, you could store grain indoors in a plastic bin.
 
Sorry about the delay, air conditioning unfortunately isn't very effective in my house due to my open plan house (high ceilings etc). I went and brought some seeds for the forage experiment as well as some chicory seeds, reading up I've found that it has 18-22% protein, so daily feeding as a green should help with the extra protein my fluff ball will need.
 
Looking at the chicories you have over there I've got what's called 'Forage' Chicory, unfortunately my endive and radicchio have flopped due to the weather. This along with the fodder should keep them happy. I've also discovered that barley is not too common around here, so have to stick with the wheat and oats for my greens
 
Toady, look into silica dessicants for your grain storage. They sell large packets of it online, and it is reusable. Simply dry in the oven on low heat and then it will be ready to go.
 

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