Progress!! AND, how much hay will we need??

[Comet007]

Hello all and happy Monday! The last day of my regular weekend, and tomorrow it's back to work.

DH & DS really made a ton of progress this weekend! I thought that they would just get the rabbitry site cleared and leveled and the materials purchased, but they've done so much more than that! We've had off and on sunshine, spitting rain and great gusts of wind. It's so nice outside that I forget it's only mid-February!! We are blessed to have a mild winter here this year, otherwise undertaking this project in February might have been difficult.

Well, they got all that done, plus the worm beds are framed in, the walls are up on three sides, and the roof is just about framed in! All that's left is a few of the cross supports in the roof, the corrugated roof panels, and the North wall, which will be hardware cloth and a screen door. Once all of that's done we will re-evaluate ventilation and cut any openings and put hardware cloth over them. I'm thinking we will have some safe, comfy and happy rabbits in there, and right now it smells SO good because of the cedar boards and freshly dug dirt!

I am putting together my "sundries" shopping list - all the cage accessories, feed, healthcare, etc. I think I finally found a source for organic hay - but not until the new crop this year! We will be able to get transitional hay at the co-op, though, so we will start with that.

My question - we will be giving free-feed hay to our little herd of three rabbits. How much hay should we buy? One 65 pound bale? Two? I don't want to buy more than we need to get us through until we can get some organic hay, but it's 2 1/2 hours round trip to the co-op where we will be getting our pellets, hay and many other supplies, so we don't want to be running down there every two weeks!

I'm planning to get two 50 pound bags of pellets. By my calculations that will last us about 2 1/2 - 3 months with three buns. Does that sound right? The buck is already 7 months old and pretty big - the two does will only be 3 months old when we get them, but I think I understand that you feed them at the weight they will end up? So if they will eventually be 10 pounds you feed them 10 oz of pellets a day? Is that right, or do you feed them to the next pound up - as in, if they weigh 6 pounds you feed them like they are 7, so 7 oz per day? I think I've read that pellets should be fresh, no more than 90 days, so I just want to buy enough to get us to 2 1/2-3 months on the pellets.

Thanks!

 

[Dood]

Ounce per pound is a guideline - my 11 pound buck gets 4 oz pellets (less than my Mini Lops) and is free fed grass hay. I'd start your buck at 8oz and cut back as needed, because the weather is mild and he won't be "working" until the girls are of age.

You need to figure out when the first cut of hay is harvested by your supplier. If its an early spring you could get it sooner but a late spring and/or wet weather can delay the cut.

 

[Comet007]

Ok… but how much hay, estimated, will we go through each week/month? I know it's hard to say because some rabbits might like hay more than others. I just have NO idea how long a 65 pound bale of hay will last and whether I should get more than one. We are having a dry winter, so I'm guessing that hay might be early - we will be sure to ask at the co-op. It is run by volunteers, though, so chances are I might get someone who knows nothing about rabbits at all!

Do you know on the growing doe's, do I feed to their full grown weight, or to the current weight plus some extra? I know we can just put food in each evening and monitor how much they go through, but I'm looking for an estimate of whether we should buy two bags of pellets. If one bag is going to last two whole months then I might want to wait and go back for more pellets then, so the pellets are fresher.

Thanks?

 

[BlueMoods]

I have 1o rabbits I keep (not counting grow outs) all are 9-15 lbs each. I go through one 110 lb bale every 7-8 weeks if none is used for nesting, one bale per month if nesting and feeding. If you have a dry place to store 2 of the 65 lb bales, I'd get two. It will for sure last a month to six weeks or, longer and, that will let you judge how much to get on future trips. Just ask what the hay is (alfalfa, timothy, Bermuda, mixed grass, etc...) and, if they know nothing of rabbits or hay, just make sure it's horse hay.

Horses cannot have damp or moldy hay any more than rabbits can so, if it's horse hay, it is clean enough for rabbits. Cattle can eat lesser quality hay just fine so, don't get that stuff.

Examine the hay, if you see white dust or black spots or areas on it, don't get it, that is mold.

 

[Dood]

I free feed my replacement does until 12 weeks then cage them individually and give 8 oz /day increasing or decreasing as needed.

Some rabbits have higher metabolisms and some slower (like my Flemish x) weather also plays a part in how much calories they need. You could ask the breeder how she feeds her replacement does.

I don't weigh my hay since it is free fed and I buy it by the 800lb roll rsther than bales since the horses cows and sheep also eat it so I cannot help in that area.

 

[Peach]

I don't really feed hay, but every once in a while, I pass it out before I strip the rabbitry to put down new shavings. I usually buy 1 bale and it last my herd a while for obvious reasons. It needs to be stored correctly or it will mold/go bad. When I pass out hay, I go through about 1- 1/2 flakes. Otherwise, just for nesting and that uses more Last me several months. When I'm not breeding, my herd of 30 usually goes through 1 50lb bag of feed a week. I remember when I had about 10 rabbits and it was a bag for like 2 1/2 weeks LOL With about 30 + babies now, I go through a LOT more feed. Think I go towards 75lbs-100lbs per week instead. I just stay ahead a months worth of feed (8+ bags), so I'm never feel behind or I know they will be fed if some unexpected expense comes up or I can't get to the feedstore for some emergency (Heard of people getting snowed in an unable to make it to the feed store; snow prevented us from traveling just last week, and the reserve came in handy!)

 

[Comet007]

I have 1o rabbits I keep (not counting grow outs) all are 9-15 lbs each. I go through one 110 lb bale every 7-8 weeks if none is used for nesting, one bale per month if nesting and feeding. If you have a dry place to store 2 of the 65 lb bales, I'd get two. It will for sure last a month to six weeks or, longer and, that will let you judge how much to get on future trips. Just ask what the hay is (alfalfa, timothy, Bermuda, mixed grass, etc...) and, if they know nothing of rabbits or hay, just make sure it's horse hay.

Horses cannot have damp or moldy hay any more than rabbits can so, if it's horse hay, it is clean enough for rabbits. Cattle can eat lesser quality hay just fine so, don't get that stuff.

Examine the hay, if you see white dust or black spots or areas on it, don't get it, that is mold.

Good to be reminded to watch for mold - it sounds like they have it pretty well stored, but we'll be handling & smelling it for sure. The description on the website says that it is orchard grass, then the wording gets cut off lol. On the co-op blog they do talk about it being good for rabbits.

I keep forgetting that it's only February! So odd to be outside building yard projects this time of year. It sounds like two bales might last us 4 months with just the 3 rabbits, which probably gets us into the timeframe for this years hay. Four months also gets us close to when we might get our first litters, so hay use would start to go up shortly thereafter.

__________ Tue Feb 18, 2014 8:20 am __________

I don't really feed hay, but every once in a while, I pass it out before I strip the rabbitry to put down new shavings. I usually buy 1 bale and it last my herd a while for obvious reasons. It needs to be stored correctly or it will mold/go bad. When I pass out hay, I go through about 1- 1/2 flakes. Otherwise, just for nesting and that uses more Last me several months. When I'm not breeding, my herd of 30 usually goes through 1 50lb bag of feed a week. I remember when I had about 10 rabbits and it was a bag for like 2 1/2 weeks LOL With about 30 + babies now, I go through a LOT more feed. Think I go towards 75lbs-100lbs per week instead. I just stay ahead a months worth of feed (8+ bags), so I'm never feel behind or I know they will be fed if some unexpected expense comes up or I can't get to the feedstore for some emergency (Heard of people getting snowed in an unable to make it to the feed store; snow prevented us from traveling just last week, and the reserve came in handy!)

No hay? Now I'm confused, I thought that the rabbits need hay for proper digestion?

I found out that I can have the Modesto mill pellets shipped directly to us via UPS for about $2-3 more per bag, and it would get to us about a week after ordering. This is good to know, because the Seattle co-op is that 2 1/2 hour drive plus any time if we get stuck in traffic, and we do NOT always have time to fit that into our week! We will for sure need to get a handle on how fast we go through feed and plan ahead, as well as start keeping a combined calendar for everything that needs to be done. We are really cramming right now to get the rabbits in before starting on the garden set up. <br /><br /> __________ Tue Feb 18, 2014 8:23 am __________ <br /><br />

I free feed my replacement does until 12 weeks then cage them individually and give 8 oz /day increasing or decreasing as needed.

Some rabbits have higher metabolisms and some slower (like my Flemish x) weather also plays a part in how much calories they need. You could ask the breeder how she feeds her replacement does.

I don't weigh my hay since it is free fed and I buy it by the 800lb roll rsther than bales since the horses cows and sheep also eat it so I cannot help in that area.

Thanks - we will be starting with 12 week old does, so I will use that as my minimum end, I think. That is one big bale of hay!

 

[skysthelimit]

They say you need hay, some will say that the pellets will give all the fiber necessary and commercial operations don't feed hay daily.

Living in the city proper means hay is hard to come buy, and no vehicle means it's impossible. I rarely feed it anyway. I have gone months with without feeding any hay, even hay cubes. The woolers have not died of wool block yet. Basically it's wasted money for me to feed it, makes cleaning harder, makes great nest material for mice. It's one of those things, you have to decide what's best for your herd and stay with it.

 

[Comet007]

Well, something to think about! It seems like just about everything I read says that you should feed hay. But of course, the first ingredient on the pellets is alfalfa hay!

At least with the worm beds underneath our rabbit cages, any wasted hay will be utilized by our little red friends below!

 

[Zass]

I like feeding hay, but when I couldn't find good hay last year, we got by.

Hay is something nice that rabbits tend to really enjoy, and I can save some money supplementing my pellets with hay and oats(I've seen sites and even TSC say NOT to give oats to rabbits, but they are almost universally given on here, and also an ingredient in some pellets...lol) I watch weights closely though, for example, my buck rarely gets any oats just because he maintains fine without em..

If the rabbits run out of their brand of pellets I'd rather feed them grass hay, alfalfa cubes and oats for a few days than try a different pellet. I mean, sometimes they make the switch just fine...but sometimes someone loses 1/2 their herd and all their kits.

It's also been said that feeding the fryers hay can slow down their growth some. I give my fryers hay, and the chickens pick up what they drop. I'm more concerned about coats than weight though.

 

[BlueMoods]

Commercial breeders don't feed hay regularly except to breeders, but then anything not a breeder only has to make it a few weeks past weaning before it's killed or sold so, I can see that being alright for them, and economical. I prefer giving hay (or hay cubes if no good hay is to be had)

Orchard grass should be fine so long as it doesn't have mold.

I don't think it slows the growth of fryers so long as the are free fed entirely to at least 7 weeks of age, then tapered to a rationed pellet and free choice hay diet.

Sticking to the same pellets is more important that the same hay. Mine do fine with changes in hay, or cubes but, some of mine don't change pellets well at all. (refuse to eat them, get the runs, stop nursing kits, etc...) so yes, rabbits can be temperamental about pellets. Now a new rabbit coming in has no choice, they get what I feed, like it or not and, have to learn to like it if they think they don't like it. I won't custom feed any one rabbit, they all eat the same thing (fresh excepted since some can't have things others can have in my herd.)

 

[ZRab]

Judging on the amount of rabbits you have, I would have to say a bale would last 2 months.

 

[Comet007]

Thanks, everyone! I am planning to keep the litter with the Doe until processing time - hopefully at 10 weeks. It would be difficult to give to to her without the babies getting into it, too! It did look to me like the rabbits weren't really munching on the hay in their feeders when we were at the breeders. Pretty much all of them were just lounging. I didn't ask what kind of hay it was - maybe they just weren't eating because it was around noon and they like to eat more at night? She did only have a little hay feeder on each cage, I think 5" wide, and most of the cages had 3 or 4 rabbits in them, except the breeders who had their own cages.

I will get the two bales of hay - I'm happy enough with the transitional hay, I won't mind if it lasts longer and I will just switch to the organic if I can source it later. I am eyeballing the SW corner of our property - once we get the last of these hazard trees removed and have the stump grinding done, I think we will have about maybe 1/10th of an acre - not much but I bet we could broadcast some seed and get a nice mix for fresh eating at least a few months out of the year!

I am definitely going to stick with the one pellet brand. Other than the Modesto mill pellets, every single organic pellet that I've looked at, half of what's in them is listed as vitamin this or mineral that, which shows that they are synthetic and not naturally derived whole foods. What's up with that??

 

[BlueMoods]

You can do a rabbit greens patch totally free. In spring when they are just up enough to see what they are simply transplant clumps of clover and dandelions to the selected area. In a few weeks, you have fantastic rabbit greens ready for clipping.

I know what you mean drives me nuts too when it claims organic and is artificially fortified. Now I could see some nutrients, from natural sources but how does something produced in a lab qualify as organic? It's a chemical, same as a pesticide in my mind. That's why I don't go for the more costly organic food, just hormone and preservative free, synthetic vitamins are synthetic vitamins and, to me mean it isn't organic anyway.

 

[Comet007]

I keep forgetting - we found poisonous hemlock growing in the garden area last year. We don't think it's anywhere else, but we will have to hold off on any grazing animals until we know for sure that it has been eradicated - not until next year at least, so I have plenty of time to figure things out!