Rabbit not eating cecotropes - should I limit greens?

[bantambunnies]

Hi! I'm new here, but I've raised rabbits for several years.

One of my Holland Lops suddenly stopped eating her cecotropes a few months ago, when she was nursing a young litter. At that time her diet consisted almost entirely of unlimited pellets. She was in the house at the time and made a big, stinky mess on the bathroom floor. Her kits got dirty, too. Otherwise her health seemed normal.
I started feeding Timothy hay right away, but I kept her on unlimited pellets for her litter's sake. She seemed to improve a little, but I was still seeing lots of uneaten and smashed cecotropes.
Now that she no longer has bunnies with her, I was able to cut down a lot on her pellets. Now she is getting about 1/8 cup pellets daily, plus lots of Timothy hay. I also give her some greens every day (usually plantain leaves, which grow right around her hutch, as well as dandelion, clover, etc.)
I've noticed that the floor of her hutch has become much cleaner, although there are many "strings of pearls" clinging to the wire.

I have two questions:
1) Should I limit her greens greatly, too? She can finish her daily pellets and her handful of greens in about 10 minutes, then wants more. Of course, she gets unlimited hay, but should I be feeding more or less greens?
2) Are the "strings of pearls" - droppings strung on lengths of fur - happening just because she's getting her summer coat in? Would it help if I gave her papaya enzyme tablets?

 

[Marinea]

Welcome to RT, Bantambunnies!

I noticed the same thing when my does had their last litters. I noticed improvement when I cut back on the greens some and added some rolled oats. When it got better, I slowly upped the greens back up and all is fine now.

The "strings of pearls" may indeed be linked to a coat change. Papaya wouldn't hurt. I give mine some dried pineapple.

By the way, if we are giving you advice on your bun, it is practically a rule that we need to see a pic of said bun.

 

[bantambunnies]

Haha... thank you!

Okay - hoping it was just due to the unlimited feed. I'm still holding back on her greens more than with the others, but since she's doing pretty well I think I can add some more now. I'll probably actually be cutting back on the pellets for the rest of the rabbits, as well - my rule is that if a healthy rabbit isn't interested in the pellets when first served, it's time to feed less.

I may buy some papaya tablets just to have on hand, even though none of my rabbits are wooly.

Alright... here's a picture (hmm, if it works):

 

[Marinea]

Riley is adorable! Glad she is doing better.

 

[bantambunnies]

Thanks!