Semi natural feeding (free choice)

[Blakie83]

Hello everybody I hope everyone is doing well. I've been keeping rabbits for about 25 years a hobby that started with my grandmother when I was younger. She always picked grass for them and various leaves barely leaves and leaves from the garden and lettuce and endive wild dandelion Apple bark and so on... and when I was younger and we would buy rabbits from other breeders I used to be astounded to see these rabbits in metal cages with just hanging feeders of pellets and a bottle of water and a little bit of hay in a hay feeder hanger and that's it. I was actually astounded I felt like maybe the rabbits aren't happy but my friends who does the same said you know that fulfills the rabbit's need everything's in the pellets Etc which I do understand. I've had several different breeds over the 20 years starting with giant chinchilla then the colored New Zealands, neat mutts... my most recent one were standard racks I got a good line where they were good size like 13 lb the only thing I didn't like was the blowout of the fur coats it was just too much and messy. What I have now for the past year is a Continental Giant giant chinchilla mix that weigh about 15 lb but they're tortie color... I've kind of made my own breed... and the meat to Bone ratio is amazing. But the subject at hand is I follow the meth in my grandmother used to use I pick bushels of fresh grass clover romaine lettuce in the garden escarole blueberry leaves grape leaves Carrot Top arugula in quantity and they have pay available at all times... I also have a feeder which I have 16% rabbit pellets mixed in with boss and calf manna... sometimes they do eat the pellets but let me tell you they prefer the natural diet way more I don't have a problem with growth or anything I've never had blue issues ever and with the babies they start eating that type of stuff right off the bat and they've never had blow diarrhea or any problems ever... doing it this way in the spring summer and fall really stretches out the store bought food. Several breeder friends of mine just don't understand why you waste the time since theirms look the same and they have the same result but they don't do all the extra work. The only things I have noticed is that they complain a lot more from the rabbits getting sore Hawks blow their kits getting bloat. I don't know I just might be mean when I look at the rabbits they look like they have such a shiny coat from eating such a diverse diet I feel like it's enrichment for the animals as well. And it really isn't that much work I only have two females at the moment and one buck and I breathe two to three times a year. Perhaps that's why the other people don't feed a natural diet but I know other people who have a lot that feed a natural diet as well and they agree with me also. Do you guys also feel the same? Well

thank you for listening to me.
It would be nice to know if other people do the same as I do?

 

[hotzcatz]

When there's less than twenty rabbits here, we feed more forage than pellets. But, when there's more than two dozen rabbits and/or if things are busy at the time, it's a lot quicker to feed pellets. There's an automatic water system so we don't have to fuss with water bottles, that's helpful. And we do feed several days a week on pretty much all forage since they need roughage in their diet but it's a lot faster and easier (although more expensive) to feed pellets and hay. Not that we feed hay, it mildews too quickly and a small bale is over $40 around here, but with the fresh forage, they do well without the hay.

Usually forage consists of ti leaves, mulberry, elephant grass, Guinea grass and other assorted greenery from the yard. Ti, elephant and Guinea grass is easy to feed since it can be collected fairly easily and it's in large pieces. They also really like it and will eat it eagerly. There is a website: feedipedia.org/ which will give the nutritional value of a lot of common forages.

 

[judymac]

When there's less than twenty rabbits here, we feed more forage than pellets. But, when there's more than two dozen rabbits and/or if things are busy at the time, it's a lot quicker to feed pellets.

I think this is the key. Pellets are fast, gathering fresh greens takes time. It's a balance between convenience and taking the time to gather those fresh greens the rabbits prefer. For only a few rabbits, that bucket of greens doesn't have to take that much time if you have a handy supply of greens. For a barn-full, that's a different story. Weather can also be an issue, depending on where you live. But usually, it comes down to whether or not you have convenient greens available, and whether you have time to gather them. I had a friend that as a boy gathered a bushel basket of fresh greens for the rabbits every morning before school, it was part of the day's routine. The rabbits were healthy, produced well, no problems.

Here, the greens are usually dandelion and Plantago English or lance-leaf plaintain leaves, fresh timothy grass, mulberry leaves, slippery elm twigs. Apple twigs at pruning time.

 

[eco2pia]

I aspire to have enough time to gather greens consistently. I am working way too much.

But I will say I have 13lb monsters with no hock soreness or bloat on pellets--I built my cages with VERY sturdy floors because I knew I would have big rabbits. I think the cage flooring and genetics are a bigger issue than feed for hock soreness. I used to have problems with hocks in my NZ on normal cage floors. Now my bigger heavier American Chinchillas never have hock problems on my extra strong floors--I used big stainless steel bakery racks to hold the floors up, so there is zero sag to the floors and I think that has made all the difference. I can climb into my cages, and they support my weight without sagging.

 

[Heartbased Homestead]

Foraging is my preference for a small herd. Zero pellets. My goal when I grow my herd to a barn full of bunnies is to purchase a professional fodder system, fodder is sprouted seed/grain so that the entire nutrition is unlocked, and the benefits of greens are consistently guaranteed without having to forage and even throughout the winter. I also keep mine in a greenhouse and grow wheat around the edges so they always have access to little nibbles without having to forage. I've also heard that willow or other fast growing or nut trees are good forage material they can access independently without destroying the whole plant. It's so good to read of someone else doing the colony/no pellet and reading of your experiences with your grandmother made my heart warm. She sounds like a treasure. Thanks for the enriching post

 

[Zee-Man]

I only have a few rabbits. In winter months pellets and hay are the mainstay, since greens are done. Spring through autumn its forage unless my schedule is interrupted. They relish the forage but still have a preference for pellets.

Wild roses, ragweed, mulberry shoots are fairly easy. Plantago and dandelion usually get in there but this year drought reduced their proliferation. This year I am experimenting with Sudex grass. The rabbits like it well, but they get bored with it easily.

All that aside, I can't imagine foraging for many more rabbits. Any more than a single litter and I would be swamped and wholly reliant on pellets and hay.

 

[HTAcres]

I have had an objective to feed my rabbits entirely off my own place. But that will have to wait now until we move (Texas to Georgia).
Being in west Texas, I've had the most luck with tree hay - willows and mulberry that I micro-irrigate - and edible weeds. But this summer even with irrigation my poor willows are struggling. I have 32 cages. It is somewhat of an enterprise to do the foraging. Not just from collecting but with cages, you also have to put in each cage. We have that virus here as well as predators and just no good way to do colony style. I do feed a lot of hay and mine always go for it first over pellets except for just a couple of them.
I haven't given up on it, it is a dream postponed for now.

 

[eco2pia]

I have had an objective to feed my rabbits entirely off my own place. But that will have to wait now until we move (Texas to Georgia).
Being in west Texas, I've had the most luck with tree hay - willows and mulberry that I micro-irrigate - and edible weeds. But this summer even with irrigation my poor willows are struggling. I have 32 cages. It is somewhat of an enterprise to do the foraging. Not just from collecting but with cages, you also have to put in each cage. We have that virus here as well as predators and just no good way to do colony style. I do feed a lot of hay and mine always go for it first over pellets except for just a couple of them.
I haven't given up on it, it is a dream postponed for now.

32! I would never make it!

 

[HTAcres]

32! I would never make it!

It is a lot of work at times.
AND my set up uses trays.
I know, I was a noobie.
When we move, no more trays!!!