Yogurt

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Mickey328

Mickey328

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Apologies if this has been addressed, but I couldn't find anything...would it be okay to feed my buns a bit of yogurt, or would there be digestive issues from the lactic acid?<br /><br />__________ Sun Feb 24, 2013 6:39 pm __________<br /><br />Anyone?
 
Dairy is not a natural part of a rabbits diet so I wouldn't, there are safer treats you can give them.

From http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html
E. Lactobacillus acidophilus

is not normally a member of the rabbit's intestinal ecosystem, but we have noticed that a good dose of dried Lactobacillus powder (available at health food stores in powder or capsules) seems to help the rabbit survive the crisis until the intestine starts moving again. No one knows why (and some would disagree), but it seems to help. It certainly does not hurt. Use non-dairy powder--NOT yogurt. The milk sugars and carbohydrates in yogurt may promote growth of harmful bacteria.
Probiotic pastes such as Benebac are available at feed stores, and also might be helpful. Products designed for horses are generally safe and possibly effective for rabbits.
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From http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_disease ... ogurt.html

Yogurt or dairy products should never be fed to rabbits, for the following reasons:

· Lactobacillus/Acidobacillus are not a natural host of the adult rabbit intestinal and, if surviving the passage through the acid stomach, it will not survive the anaerobic conditions of the cecum. The lack of adhesive capability may further prevent Lactobacilli from colonizing in the intestinal tract.

· Adult rabbits naturally do not have the right bacteria to digest milk derivates in the cecum and intestine.

· In the absence of those Lactobacteria, milk derivates accelerate the onset of stasis in adult rabbits.

Studies have furthermore shown that rabbits that were given cow’s milk on a daily basis during several months evidenced the development of rheumatoid like lesions. These rabbits showed increased numbers of nucleated cells and raised percentages of T lymphocytes in their synovial fluids, compared to control rabbits, and their elevation corresponded with the severity of the histological lesions. No glomerulonephritis was observed.

Yogurt diluted in water can nevertheless help rabbit suffering from intestinal bacterial disturbances et diarrhea, by protecting the endemic bacterial flora and allowing it to grow.

Yogurt drops as treats ? Those should never be given to rabbits. They contain too much sugars, and can lead to tooth decay (observed in rabbits too).
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Like everything else about rabbits there is conflicting information. When I was younger my grandad would give sick rabbits whey and yogurt in small amounts. When I decided to get back into rabbits I saw yogurt bites on the shelf labeled for rabbits. We make our own yogurt so I made some yogurt bites for my rabbits when they were stressed with soft poop. They did not get much but it did help. Many "old timers" gave it for its digestive properties. But then, fermented foods are also in great controversy. Well to be honest, most natural food sources seem to be controversial.

Not sure if that helps at all.....but had I seen respected members post about how it was not good for rabbits i would never have tried it.
 
dusting off this thread... i'm wondering if yogurt could be helpful to young rabbits? like creep feed it to them. they still have the stomache for milk cause they are babies. i was thinkin under 8wks. still a no-go because of the other bacterias?
just curious...
 
Active culture yogurt is sometimes fed in small amounts to rabbits experiencing weaning enteropathy and other gastrointestinal issues, in the hope that it will help stop the downward spiral of mucous diarrhea and such. It has worked for many.

If the rabbit is experiencing no distress, I would not feed it. It is better to have rabbits that transition well, than to have rabbits that transition poorly and need yogurt or probiotics to make it through.

I have never heard of it being fed as a treat, except to a house bunny who seemed to think that yogurt was the best thing ever... and seemed to suffer no ill effects from it. But still... as was stated above, the cultures in it actually are not the same ones naturally present in a rabbit, and they aren't designed to process cow's milk. I would not use it except as emergency treatment for gastrointestinal issues.

Goat's milk can be processed by rabbits much better than cow's milk. Goat's milk yogurt might be more helpful for a rabbit having issues than regular yogurt. It's not the bacteria that make cow's milk hard for rabbits to process, I think it's the sugars and/or proteins.
 

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