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Ran out of feed

896 views 21 replies 8 participants last post by  MaggieJ 
#1 ·
I ran out of rabbit pellets, but I have Wheat, Oats, Corn and Alfalfa pellets, can I mix these and feed the rabbits?
 
G
#2 ·
Alfalfa pellets alone or a mixture of alfalfa and oats will work very well.

I wouldn't give the wheat and corn because they are heavy for rabbits (a very small amount would be ok), and the wheat can gum up in their intestinal tracts.
 
#3 ·
Next time you see this happening start mixing the new and old a few days ahead of time.
I would give the rabbits mostly the alfalpha pellets with a little of the the oats and wheat. If your regulat pellets had corn in them then some corn would be OK too. depending on if it's cracked or not.
My rabbits get some COB. Which is corn, oats and barley with mollasses on it and they don't waste any of it.
I would mix small batches, so if they don't eat any particular grain, you won't waste it.
I am still trying to figure out how much of the rabbit pellet is grain and how much is hay, so I don't have any idea of the proportions. And the loose mix won't have as much protien, because of the lack of soy or other pretein concentrate.
 
#5 ·
If you still have a label from the pellets, see what grains are in them. If not, I agree with SquashNut about giving them mainly alfalfa pellets with a bit of oats mixed in. The main thing is to avoid giving them something they are not accustomed to in large quantities. A slight nutritional insufficiency is not such a big deal for a couple of days, but you want to avoid giving them anything that may upset their GI system. If you have hay, give them lots of that. It will help.
 
#7 ·
Here is the ingredients from the feedmill website. The only thing I don't see in there is oats, but they have done good with oats before.

INGREDIENTS:
Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Wheat Shorts, Wheat Bran, Ground Corn, Soybean Meal, Calcium Carbonate, Salt, Dicalciun Phosphate, Vitamin A Supplement, D-Activated Animal Sterol (source of Vitamin D3), Vitamin E Supplement, DL-Methionine, Yucca Schidigera Plant Extract, Yeast Fermentation Solubles, Riboflavin Supplement, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Choline Chloride, Manganous Oxide, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Iron Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Copper Oxide, Cobalt Carbonate, Zinc Oxide and Potassium Iodide.
 
#8 ·
If you won't be able to get their usual pellets soon, you may as well make the transition now, I think. Assuming the pellets you are out of were alfalfa-based, I still think your best bet would be to feed mainly the alfalfa pellets with a small amount of oats and then gradually increase the amount of grain. If there are no problems after a number of days, add a second grain such as barley and so forth until the transition is completed. Hay, as I mentioned, is a great help to keeping rabbit GI tracts healthy. If you don't have it, even straw will give them much needed fibre. I can't comment on the sweet feed since I don't know what is in it. Blackstrap molasses in small quantities can be useful for the calcium, iron and other minerals and as an energy boost, but a little goes a long way.
 
#10 ·
Well, we all told you more or less the same thing, so I think they should be fine, especially as they will have lots of hay. Just keep an eye on their poops to make sure they are still producing lots of them and that they are normal. (Ever notice, with critters, that one spend a lot of time looking at poop? :p )
 
G
#11 ·
Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Wheat Shorts, Wheat Bran, Ground Corn, Soybean Meal, Calcium Carbonate, Salt, Dicalciun Phosphate, Vitamin A Supplement, D-Activated Animal Sterol (source of Vitamin D3), Vitamin E Supplement, DL-Methionine, Yucca Schidigera Plant Extract, Yeast Fermentation Solubles, Riboflavin Supplement, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Choline Chloride, Manganous Oxide, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Iron Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Copper Oxide, Cobalt Carbonate, Zinc Oxide and Potassium Iodide.
I don't know what brand that is but it looks like a good formula.

Notice that the first 3 ingredients (the majority of the formula), are high fiber ingredients.

The wheat shorts and bran have had most of the starch removed in processing.

If you feed whole wheat berries, be very careful to keep the amount small because they WILL gum up in the intestinal tract. A small amount is ok as long as there is ample fiber in the diet to keep things moving along.

You can test this by chewing a small fistful of wheat berries yourself and see what happens. :D
 
#12 ·
Since your feed has corn and wheat, I would use it. And your right oats never hurt a bunny.
If you decide to stop feeding pellets, be aware that you'll need a protein suplement to get the growth you are getting now. And you may need salt blocks, if you haven't been using them before.
I know with pellets salt blocks are a waste. They just don't need them and they collect hair and waste in my cages.
 
#14 ·
Only thing I can add is that sometimes the sweet feed, I assume its the molasses, can give buns soft stool for a bit, then they adjust and tighten back up. I feed sweet feed every winter to help keep them warm.
 
#15 ·
When I run out of feed....i just give them hay and a bit of rolled oats or Banana(one little slice) for now. But then again I only run out of feed for a day or two..so only one or two missed pellets...its not that hard on them.

Molasses, some rabbits LOVE it, others dont. I would only give them a bit at a time. It is full of sugar and well, you get the point.
 
#16 ·
Is the molasses in sweet feed blackstrap? I'd guess that it would be... and if so, most of the sugar has been removed. It's still sweet though, and I can see how it could cause problems in anything but small quantities. Nutrient dense too, however, and it definitely helps the fryers put on weight.
 
#18 ·
I just checked what I had bought for cooking here at home from the grocery store and it is called fancy molasses. Where would one find blackstrap molasses? I will have to google to see what the stuff is made from.
I get my molases from my local feed store. I wonder if yours would sell it to?
 
#19 ·
I just checked what I had bought for cooking here at home from the grocery store and it is called fancy molasses. Where would one find blackstrap molasses?
The TSC here has dried, powedered blackstrap molasses in bags. I've been wondering about mixing a little bit of it in with my home-made feed.
 
#20 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skip
I just checked what I had bought for cooking here at home from the grocery store and it is called fancy molasses. Where would one find blackstrap molasses?

The TSC here has dried, powedered blackstrap molasses in bags. I've been wondering about mixing a little bit of it in with my home-made feed.
trinityoaks, ive been thinking of making my own feed for a while now. What dose yours consist of??

Thanks,
 
#21 ·
trinityoaks, ive been thinking of making my own feed for a while now. What dose yours consist of??
Oh, I haven't started making it yet. Heck, I don't even have my buns yet! But I've been chatting with Maggie and others on another thread about making a home-made feed based on the recipe from the late Oren Reynolds. The thread is here:

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=284427

I'd love to have you jump in and give your ideas.

My personal goal in this is to be able to make a feed from ingredients that I can grow myself, if necessary. Like several others, I also like to know what's in the feed, and lower cost is always good.
 
#22 ·
I just checked what I had bought for cooking here at home from the grocery store and it is called fancy molasses. Where would one find blackstrap molasses? I will have to google to see what the stuff is made from. :confused:
You can buy blackstrap molasses at health food and bulk food stores as well as feed stores. I usually get mine at the BulkBarn. Unsulfurred is the preferred type, according to what I have read, but I don't really know why.

A couple of links:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=118

http://www.leaflady.org/black_molasses.htm
 
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