can rabbits eat laying pellets

[Horsewell]

My rabbit smudge (netherland dwarf rabbit) who is now 7 years old, has total free range of the entire back garden, including the chicken run, and loves to eat the chickens food, along with their corn and all the grass/plants, and shes 7! so it can't do any harm

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
Routine Preventive Medicine.
A lot of breeders believe that a recovered rabbit often don't perform like a rabbit that never got sick..
So the best thing to do is keep them from getting sick in the fist place. Just like people get the flue shot..

Chris

That kind of thing is what leads to antibiotic resistance. I don't know a single breeder who uses antibiotics this way.

Bob Bennett has right in his book:
that he uses sulfaquinoxaline- sodium once a week and Terramycin once a week out of the mounth and I know 4-5 other breeders tha do the same thing..

Chris

 

[chinbunny]

chris09, that is a whole grain conditioner mix. I used to feed it too. its to suppliment the feed, and is not meant to be part of the main course. I believe you are only supposed to feed about a tablespoon of that stuff at a time. Grains are OK when fed in limitted amounts. They can cause some severe GI problems if you give them too much of them. Plus they will reject their pellets, and eat the grain instead.

I never added the tetracyline to mine. couldn't find the pellets anywhere. Plus they generally do not need the anti-biotics if they are not sick. The thing is to breed for disease resistance. Not treat for it. I know a lot of breeders though the rabbit show circiut. Not very many use terramyacin, unless they have to.

As for hay. Grass hay, and alfalfa both work. Ther is no legit research nor proof that adult rabbits need grass hay, and young ones need alfalfa. Its just some misinformation the house rabbit society made up. Adults and babies will do just fine on either one.

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
No it says to feed it 3 parts rabbit pellets to 1 part grain mix..
I just read it agin..

 

[RabbitMage]

I am aware of Bob Bennett's body of work. His book was one of the first I read when I was thinking about getting rabbits. However, that does not change the fact it is not healthy or wise to use antibiotics on an animal that isn't ill, because this leads to antibiotic resistance. By using antibiotics like this not only are you risking resistance, but you're also killing off your rabbit's natural immunity and some of their gut flora. I wouldn't be shocked if after being raised this way, the rabbits would easily fall ill if you stopping giving them the antibiotics.

I'm headed down to Del Mar on Sunday, I can ask some of our breeders who are also doctors and see what they think, but most of the research I've seen backs up this opinion.

 

[Jennings Gamefowl]

thanks to all that replied .. i have since gotten some hay.... they only ate a little of the laying pellets so it shouldnt do them any harm

 

[RabbitMage]

Glad you picked up some hay!

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

This discussion is going to do nothing but confuse the heck out of the poor person who started this thread.

There are so many ways to feed rabbits. It all boils down to WHY you have rabbits?
People who have rabbits for pets can feed hay and rabbit pellets and do not have to worry about grains and supplements at all... Nor do they need to worry about preventive antibiotics if their rabbits are only staying home and sitting in their cages.

Now, people who have rabbits for showing and breeding- that's a whole 'nother ballgame and we not only deal with rabbit pellets and hay, but also various supplements for things like show bloom, breeding, etc. I also feed my rabbits various herbs for different things.

It can be as simple or complex as you'd like it to be.

I personally do not give my herd antibiotics for prevention and I show them and take them off the premises! I figure that for the most part, rabbit exhibitors are pretty responsible and won't be bringing a ill rabbit to a show.
Only once have I used an antibiotic for my herd as prevention and it was right after I had a very nice Jr. doe drop dead on me from very sudden onset snuffle/pnemonia after I let a farm visitor handle just that rabbit. She was fine one day, dead the next. I have VERY valuable rabbits, at that point I did dose my entire herd with PenG injections AND Terrimycin in their water for one day. No one else ever got sick.

I DO have a good friend, another french angora breeder, who routinely doses her herd of 70 rabbits with terrimycin once a month in their water for prevention. I won't be following suit even though she reccomended it.

*Also wanted to add that I practice extreme biosecurity now in my rabbitry. No visitors just because and I ask you if you have rabbits at home or have been around any. I also make people step in a pan of bleach to disinfect shoe bottoms, purell their hands, and wear an apron to keep my rabbits from contacting their clothing BEFORE they ever get near my barn.

 

[millebantam]

All a rabbit needs to thrive is a GOOD QUALITY pellet (not the cheapest bag at the feed store), fresh grassy hay (alfalfa is already in the quality pellet), a source of constant clean water, and adequate housing (dry and free from drafts). Any grain supplements should be fed carefully and in moderation, depending upon the duty of the rabbit, whether it be a kindling doe, meat production rabbit, or show rabbit. Today's modern milled pelleted feed has been engineered to provide complete nutrition.

As far as preventative antibiotics, it does more harm than good and is totally unneeded. Breeders have to understand that genetics is the most important factor in raising healthy, quality, rabbits. Any herd of rabbits that tends to get sick at the drop of a hat without constant treatment is genetically weak and should be culled from top to bottom.

I have raised rabbits on and off for the last 30 years. I showed rabbits seriously through the 90's, and would attend 30 to 35 regional shows a year, as well as the Nationals. I have had many rabbits place at the top of their classes at Nationals. My show rabbits were fed MannaPro 16% pellets, quality timothy hay, and about a tablespoon of whole oats or BOSS each daily. That's it. Kindling does, or does raising a litter would recieve a tablespoon or 2 of Calf Manna daily to help keep them from drawing down.

Very rarely, a rabbit would get sick, and would always be an isolated incident. The rabbit would be removed from the others and treated with injectable Galimycin. I would have to treat possibly one or 2 animals per year, and that is while operating a 175 hole rabbitry.

It often seems like people tend to overcomplicate things, and overlook the basics.