Is this normal rabbit poop

[townchicks]

A cecal poop is formed in the cecum area of the intestinal tract. The rabbits eat them as they come out, because they are full of needed intestinal bacteria that helps the rabbit digest high fiber. Like a probiotic, sort of. Usually they produce them once a day. All part of the digestive process.

 

[chickenmama109]

thanks everyone for the info

 

[Bunnylady]

Yep, normal cecotrope. The cecum in a rabbit is a dead-end pouch, found in the same place as the appendix in a human, but much, much larger. In a healthy rabbit, the cecum is loaded with beneficial bacteria.

Rabbits eat a coarse, high-fiber diet. Most animals that eat this kind of diet have to eat huge amounts to get the nutrients they need, and have large bodies to house the large digestive systems that are required to digest that sort of material.

As the rabbit's food passes through its digestive system, a certain amount gets directed into the cecum. There, the bacteria digest the food, and the end product of their digestion get pushed out of the cecum as grape-like cecal pellets. These pellets have significant amounts of easily absorbed vitamins, minerals, proteins, and other nutrients. The problem is, these nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine, and the cecum is located after that, attached to the large intestine. When the rabbit eats the cecotropes, it passes the material through its system a second time, and can then absorb the nutrients.

Normally, the rabbit will eat the cecotropes directly from the anus, and you won't ever see most of them (so the fact that the rabbit is in a wire cage has no effect on cecotrope consumption).

Though they are sometimes called "night feces," cecotropes are produced several times a day. As long as they are somewhat soft, mucus covered, and clumped together in clusters rather like grapes, all is well. What you DON'T want to see is gooey, sticky, soft, partially formed or unformed with bits of fiber clearly visible - that is abnormal, loose stools.

 

[Happy Novogens]

If you see an excess of uneaten cecal pellets (cecotropes) then that could mean that bunny is getting too rich of a diet. At 6-7 months of age, the pellet type should be switched from alfalfa-based to timothy-based. If you've been feeding alfalfa hay, that should also be transitioned to a grass hay (like timothy, orchard, brome, meadow, etc).

The following video shows a rabbit eating his cecal pellets. It may look familiar to you. This shows (yum,yum ) what it looks like when a rabbit does this.

 

[Bunnylady]

At 6-7 months of age, the pellet type should be switched from alfalfa-based to timothy-based.

I'm curious about where this idea comes from - the alfalfa-based feeds say "for all life stages" (as do a lot of the timothy-based ones). Since the timothy-based feeds cost at least 4 times as much as the alfalfa-based ones (though the nutrient breakdown is similar), does feeding this ultra-expensive feed really have that much of an advantage over feeding alfalfa-based pellets and grass hay?

It's true that alfalfa usually has a higher protein content than timothy, but when the label on the feed bag says it has a protein content of 14%, it had better test close to that, or the feed company can get sued. Which means that the feed company needs to know what the protein content, etc, of the ingredients were before they were put into the mix, and other ingredients adjusted to balance out the levels.

 

[chickenmama109]

I think it's Timothy based pellets but I'm about to bring her inside because it's going to be 107 this week and I don't want her to get heat stroke but will she be ok switching from out side to inside for a week or so or if it all works out for the rest of her life

 

[Happy Novogens]

I'm curious about where this idea comes from - the alfalfa-based feeds say "for all life stages" (as do a lot of the timothy-based ones). Since the timothy-based feeds cost at least 4 times as much as the alfalfa-based ones (though the nutrient breakdown is similar), does feeding this ultra-expensive feed really have that much of an advantage over feeding alfalfa-based pellets and hay?

I should have clarified that I was referring to indoor, fixed rabbits.
Some of the problems not uncommon in some house rabbits is obesity, bladder sludge, and GI issues. High calcium and protein levels are usually blamed which is why high protein and high calcium legume (alfalfa)- based pellets are discouraged.

This is also the reason some vets are recommending not only that adult, indoor, fixed rabbits receive timothy-based pellets because of their lower percentages of protein (12-14%, as opposed to the 16%+ found in many pellet feeds), but that the amount of pellets fed be severely restricted as well.

With the recommended pellet amount for an average adult (5-7 lb) rabbit being just 1/4 cup per day, the higher cost of timothy-based pellets is negligible. A 10 lb bag can last 4 months for 1 rabbit. So those of us with a couple indoor house rabbits aren't spending very much on pellets.

This has been the common understanding in the world of house rabbits-- to lower that protein percentage and calcium level once a rabbit reaches around 6 months of age (adult) by switching from legume (alfalfa) based products to grass based products.

However, I will also say that I have been reading some somewhat contrary literature that blames some of these health issues not so much on whether the pellets are alfalfa or grass based, but on the fact that almost all pellets have an abundance of soy and grains.

Soybean hulls, oat hulls, and wheat middlings, are found in many pellets -- whether alfalfa-based or timothy-based. It has been suggested that these extra by-products in pellets are more to blame -- that if a rabbit is not fed soy and these types of grains but is fed higher percentages of both timothy (grass) and alfalfa hays, that their digestion will be healthier.

This study focuses more on the bad added extras in traditional rabbit pellets (whether timothy or alfalfa based). This company sells rabbit pellets that are soy/grain free and are comprised of hays, supplements, and (I believe) flaxseed.
http://sherwoodpethealth.com/the-science/#alfalfa

My take on this is that for those with house rabbits, that if one is going to be getting pellets from a traditional source (pet store, etc), then adult rabbits should be getting limited pellets that are timothy-based. However, if one is willing to purchase online, then perhaps Sherwood Pellets are the way to go. With grains and soy by-products out of the picture, then their mix of timothy and alfalfa pellets seem good.

Rabbit owners will have to make their own choice based on their take on the various studies.

 

[Happy Novogens]

I think it's Timothy based pellets but I'm about to bring her inside because it's going to be 107 this week and I don't want her to get heat stroke but will she be ok switching from out side to inside for a week or so or if it all works out for the rest of her life

She should be fine switching from outdoors to in. However, whenever a switch is done (in either direction) it is usually best to make the switch at one time. In other words, don't keep taking her in and out. Each move is stressful and rabbits have a difficult time regulating their body temperature. So it's best to just bring her in and leave her in. Don't keep putting her back outside if you intend to keep her indoors anyway.

 

[chickenmama109]

She should be fine switching from outdoors to in. However, whenever a switch is done (in either direction) it is usually best to make the switch at one time. In other words, don't keep taking her in and out. Each move is stressful and rabbits have a difficult time regulating their body temperature. So it's best to just bring her in and leave her in. Don't keep putting her back outside if you intend to keep her indoors anyway.

Thanks yes well the hutch was a little bigger then I thought so I put her on the porch in the shade with a fan blowing on her hopefully it cools her off

 

[mike1970]

it is basically poop that they do that they re eat and get a lot nutrients from if u have a sick rabbit lots of times a vet wiil have u take it from ur healthy rabbits and give to the sick one to eat