Feeding Rabbits
Feeding Rabbits
Many styles and varieties of waterers and feeders are available for rabbits.
A bottle waterer that attaches to the outside of the cage along with a metal feeder with an outside feed chute makes feeding and watering easy, as individual cage doors do not need to be opened.
After rabbits are 3 months old, they should be segregated by sex, two to a cage.
After age 5 months, each rabbit should have its own cage.
This will prevent fighting and give each rabbit its own private area.
The best food for rabbits is a commercial rabbit pellet.
This food is a complete feed, so using supplemental salt or other feeds is not needed with pellets.
Try to purchase only enough pellets for one month of feeding, and check the bags for a recent production date when you purchase the pellets.
This way you will keep your feed supply as fresh as possible because certain vitamins and some fats can deteriorate quickly after production.
Rabbits prefer to eat at night, so a good time to feed your rabbits is in the evening.
Check the feeders daily for any wet or moldy feed.
Empty as needed before refilling the feeders. The biggest health problem a rabbit has is overfeeding. Large-breed rabbits need 4 to 6 ounces of pellets once a day.
Small rabbits (dwarf type) need only 2 ounces of pellets a day.
Rabbits should have access to good, leafy alfalfa hay at all times.
The hay should be checked often to make sure it does not become moldy.
A pregnant or lactating doe (female rabbit) should have all the feed she wants.
While her young are still with her (up to 8 weeks), they all should have free-choice feed (feed that is available at all times) along with plenty of water.
If young bucks or does are being raised as breeding rabbits, they should be fed 1 ounce of feed daily for each pound of body weight.
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