Weedpatch Rabbitry
"To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven."
Ecclesiastes 3:1
Lets Start With Housing:
Housing:
Bunny Bran is a top-dressing supplement for rabbits. This stuff is good. It contains multiple herbs and grains along with flax seed. All rabbits will benefit from this product.
It is simple to use. Just add a tablespoon on top of your rabbits food one time per day.
The ingredients are a boost for the immune system which will improve the animals chances of contacting illnesses.
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The seller is Kim Martin.
Here at the rabbitry we have made our own supplement that is comparable to Bunny Bran. When I was in 4-H many many years ago, I was given a recipe to make a wonderful top dressing that could be given to my horses or my rabbits. We are still making that today. So if you are the top to make your bunnies "goodies" let us share that recipie with you here.
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These pictures of our barn show the type of cages we use here at Weedpatch. Indoor(winter) and outdoor(summer). But pet buns can have any manor of cage. You want something the bun can call "mine". Size is up to you. Do you have a large space or a small space? If you have ever had the pleasure of watching a horse that has been in a stall or small pen let out to graze in a pasture, you know that grass is not all he is about! The horse runs and leaps and twists in the air, full of happiness. This is exactly what your new bun will do during exercise time. We call it the "Holland Hop". The cage can be small as long as your bun gets this daily "Holland Hop" time. All wire or part wire with plastic bottom, either works well. Be creative, you can make a home for bun with plastic coated shelving cubes and zip ties. Our buns are all litter box trained to thier cages. Simply purchase a kitty litter box or a plastic wash tub(sink kind). Place in the corner of the cage with wood shavings or NON-clumping cat litter. You can buy the more expensive beddings from the pet stores but make sure your bun does not think its a new tasty treat. I have known some to eat the special beddings causing a blockage in the digestive tract. Here at Weedpatch your pet bun is already urinating in its box. Well on the way to house litter box trained. If your bun wants to urinate in another corner of the cage, place the box in the prefered stite. Or place an additional box in the cage until the bun chooses his favorite. Young buns are like young kids, if you work positively with them they will be successful!
There is a whole page of ideas here on the website! Take a look!
Handling: First day home is the hardest for bun. Every sound and smell is different. First few days are quiet get bun out and hold some. Make sure bun is eating and drinking. Thats a good sign it is adjusting to its new world. Every Holland has a different personality. Some WANT to be in your business, some don't. Some take time to see you as the one for them. Some will bond immediately.
When holding your bun use both hands at first. Get bun used to feeling safe with you. One hand on the back and one hand under the hindquarters supporting the feet. When you take your Holland out of the cage, turn him/her around so the buns hind end comes out first. This keeps the bun from catching legs and toenails on the side of the door. When retruning the bun to the cage again hind end goes in first. This will keep th bun from rushing into the cage. Place the bun calmly into the cage and wait, talk in soothing tones holding the bun until he/she settles and sits well.
Diet: Each new forever home that takes a Holland home from Weedpatch receives a How To Care For My New Holland Lop handout, small bag of bun food, a portion of hay the bun is eating currently and about a weeks worth of probiotic. We use Bene Bac Plus. Bene Bac can be purchased online. The hand out gives the list of ingredients and brands I use at the rabbitry.
Here are some important things to keep in mind:
Your pet bun needs a rabbit food that is 16% protien or lower. The best rabbit feed will be made from timothy hay. We add small amounts of papya and pineapple. We give all our hollands daily probiotic. The papya, pineapple and probiotic are not "have to gives" but they are preventative measures. Like the horse, rabbits can not throw up. This means everything ingested must continue straight through the digestive tract. Rabbit fur and even some treats can cause a blockage. Papya and pineapple aid in digesting swallowed fur. Probiotic keeps beneficail bacteria promoting a healthy intestinal environment.
Hay is VERY IMPRTANT- If it looks like the bun is not eating the hay, do not worry. He/she is eating small bits here and there. All it takes is a fresh handful a day. Rabbits teeth grow continually through out thier life. The motion of the jaw while chewing hay is different from the motion made chewing pelleted food. The hay chewing motion is necessary to grind the teeth properly.
What about Treats? What about amount? Here is what I suggest:
Buns 6 weeks to 3 months: ZERO grocery greens. Zero fruit. But the bun can have fresh dandilion leaves ( 5-6 big per day). Lettuce, carrots etc. can cause bloat or diarreah.
3 months to 6 months: Now the bun can slowly....slowly...slowly be introduced to fresh greens and fresh fruit. Start small, 1/2 inch of carrot, if everything is still normal the next day try 1/2 inch carrot twice a day. Buns love treats and sometimes do not know when to stop eating them. Pay close attention to amounts given. Here is a small list of treats our buns enjoy:
apples, carrots and carrot tops, strawberries, celery and popped popcorn
Sugary treats should be avoided.
Until 5-6 months of age the bun can have all the pelleted bun food it needs to grow. At 6 months the bun will only need 1 ounce of food for each pound of body wieght. So if bun wieghs 4 pounds, bun gets 4 ounces of food per day.
Water should ALWAYS be available and as fresh as possible.
