RabbitsUpdated 9 months ago

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Your new bun should get plenty of alfalfa for at least their first six or seven months of life. During this time, it isn't necessary to add in other types of hay, as the little ones need the extra protein and nutrients that alfalfa provides. 

Between seven months and a year, you can start mixing in the orchard, timothy, and oat hays and decreasing the alfalfa to help with the transition to a predominantly 2nd cut Timothy diet, or whatever hays ultimately work best for you and your bun.

As far as pellets are concerned, young rabbits do need alfalfa-based pellets. Once they reach about seven months, they can transition to adult pellets that are timothy-based.  

At about 12 weeks of age, you can slowly start introducing vegetables to your bun's diet too, though only one at a time to make sure your rabbit tolerates them well.

Pets over a year of age should only be fed alfalfa as an occasional treat. It's much too nutrient-rich. You may experience some problems weaning pets off alfalfa because, like candy, it's pretty yummy.  

You may find luck mixing alfalfa with 2nd Cut Timothy, gradually getting them used to the new food. If you still have a problem with feeding/eating, we suggest our 3rd cut Timothy. We also recommend that you put them on a Timothy Hay-based pellet.

Ultimately, we recommend you ask your exotic veterinarian when in doubt. They know your pet better than we do. 

To learn more, you can search our blogs for more useful information.

We aren't able to store pet birthdays in customer accounts. We hope to add this feature in the near future!