I feed each of my rabbits hay and a piece of bread every day, but they're a little thinner than their supposed to be, I think. Is there anything else I can feed them to fatten them up? I'm 15 and can't afford store-bought rabbit food.

-- Jessica (jaywig86@psknet.com), December 18, 2001

Answers

if its good hay,, they should be fine. Why do you want to "fatten " them up? to eat? carrots are nice,,just a little peice a few times a week. Fence off a small area on the ground,, let them eat all the weeds,, (mini lawn mowers),,just keep an eye on them,,or they will dig. Can cut branches off of fruit trees and willows or maples for a treat. AS long as its good hay,,and they get enough,,thats fine

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), December 18, 2001.

Jessica, can you afford the little spools of red salt from the feed store for them, or perhaps someone you know has cattle, horses or goats, and you can break off a piece from their large blocks? Rabbit pellets are not much more than ground alfalfa hay and minerals. We used a very small, perhaps 1/4 cup of oats to keep our rabbits in good shape during the winters. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), December 18, 2001.

Mine loved bread soaked in milk with a little sugar on top. How about asking the grocery store produce person or a farmers market person for the leaves they take off the outside of califlowers, cabbage etc... they just give them to me for free. I get them for my guinea pigs. Grass out your yard, dandelion leaves are always a favorite. Potato peelings baked in the oven until cooked 10 -15 minutes while you're cooking something else as well so as to save electric. Have you priced rabbit food from the feed store, comes in a 50 lb bag and is a LOT cheaper than pet stores or Wal-mart rabbit food and would last a long time if you only have a couple of rabbits.

-- Anita in NC (aholton@mindspring.com), December 18, 2001.

Quality farm and fleet has it real cheap to .Can you ask mom or dad to help out ?Save some of the left over veggie scraps for them and any extra bread pieces.

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@hotmail.com), December 18, 2001.

If they are both thin, what I'm going to say probably isn't the case, but make sure their front teeth are grinding themselves correctly, or the bunnies might not be eating much at all. I have a mini lop that has this problem and I know it's time to clip his teeth when I see him looking a bit thin.

-- Christina (introibo2000@yahoo.com), December 18, 2001.

check with a grocery store in your area....sometimes here they will save scraps they cut from carrot tops, etc....just make certain you don't give them too much different stuff at once...remember that moderation is the key....they do need more than a piece of bread each day....do check their teeth as suggested....rabbits do better if they are not too fat but you don't want them too thin either...

my rabbits are raised for fiber and for pets, NOT for food.

-- Suzy in Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), December 19, 2001.

I give my rabbit crackers. They are cheap and my kids sometimes spill them on the floor, and he really likes them. He also gets the broken bits on the bottom of the box, and I pick clover for him.

-- Terri (hooperterri@prodigy.net), December 19, 2001.

If you give fruit tree branches, watch out for stone fruits (cherries, peaches, plums, anything with a "pit"). The leaves, when wilted, are poisonous. Just make sure stone fruit branches don't have any leaves on them before you give them to the rabbits.

-- Laura Jensen (lauraj@seedlaw.com), December 19, 2001.