How many times should daily rabbits be fed. Rabbit food - how much and how often. Video "Feeding decorative rabbits"

The correct maintenance of rabbits ensures a good increase in livestock and a high-quality yield. Therefore, it is important to know how to feed rabbits so as not to harm their body and get a regular healthy offspring. A rational approach is designed for a variety of feed and compliance with norms.

Rabbit nutrition basics

Daily feeding norms for rabbits provide for a variety of foods. Animals need to be given foods rich in nutrients every day to replenish their energy reserves.

The needs of fetal females, males in certain periods and young animals are especially high.

Throughout life, the diet is made up so that the animals are in good physical shape, are active, gain weight at a natural pace, and have a beautiful appearance.

The main components per head per day:

1. Green fodder - herbs of wild origin, meadow and steppe, as well as sowing cultivated plants. These include alfalfa, clover, dandelion, vetch, lupine, nettle, carrot tops, peas, oats, young corn, winter rye. The diet of animals includes bitter, oil-rich herbs that can prevent diseases - wormwood, rosemary, dill, parsley, etc. Herbs are served dried in the sun so as not to provoke gastrointestinal disorders. In winter, rabbits eat green hay, dried nettles, and some varieties of straw.
2. Fresh vegetables and seasonal local fruits form the basis for replenishing the water balance of the animals. They are also a storehouse of vitamins and microelements, which are difficult to find in more hard and green foods. Most root crops and vegetables are given to animals fresh, after washing and removing rotten places, crumbling for each head in the cage. The most popular are zucchini, carrots, cabbage leaves, beets and watermelon, pumpkin seeds, Jerusalem artichoke, pitted apples and pears, silage. Animals like potatoes and pumpkin boiled, mixed with cake, chopped, herbal and bone meal.
3. Cereals and legumes are often used as an essential staple for rabbits. This is a rough food that requires a long digestion. But with the assimilation of it by the body, a large amount of heat and energy is released. Feed is a source of protein, fiber, vitamin complexes. Grains and legumes can cause problems in the digestive tract, so their amount in the diet of animals is strictly controlled. Oats, wheat and corn are added to the feeder for each head.
4. Roughage includes young branches up to 1 cm thick. They serve not only to grind the incisors of the livestock throughout the day, but also are fortified additives in winter and spring, until young grass appears. In summer, small bundles are added to the cage along with leaves, and in winter, rabbits are offered brooms prepared in June-August from 5-7 twigs, well dried in the shade. You can also give young branches with buds, which are pruned in the spring. Animals love willow, ash, apple, acacia, linden, aspen, maple, willow, dogwood, pear, also rowan and coniferous trees, stone fruit garden varieties are contraindicated for them.
5. The daily norm of feed for rabbits necessarily includes combined mixtures. They are designed to deliver the necessary supply of nutrients in accordance with the period of life. There is a compound feed intended for a daily diet. It includes grains, protein products, mineral supplements. The second type is a concentrated feed for adult rabbits and rabbits during mating, pregnancy and lactation. The composition also contains grain and protein-mineral components, they are supplemented by cake, seeds, special vitamin complexes.

Number of livestock feedings

The task of the rabbit breeder is to provide their wards with access to water and food around the clock.

A young offspring is able to approach the feeder 30-35 times a day, absorbing 3 g of feed. An adult rabbit up to 5 kg of weight eats up to 30 times a day. During lactation, the female approaches food from 45 times from the moment of birth of rabbits to 55 times at the peak of the feeding period, eating from 5 to 7 g of food.

The best approach to organizing the diet when breeding rabbits is to serve food 2-4 times a day - the daily ration and selection of food plays an important role. The more often the animals are fed, the less food is placed in the cage. In winter and during a stressful period for the livestock, food is delivered 2-3 times, in summer it is possible to replenish stocks 4-5 times.

In the evening, add enough food to feed the rabbit all night. Otherwise, in the morning the pet will be hungry and eat more, which can lead to digestive problems.

It is necessary to adhere to the sequence every day at the same hour - first give concentrates and feed, then leave juicy products and hay. In summer it is necessary to pour clean water of medium temperature, and in winter to heat it. For vitaminization, you can replace it with a decoction of coniferous branches collected from October to March.

Norms of the daily diet by season

Adult rabbits and baby rabbits require different amounts of food in summer and winter.

The correct distribution of all feed in the diet is also based on seasonality. Age differences affect the amount and amount of food that should be given to livestock.

In the warm season, do not put a lot of succulent feed in the feeder. If the rabbit does not eat them within 1-2 hours, the product will begin to deteriorate and will attract various insects. It is better to apply more often and in small portions.

Norms of feeding rabbits per day for 1 head in the summer:

In winter, livestock nutrition changes. Daily feeding rates per representative.

tell me how many times a day you need to feed a decorative rabbit? and got the best answer

Answer from Nice woman[guru]
Given the variety of foods that are suitable for your pet, determining the exact amount of food is quite difficult. The amount of feed also depends on the age and breed of the rabbit. Only experts can say what is right for your rabbit. It is best to consult a veterinarian who will observe him.

Answer from Dasha[expert]
In the morning and in the evening

Answer from Valens[guru]
Feeding rabbits. Hay should be in the cage in sufficient quantities, as it is the main food for rabbits; pet stores sell ready-made grain feed for rabbits in various variations (you can choose the right one for your pet). Juicy food - fruits, vegetables, green grass - can be offered to adults. For rabbits from 1-1.5 months, it is best to start with carrots and apples. Cabbage should be given to rabbits no earlier than 3-4 months. It can cause bloating. Mineral stone, twigs for grinding teeth should also be in the cage, especially if the animal receives little roughage. Rabbits eat a variety of foods: in summer they are given different types cereals, dandelions, plantain, coltsfoot and other wild plants. Care should be taken to ensure that poisonous plants, such as celandine, buttercups, do not get into their feed. It is good to give them branches of willow, aspen. Rabbits need to be fed with oatmeal and bread (in a small amount). From 4 months oats, wheat, crackers can be given as solid feed. In winter, when there is no grass, rabbits need hay and vegetables. They are good at eating apples. Dairy and meat products are not given to rabbits. Rabbits must have water. Currently, special compound feeds for rabbits are being produced. It is optimal to feed 2-3 times a day.

Answer from caustic guest[guru]
In one of the books on cx there was something about breeding rabbits). It says that the rabbit has no muscles around the intestines. That is, what was previously eaten is pushed out by the next portion of food, and in connection with this, the rabbit eats almost constantly. Apparently, there should always be food in the feeder. By the way, any pet store will give good advice.

Answer from Anya[guru]
I feed 2 times a day! But all day long, near the cage, he has a box with fresh grass, when he wants, he will come and eat. And there should always be water in the drinker.

Answer from Jovetlana[guru]
1. The rabbit should always have water in the drinker, especially in summer. With a lack of fluid, animals digest food poorly, their appetite decreases, and their general condition worsens. 2. In autumn, when feeding a large amount of succulent feed, indigestion is sometimes observed in rabbits. In such cases, it is necessary to reduce the supply of succulent fodder and introduce hay into the diet or increase the amount of concentrates 3. Beets, carrots, silage, watermelons, cucumbers and other succulent fodder contain a lot of water. 4. With great appetite, rabbits eat dandelion, plantain, wormwood, field and garden thistle, yarrow, willow-herb, burdock, colza, couch grass, horse sorrel, meadowsweet, shepherd's purse, clover, mouse peas, tansy and other wild herbs. But feeding them must be alternated or given in the form of a grass mixture. Alfalfa, vetch, peas and other legumes are introduced into the diet little by little so as not to cause intestinal disease. It is better to feed them in a mixture with cereals. It is not recommended to feed rabbits the same grass all the time. 5. Rabbits love tree food: fresh, thin hardwood branches are a good addition to the main diet. Best of all, animals eat branches of linden, aspen, willow, acacia. From conifers in winter, you can feed juniper, spruce and pine needles. Branches of fruit trees, especially apple trees. Low fiber foods and high sugar levels can lead to digestive stasis and sudden death. 6. Not all plants are harmless for rabbits: plants such as hemlock, dope, henbane, foxglove, lily of the valley, raven eye, larkspur, poisonous milestone, caustic buttercup, hellebore, euphorbia should not be given to them. 7. The rabbit should always have access to hay in unlimited quantities. 8. As for cabbage, for example, cauliflower, Brussels kohlrabi, you can feed not only heads of cabbage, but also the stalk and leaves. White cabbage can be given only in very small quantities, because it causes flatulence in rabbits. Red cabbage is contraindicated. 9. Basic food: hay and prepared food. 10. Not allowed: sweet, sour, spicy. All food must be of good quality and not moldy. 11. Remember! Green food for rabbits should never be collected near the roads. The collected grass should be thoroughly washed and dried well with a paper kitchen towel. A complete rabbit diet should consist of: compound feed, fresh hay (alfalfa, oats) should be available 24 hours a day, fresh vegetables. Treats should be given in very limited quantities. Hay should be included in the daily diet of rabbits, it promotes health by providing roughage that reduces the likelihood of GI and is the most important part of the rabbit diet. Alfalfa hay - too high in protein for adult rabbits, not recommended for rabbits older than 6 months. The branches of apple trees also provide rabbits with roughage. When giving vegetables, pay attention to freshness, they should be free of wormholes and rot. Refrain from giving beans and rhubarb to rabbits. Feeding of rabbits from newborns up to 12 weeks: Until 3 weeks of age, only mother's milk. 3-4 weeks mother's milk, compound feed, hay. From 7 weeks of age mixed feed and hay with an unlimited quantity. From 12 weeks of age, vegetables are introduced in a very small quantity. Do not give several different vegetables at once Feeding rabbits from 7 months. up to 1 year: Hay, grass, reduce alfalfa Reduce the amount of compound feed (3-3.5 tablespoons per day) Increase the amount of vegetables gradually. Feeding rabbits from 1 to 5 years: Unlimited hay Compound feed 2.5-3 tablespoons per day, depending on metabolism.

Features of young spring grass Firstly, for young rabbits it is a new food, and for those that are older, the food, although well-known, but forgotten over the winter. This moment alone should already attract the attention of the rabbit breeder. Secondly, young greens for rabbits are excessively juicy. The soil is filled with excess moisture and this moisture fills the plants. Eating young juicy grass, rabbits encounter digestive difficulties. long winter rabbits stomachs have adapted to hay and early greens for rabbits turn into all sorts of bloating, flatulence and diarrhea. It should also be taken into account that plants absorb harmful chemicals from thawed soil. During the winter, quite a few of them accumulated in the upper soil layer. In the spring, with the melting of snow, it penetrated deep into the soil, and then got into the leaves through the root system of plants. close to highways and industrial zones. Another warning concerns poisonous herbs. If rabbit breeders can identify these dangerous (adult) plants and remove them from the feed in time, then young shoots are much more difficult to recognize and they easily fall into rabbit feeders. Poisonous herbs, for the most part, in dried form, lose all harmful properties completely , well, or almost completely and become, as it were, edible. What cannot be said about freshly cut plants. These types of plants are thus protected and win their place under the sun. To the above, we must also add that rabbits are not able to distinguish an edible plant from a poisonous one and sweep everything away. How to protect rabbits in spring? Oh, how mistaken are those rabbit breeders who consider greens a risky food for rabbits and feed them only with hay. On the contrary, it is fresh grass that is natural and most useful food product for rabbits. If you look at the materials on the study of wild rabbits, you can find confirmation of what has been said there. The ancestors of domestic rabbits did not spend much time on the surface. Climbing out of their minks, they immediately looked for places where succulent herbs grow and quickly began to absorb them. Therefore, the most correct method of feeding grass is to dry the fresh greens. Otherwise, the danger increases sharply and approaches the maximum. Do not give rabbits mowed grass in the early morning when there is still dew residue on it or after rain. But, even dried and dried spring grass can do harm. Once again, I want to draw your attention to the fact that any new food should be introduced into the diet of rabbits gradually. This fully applies to the transition from hay to greens for rabbits, i.e. to initial stage it is necessary to distribute hay with grass. It would be better to give hay in the morning, and grass in the afternoon and evening. And for at least 1.5 weeks, change the ratio of feed until fresh grass completely replaces the hay. for new food.

Having started breeding rabbits, you need to learn a lot about these animals: what they eat, how they breed, how many times a day the rabbit feeds the rabbits after birth, and how this happens. This knowledge will help the owner of the animals to properly care for them. Sometimes there are situations when the female, after birth, does not want to feed the rabbits or she does not have enough milk for the entire offspring. This article will tell you how to determine if newborn rabbits are full and what to do if the female rabbit does not feed them.

Why does the rabbit not approach the rabbits?

Some rabbit breeders are interested in why, after the birth, the rabbit is not constantly next to her offspring, but leaves the nest. They get the impression that she does not feed the babies. In fact, rabbits have a well-developed maternal instinct. This is evidenced by their behavior shortly before birth. Rabbits tear their fluff, equipping a nest. This is done not only to keep the babies warm, but also to provide access to the nipples.

Being in wild nature, hatched females behave exactly like this: they leave the nest, and they themselves follow it from afar. This natural instinct helps them protect their offspring from wild animals that can smell the smell of a rabbit. Since the adult animal smells stronger, the rabbit leaves the nest in order not to attract animals to it with her smell. Only occasionally does the mother lie down with the rabbits to feed them. This usually happens at night in complete silence.

The first feeding is carried out immediately after the birth, if the milk has already arrived at that time. Otherwise, the female will feed the babies later, in a few hours.

Attention! If the rabbit does not feed the rabbits during the first day of life, measures must be taken, otherwise the babies will die.

How many times a day do baby rabbits suck their mother's milk?

After birth, the rabbit comes to her children no more than once or twice a day to feed them. This usually happens at night or at dawn, when the situation in the room where the family lives is calmer. These animals are sensitive to any sounds, so they choose the time for feeding at night when no one disturbs them, and the owner may get the impression that the female rabbit does not feed the cubs.

In the first days after birth, it is desirable for the farmer to control the feeding process. The babies are still blind and sometimes accidentally crawl away from the mother, fall out of the nest. If this happens, the baby rabbit that has lost its mother will remain hungry. The rabbit will feed only those who are in the mother liquor.

Attention! If the rabbit crawled out of the nest, it must be returned to its place, while wearing gloves so as not to leave its smell on its body.

When the eyes of the babies open, they become more independent and will already be able to find their mother in the cage. However, she still will not let her cubs near her more than 1-2 times a day. The farmer should not worry, because rabbit milk is very fatty and nutritious. Attached to the nipple, babies receive all the necessary nutrients.

How to determine the satiety of rabbits?

Not noticing how and when the rabbit feeds the cubs, the owner of the rabbit family is worried that the newborns are suddenly hungry. To make sure they have eaten, just look at their tummies. Rabbits are born completely naked, and their skin is so thin that veins are visible through it. With the naked eye, you can see whether the babies are eating or not. If the skin on the bellies of the rabbits is stretched, there are no folds on it, then the pets are full. If the tummies are sunken, and the skin on them is wrinkled, then they are hungry.

Attention! If most of the cubs are constantly outside the nest, this is a sign that the hungry babies were trying to find their mother.

How to check if a rabbit has milk?

Sometimes doubts do not leave the owner of the animal, he suspects that the kids are hungry. In this case, you can check if the female has milk. How to do it:

1. Take the female and put her on her back.
2. Examine the nipples. If all the mammary glands are slightly enlarged, then milk is being produced.
3. Gently squeeze the nipple. The released drop of milk is a sign of normal lactation.

The presence of milk in the glands does not mean that it is enough for all rabbits. It is worth paying attention to the bellies of babies - whether they are filled.

How many rabbits can one rabbit feed?

Rabbits have 8 nipples for feeding offspring. That is how many cubs the rabbit is able to feed without harming anyone. However, the offspring can be up to 15 rabbits. If many cubs were born, then they will fight for the opportunity to suck mother's milk. Usually the strongest and strongest rabbits are the first to stick to the nipples, it is they who get the full nutrition in the right amount. Weak and unviable kids are not so agile, they eat up what is left.

Sometimes the rabbit herself destroys part of the offspring immediately after birth. She eats the weakest rabbits in order to fully feed the rest. It is important for the farmer to make sure that all babies can get milk. If there is a female at your disposal that has recently littered, and her offspring is not so numerous, then it makes sense to plant some of the rabbits who do not have enough mother's milk.

If there is no such nurse on the farm, you should try to increase lactation in a rabbit with many children in the following ways:

• introduce more succulent feed into the diet of a nursing female;
• include boiled potatoes, beets and carrots in the menu;
• every day to offer a lactating rabbit dill and some walnuts.

These foods help boost milk production. The farmer should observe the degree of fatness of the rabbits during the first 6-7 days of their life. If they crawl around the cage, their bellies are not full, and their skin is dry and wrinkled, then they clearly do not have enough milk. In this case, you need to remove 2-3 cubs from the female and plant them with a foster mother or feed them artificially.

What to do if the rabbit does not feed the babies?

There are times when the female does not feed the offspring. Let's look at the reasons why this happens:

1. Milk is not produced in the right amount.
2. Mastitis. If the animal's nipples become inflamed, feeding becomes impossible.
3. Inexperience. After the first birth, some rabbits cannot realize their new role, their maternal instinct has not yet manifested.

Attention! Refusal to feed is often manifested in apparent cruelty. The female can get rid of part of the offspring when she is not able to feed the entire offspring. It's just a natural instinct. This happens when the rabbit herself is in need of food.

Having discovered that during the first day after the birth, the mother did not feed the children, the farmer will have to take care of the rabbits himself. There are 2 ways to do this:

• to feed the offspring artificially;
• find a nurse.

Is it possible to plant baby rabbits with another rabbit?

The owner of a rabbit family can solve the problem of feeding refuse rabbits with the help of a nurse, if there is one on the farm. There is a chance that she will accept and feed other people's cubs. Among potential adoptive mothers, it is recommended to choose one that meets the following requirements:

• she does not have a very large offspring (5-7 rabbits);
• she was born no earlier than 3-4 days before the birth of the abandoned babies.

It is necessary to plant rabbits with another rabbit correctly. It is important that the foster mother does not notice the catch. How to perform a planting:

1. We remove the future nurse from the cage.
2. We take fluff from her nest and rub the little bodies of adoptees.
3. We place the abandoned rabbits directly in the center of the new mother liquor. We place them between native cubs.
4. We cover them with mother's down.
5. After 30-40 minutes, when the kids get a new smell, we return the rabbit to the cage.

If everything is done correctly, the nurse will not distinguish her cubs from strangers. She will take them in and feed them. In rare cases, this does not happen. Then the kids will have to take care of their owner.

How to feed rabbits without a rabbit?

Caring for newborn rabbits is no easy task. The owner of the animals will have to find alternative methods feeding.

Instead of rabbit milk, you can use:

• goat;
• cow with the addition of a third part of condensed milk;
• dry mixes for puppies and kittens.

You need to feed babies with warm milk 2-3 times a day from a pipette or syringe without a needle. Before each meal, you will have to stroke their tummies to stimulate the digestive tract, since newborns cannot empty themselves normally. The mother rabbit usually licks them, thereby increasing intestinal motility. Feeding is carried out according to the scheme:

• in the first week of life, babies receive 5 ml of milk per day - 2.5 ml in the morning and evening;
• at 2 weeks of life, the daily rate is increased to 10-12 ml;
• at week 3, rabbits consume about 15-17 ml of milk per day.

Reference. Starting from the age of three weeks, babies are gradually and carefully introduced complementary foods and accustom them to a drinking bowl.

The rabbit feeds the rabbits only 1 or 2 times a day, and she does this at night or at dawn, when no one is around. In connection with such a regime, sometimes one gets the impression that she does not care about them. If there are suspicions that the female does not feed the cubs, you need to check whether she has enough milk. In case of his absence or refusal of the mother to fulfill her duty in relation to the cubs, the rabbits are placed to the nurse or take care of the newborns.

To ensure good health and rapid growth, you need to know the features of feeding animals. First of all, it all depends on the products. They should be fresh and healthy, it is important to diversify the diet and sometimes add new products. How many times a day to feed rabbits, and in what quantities? Theoretically, they can eat up to 30 times a day, but in practice it is impossible to ensure such a frequency. Below we consider how experienced rabbit breeders get out of this situation.

Nutrition Basics

To breed rabbits, you need to know the basics of rabbit breeding. It is important to carefully monitor compliance with the following rules:

• It is forbidden to feed products with signs of spoilage and mold. Such food can not only poison, but also.
• Greens are given without dew, it should be dry to the touch.
• A varied diet changes from time to time and is supplemented with new products.
• The drinking bowl should always have fresh water, which is changed every 1-2 days. The absence will cause constipation and reduced lactation of lactating females.
• Rabbits are taught a feeding schedule by giving food at certain times of the day.
• rabbits different ages, kind, breed and purpose have a different diet.

Experienced rabbit breeders advise that the animal always has stable access to a food source. In the wild, they do not feed on a schedule. This must be ensured under the conditions cell content. You can read more about this at.

The pet must eat not only plants, but also animal products (, bone meal). In addition, it is useful to give silage, which includes the necessary trace elements.

Feeding mode

How many times to feed rabbits depends on their purpose and your capabilities. If given the opportunity, the animal can eat up to 30 times a day. Since there is no such possibility, there are two main ways. On large farms, they feed 2 times a day, in the morning and in the evening. Private breeders are more loyal and give food 3 times.

Winter feeding regimen:

• The first feeding at 8 am, give half the daily norm of hay and concentrates.
• At 12 o'clock the animal receives the full daily norm of root crops.
• At 17 o'clock they give the second half of concentrates and hay, as well as tree branches.

Three meals a day in summer:

• At 6 o'clock, rabbits are given 1/3 of the daily norm of grass and 1/2 of concentrates.
• At 15 o'clock 1/3 grass and other greens.
• At 19 o'clock the remaining concentrates, grass and branches.

It is important to dilute the diet and add vegetables and grains to it: barley, oats and more.

Lactating females need four meals a day. They are given extra food at 10-11 pm. Mostly give the products necessary to improve lactation.

Thus, how many times to feed the rabbits is up to you, mostly 3-4 feedings per day.

	At rest	Pregnant females	Lactating females
Juicy (fresh greens)
Silage
tubers
Hay
branch
Cereal grain
legume grain
oilseed grain
Bran different
Cake
meal
cabbage leaf
vegetable waste
Skim milk
meat and bone meal
Mineral feed

Maximum daily allowance for young animals (in grams)

	1-2 months	2-3 months	3-4 months	5 months and older
Cereal grain
legume grain
oilseed grain
fresh greens
Silage
Roots
Carrot
Beet
Hay
branches
Bran different
Cake
meal
cabbage leaf
vegetable waste
Skim milk
meat and bone meal
Mineral feed
Protein-vitamin paste

In addition, there must be water in the cage. In cold weather, it is heated to room temperature.

fattening

The scheme for raising and feeding rabbits for slaughter is slightly different. In this case, in less than a month and a half, you need to maximize the weight without compromising the quality of the meat. Experienced rabbit breeders start feeding 34 days before slaughter.

How many times a day and what to feed meat breeds rabbits? Concentrates make up the majority of food. Corn, barley and boiled potatoes are added to increase fat. From time to time add oats and. Hay is served with.

To quickly gain maximum mass, their mobility is limited by a cage. The maximum number of animals in one cage should not exceed 6 individuals. If laziness and lack of appetite come ahead of time, they are sent to slaughter.