Pet Habitat South Africa

<< Back To Blog List

13 Jul 2018

Muesli Is Biggest Killer of Rabbits & Guinea Pigs

Posted By : Guest

Filed Under : Nutrition

It is really astonishing that there are many rabbit and guinea pig owners in South Africa that are not aware about the importance of hay. Maybe this is because many of our local pet stores and grocery shops dedicate their shelves to commercial muesli diets, but offer little space for quality feeding hay products. Unfortunately, muesli diets have long been regarded as rabbit and guinea pig food at certain pet stores and supermarkets. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

In 2013, a scientific study revealed by Professor Anne Meredith from University of Edinburgh highlighted the dangers of muesli diets. When this news came out, hundreds of pet stores across the world removed rabbit and guinea pig muesli from their shelves.

Muesli is severely detrimental to a rabbit, guinea pig and chinchilla’s health. Not only is it difficult to digest, it is also unsuitable for oral hygiene. And those are two areas of well being that our pets are ill advised to compromise. Muesli has also been known to induce urinary tract infections and obesity. So, although the muesli may have tempting packaging (and possibly a price to match), ensure that no muesli is ever fed to your rabbits, guinea pigs or chinchillas.

What is very interesting is that researchers have found that the biggest health risk to rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas is commercial food. They found that your pets can happily survive and live a long and healthy life without commercial pet food, if they have access to fresh grass and good quality feeding hay each day.

The problem is when we feed commercial food, be it unhealthy muesli food or even healthy nuggets, the proportions must be correct. This is why the feeding guidelines for all rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas have changed in the industry. It is very important that you do not feed more than 10% of the diet commercial food.

It is so important that you do not exceed this 10% level that you need to measure the quantity you feed each guinea pig, rabbit or chinchilla. For example an adult rabbit should be fed only 2-3 heaped tablespoons of high fibre nuggets daily. A guinea pig and chinchilla should only be fed one heaped tablespoon of high fibre nuggets once daily. Don’t think of nuggets as food, but as vitamin tablets to supplement their main diet of grass and hay.

Grass and hay is the balanced diet for rabbits and guinea pigs (85-95% of diet). You may also supplement the diet with fruit and leafy green vegetables but it should not exceed 10% of the diet. Many pet owners do not know what a 10% portion is? Feeding your pet a few leaves of basil, watercress, parsley or baby spinach is 10%. A bowlful is 50-80%. You alternate between various leafy greens each day. One day you feed some basil, the next day a few strands of parsley and next a small slice of carrot, etc. Keep the portions small. Feed leafy green vegetables and tiny pieces of fruit as if they are treats. If you leave a bowl full of muesli food for them to eat, that is 70-90% of diet. Your pet will eat the whole bowl of muesli first before they even touch their hay. Your hay then becomes 10% of their diet. Do you now understand why proportions are very important?

Your rabbit and guinea pig will always prefer eating commercial food, fruit and vegetables than feeding on their grass or hay. If they hungry, they should always have access to fresh grass or good quality feeding hay (not bedding hay). Never leave unlimited amounts of commercial food or vegetables in their bowls to eat. You need them to eat at least 85-95% of their diet their fresh grass or hay. If you fail to adhere to these recommended proportions, you are guaranteed to fail in providing your pet with adequate portions of the right kind of fibre, which can rapidly lead to illness or death.

Muesli should never be part of a rabbit and guinea pig’s diet, but sadly there is widespread lack of understanding and awareness around its risks which means it’s very easy for pet owners to make the wrong choice in South Africa.

What Is Correct Proportion of Hay?

Each one of your rabbits or guinea pigs need a pile of quality feeding hay as large as himself, and they need this amount every day. You can always give them a little extra, but you should never give them any less. Feeding hay is the most crucial part of their diet; anything else needs to be considered additionally. This includes leafy green vegetables, such as kale and spinach and of course, fresh water.

Specially formulated treats are also not a bad idea, but only if they were specifically produced for them. We recommended the Burgess Excel Nature Snacks because they made with only natural dried herbs, flowers and grass. Although you may want to treat your pet to a carrot, try not to do this too often, as they have plenty of sugar. If you genuinely want to spoil your small furry friend (as many people are prone to doing), offer her some more timothy hay – she honestly does love it.

We recommend rabbit and guinea pig owners follow The Burgess Excel Feeding Plan which will ensure your pet get the right amounts of fibre in their diet and provides a perfect daily balance of fibre and nutrition. New scientific studies demonstrated that fibre is so vital to health of rabbits and guinea pigs that they are now referred to as a group of animals known as fibrevores. They need an enormous, no massive amount of fibre, a great deal more fibre than you can ever imagine. Daily fibre intake is essential to maintain normal gut function, dental wear and fermentation in the caecum. Fibrevores need both digestible and indigestible fibre in their diet, together we call this ‘beneficial fibre’.

Timothy hay which is imported from the UK just so happens to be that incredible source of fibre for our furry little friends. There are, of course, other hays and grasses that our furry pets can eat, but Timothy hay has such an intense amount of fibre that it makes remarkably little sense to look elsewhere. This is especially true considering that the British countryside is an ideal location for growing Timothy hay. Not only that, but, because the grass naturally resists drought, it clings to its nutrients once it has been harvested and packaged for sale. This hay also retains a sweet, meadowy smell that lingers, meaning that feeding your rabbits and guinea pigs is a pleasant experience for everyone. Timothy hay has got everything your pet needs – and nothing it cannot digest, meaning it is the singularly best food your rabbit and guinea pig can ever have.

Teff and Eragrostis are perhaps two of the more widely used hay varieties in South Africa. The major disadvantage of these hays is that the nutritional value can range from good to extremely poor quality. The quality will ultimately depend upon stage of growth when cut, fertilization, and environmental factors.

Because of our weather conditions in South Africa, Teff and Eragrostis hay is a soft kind of hay, whilst Timothy hay from UK is long fibre hay with a dry, course, fibrous texture. Whilst our local hay is also good to feed, imported Timothy hay on the other hand has the right combination of both types of fibre which is perfect for guinea pigs, rabbits and chinchillas and is also highly palatable. This means your small furry will probably consume less timothy hay to get ideal maintenance, whilst you may have to feed a lot more of our local hay to get the same maintenance.

As leaders in small animal nutrition, Burgess have developed their unique British-grown Burgess Excel Feeding Hay which we like to think of it as a new fragrant ‘superfood’ for rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas! Exclusively grown for feeding, every step of the harvesting process is designed to keep the timothy hay as dry, fresh and green as possible. The crop is turned several times a day, machine dried and stored in dark, closed barns – with the whole process from field to pack taking just 48 hours. In fact, it’s so good; it’s even used to feed racehorses.

Burgess Excel Feeding Hay is high in fibre which aids digestion, whilst the long stems of hay satisfy both chewing for dental health and natural foraging giving rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas the emotional enrichment they need. It also comes in a resealable bag so there’s less mess and it’s nice and fresh right down to the last tasty stalk!

• Stimulates chewing, good for dental health
• High in beneficial fibre, promotes digestive health
• Dust extracted for respiratory health
• Encourages foraging, providing emotional enrichment
• Fresh fragrance, irresistible to rabbits, guinea pigs, degus and chinchillas
• 100% natural

The Importance of Digestibility Factor of Hay

The reason why imported Timothy hay is so popular in South Africa now is because it has a high digestibility factor. Let's say for the sake of comparison, that you are feeding your rabbit or guinea pig a portion of a 2nd cutting hay that was cut when the plant was relatively immature, the nutrition and digestibility are high, and the cellulose content is low. Your rabbit or guinea pig would be able to digest more of the nutrients out of this hay and would achieve maintenance or weight gain depending upon the size of the servings and amount of exercise he is able to do in his environment.

If this same field of hay had been allowed to grow for another week, for example, the indigestible portion of the plant would have increased, making the hay less nutritious and less palatable, and the amount of digestible energy that your rabbit or guinea pig is able to extract from that hay is decreased. It would now become necessary to feed a larger size portion of this more mature hay to achieve the same maintenance levels for your pet.

This digestibility factor is the determining factor as to how much "good" your pet will get out of a particular type of hay. You can feed a large volume of hay that is low on the digestibility scale and keep the rabbit or guinea pig at his ideal body weight, but if feeding a highly digestible hay (high in nutrients) one would obviously need to feed a smaller amount to maintain his ideal body weight. Within the confines of each cutting (1st, 2nd, 3rd) it is possible to have varying percentages of "digestibility" depending upon the stage of maturity of the plant at the time of harvesting.

Why Burgess Excel Feeding Hay Is Great…

Burgess Excel Feeding Hay has very little dust which makes it great for any of your rabbit or guinea pigs who have respiratory problems. It’s also good if any of your family members suffer from asthma. It can be tidier too when you’re cleaning out your pet's cage. Dust from hay really can get everywhere if you’re not careful!

My Pets Won’t eat Hay, Can I Give Them Something Else?

All rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas need to eat hay, but they can be fussy, so you just need to find the one that they like and make sure they’re not filling up on other commercial dry foods. A common problem with all our furry friends is that they love to eat and nibble on things, and will always choose tastier things than hay given the chance. Make sure they have access to grass as this is also good for them and acts in a similar way to hay. If they don’t currently eat grass, wean them onto it slowly to avoid upset stomachs. Don’t feed them grass from lawnmowers as the way it’s chopped causes it to ferment, which is bad for their tummies, and only feed grass that hasn’t been treated with pesticides or near traffic fumes. Cutting down on pellets and dry food will encourage them to snack on hay. Try feeding nuggets or high fibre pellets for breakfast and just provide hay throughout the day. Warning: Slowly reduce the amount of regular dry food you give them if they not used to eating hay. If you suddenly take away their main food source, it could be dangerous.

What To Look For In Good Quality Feeding Hay

Once you’ve seen top quality timothy hay you’ll never mistake it for a poor quality one. However, the challenge for many pet owners is to find good quality hay in the first place, as much of what is sold at pet stores can be very much sub-standard. But undoubtedly the one thing that will tell you the difference between a sub-standard hay and a top quality one, is the way your rabbit or guinea pig eats it! Once you’ve seen how voraciously a guinea pig or rabbit munches into a pile of Burgess Excel Feeding hay, you’ll never want to feed him anything other than this. Not only does he enjoy it, but you’ll see a huge difference in the amount of wastage – because they won’t leave any of it!

And this is possibly one of the most important aspects of buying Burgess Excel Feeding Hay; because the last thing any of us want is to waste money on what we purchase. So even if the initial cost of buying a top quality timothy hay might be expensive, in the long run you actually save money because what you have to throw away is minimal. Not to mention the satisfaction you get from providing your pet with the very best nutrition possible.