Rabbit and Rodent Nutrition

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Rabbit and Rodent Nutrition

• AnS 224
• Spring 2009

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Laboratory Announcement

• On Feb 19th, 2009
• Lab will be held in 2310 Kildee (Pavilion class
  room)
• Bring the following to class
• An example of a pet food label.
• A price per unit cost for that pet food label
• A calculator
• Bring an example of non-routine pet foods (i.e.
  turtle food, fish food, etc)
• You may bring an example of more than one type

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Rabbits

• At least 45 breeds of rabbits
• Serve as
• pet animals
• meat producers
• fur and hide producers
• research subjects
• Differ from rodents in having 2 sets of upper
  incisors
• A smaller set of incisors sits behind the larger
  front incisors
• Classified as Lagomorphs

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Rabbit GI Anatomy

• Non-ruminant herbivores with simple (glandular)
  stomach
• Shorter sm. intestine than most species
• Enlarged cecum for enhanced forage use
• Much like horses
• Poor fiber digestion (15-17 optimal)
• Do digest starch and recycle protein
• Lg. Intestine sorts food based on components
  size
• Fiber continues to colon for excretion
• Fluids and soluble particles transferred back to
  cecum for further digestion

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Rabbit Digestive Tract
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Coprophagy/Cecotrophy

• Ingestion of feces
• Normal behavior in lagomorphs
• Hard and soft feces produced
• Soft feces ingested directly from the anus
• excreted in early morning (night feces)
• Not a problem if housed on wire cages
• Similar to rumination due to path
• cecum mouth stomacha recycler
• Provide vitamins B and K and increase forage use

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Feedstuffs

• Hay
• Alfalfa
• high in protein and calcium
• Grass
• significantly lower in protein and digestibility
• Timothy
• now being used as the base for pelleted diets
• Most forages are low in phosphorus
• High fiber (cellulose) will have limited
  digestion by cecal fermentation or coprophagy

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Feedstuffs

• Garden vegetables
• Good sources of vitamins
• High in moisture/low in dry matter
• Fibrous materials--help with digestive function
• Not exceptionally good sources of protein
• Enrichment

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Feedstuffs

• Grains
• Generally good sources of energy and phosphorus
• Poor sources of calcium and fiber
• Grain byproducts also acceptable
• Prefer oats and barley to corn

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Feedstuffs

• Protein supplements
• Commercial pelleted diet 15-19 CP
• Plant based
• Oil content increases energy
• Generally only needed for max. growth

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Feeding Tips

• Pelleting common
• Reduces feed sorting/wastage
• Cereal grains utilize
• especially oats
• Avoid moldy feeds
• Often nocturnal feeders
• Avoid overfeeding calories
• Use higher forage/vegetable matter formula
• Meal feed superior to free choice

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Feeding Tips (Contd)

• Atony and hairballs reduced with 22 fiber in
  diet
• Rabbits unable to vomit
• Concern although fermentation followed by
  coprophagy is significant, dietary essential
  amino acid requirements still exist
• Fat addition common for grower rabbits
• Gnawing toys also good

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Nutrient Recommendations

• Fiber
• Reduces hairballs
• Reduces chance of obesity
• Helps w/ GI function

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Special Considerations

• Calcium
• Very efficient absorption. . . and excretion
• Alfalfa higher in calcium than other grasses
• Leads to cloudy urine, urine sludge, bladder
  calculi
• Enteritis/enterotoxemia
• Major problem with high concentrate diets
• Clostridial organisms flourish in presence of
  overconsumption of energyespecially in young
  rabbits
• Also a concern with antibiotic administration

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Chinchillas

• Originated in South America
• Desire for pelts nearly led to extinction
• Longer life span than other pet rodents
• Require dust baths for coat quality
• Generally nocturnal eaters
• Monogastric herbivore w/ large cecum
• -hind gut fermenters

www.brandywinezoo.org/chinchilla/html
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Chinchillas

• Normally coprophagic
• Susceptible to constipation
• Prevented by having adequate crude fiber
• Susceptible to dietary changes (diarrhea)
• Make changes slowly
• Absolute requirements not known
• Most commercial diets are higher in fiber and
  lower in protein than conventional rodent diets
• Enjoy veggies, fruits, and grains as treats

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Guinea Pigs

• Domesticated in South America
• some wild cavies still found there today
• Produce large amount of feces
• Females must be bred before 7 mo. of age
• Pelvis will fuse
• Dystocia

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Guinea Pigs

• Food preferences established early
• Normally coprophagic
• Provide free-choice timothy hay
• Lower in calcium
• Green veggies make great snacks and supplement
  Vit C requirements
• Like rabbits, subject to antibiotic induced
  enterotoximia

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Guineas Vitamin C

• Must have diet formulated for guinea pigs or
  otherwise supplemented with Vitamin C
• Most diets fortified with Vit C (ascorbic acid)
• Approx half of initial amount of Vit C is
  oxidized within 90 days of mixing
• 15-25mg / day is required
• Clinical signs (joint bleeds) can occur as soon
  as 2 weeks on Vit C deficient diet
• Scurvy caused by Vit C deficiency is leading
  cause of death in guineas

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Hamsters

• Nocturnal
• Least hardy of all small rodents
• High metabolic rate due to small size
• Will chew on most everything
• Possess cheek pouches and utilize them frequently
  when feeding
• Classified as granivorous
• Feeds on grains and seeds

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Hamsters

• Normally coprophagic
• Higher protein requirement than standard rodent
  chow
• 17-23
• Susceptible to Vit E deficiency
• Fresh milled diet (lt 6 months)
• Muscle weakness

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Gerbils

• More active than hamsters
• If escape cages, often return to them
• Excessive burrowing and tunneling
• Prone to stress induced epileptic seizures

http//br.geocities.com/gerson_cs/gerbil.html
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Gerbils

• Standard rodent diet acceptable
• 4-5 fat
• 16 protein
• Generally block-style pellets
• If fed seed diets
• Will select more palatable, fatty seeds
• Ex Sunflower seeds (low calcium and high fat
  relative to requirements)
• Provide seeds only as a treat
• Do NOT practice coprophagy

www.arcatapet.com/item.cfm?cat5286
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Rats Mice
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• Rats relatively intelligent, but prone to obesity
• Rats learn their given names and may even come
  when called
• Mice exhibit Whitten and Bruce effect
• Whitten Effect Male mouse pheromone-laden urine
  synchronizes the estrus cycles among unisexually
  grouped females.
• Bruce Effect Pregnancy disruption in which
  exposure of a female to an unknown male results
  in pre- or postimplantation failure.
• Standard rodent chow (block-style) will be
  sufficient
• Vigorous digestive tracts
• Diets well formulated due to extensive use as
  research animals

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Degus

• Closely related to chinchillas and guinea pigs
• Also called Brush Tailed Rat
• Native to Chile
• Primarily diurnal
• Average lifespan 5-8 years
• Can be as long lived as 13 years
• Better to keep degus in groups
• Avoid picking degus up by the tail
• Will shed part of tail as defense mechanism
• Require dust baths like chinchillas

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Degus

• Feed mixed chinchilla/guinea pig diet with rodent
  blocks
• Timothy hay should be available at all times
• Practice coprophagy
• Prone to diabetes
• Due to divergent insulin structure
• Avoid sugary foods
• Use fruits and veggies only as treats
• Provide plenty of items for chewing

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Summary

• Characteristics
• Animal Coprophagy Crude Protein Vitamin
  req. Enrichment
• Rabbits X 15-19 X
• Chinchillas X 12-14 C(?) X
• Guinea Pigs X 16-18 C X
• Gerbils 16 X
• Hamsters X 17-23 E X
• Rats Mice X 16 X

Degus X 18 X