So, many people ask the question, “What Do Pet Rabbits Eat And Drink?” Well, rabbits are known to eat a large assortment of plant produce, which includes all kinds of fresh and dry grasses, leaves, and fruits. Moreover, a rabbit is herbivorous by nature; so, its diet is mostly made up of vegetables and fiber. Rabbits generally have tender stomachs, making it difficult for them to digest foods with a high level of sugar or fat content. Bunnies also consume tree barks, sprouts, seeds, and twigs, although in very little amounts. When feeding your rabbits, it is always important to focus on giving them the right balanced diet. Rabbits are very fragile animals, and one wrong diet can make them severely sick or, worse still, lead to their deaths. Therefore, it is important to be careful with the type of diet you give to your rabbit.
In this article, we will be addressing a few things we need to know about a rabbit’s diet. This article will answer the following questions:
- What should I feed my rabbit?
- Things I should not feed my rabbit?
- What foods can kill a rabbit?
- What fresh food can I feed my rabbit?
- List of vegetables rabbits can eat?
Please, come along with us to learn more about what to feed your pet rabbit in this article.
What Should I Feed My Rabbit?
While rabbits are very cute animals, they are also delicate. They don’t possess the adaptive mechanisms or strong survival skills typical of other rodents. Therefore, they deserve the highest level of attention. Rabbits need almost the same level of attention you give to a human baby.
As mentioned earlier, bunnies have very sensitive stomachs, so you have to be mindful of the kind of food they consume. They must adhere to a strict natural diet, consisting mostly of grasses and hays. Additionally, you must avoid changing their diets abruptly since they may find it difficult to adapt to new changes. Therefore, don’t change their foods suddenly when they are already used to eating certain foods.
So, is “what to feed your pet rabbit” the question on your mind? As a rabbit breeder or pet owner, you should come up with a healthy diet for your bunnies consisting of the following combinations:
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Hay and Water
Rabbits typically enjoy a diet of fresh hay and water. Timothy hay is one of their all-time favorites. However, you must be careful not to purchase them in very large quantities to stock. This is because Timothy hay tends to lose its crunchiness and nutritional value after some weeks in storage. Moreover, bunnies love their meals fresh; and if hays are stored for too long, they tend to lose their appetite. Always make a fresh bowl of water available when they munch on their hay meal as it helps them digest it a lot better.
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Pellets
Rabbit pellets are a good choice when it comes to what you can feed your rabbit. Pellets are very light and easily digestible. Moreover, they also have strong nutritional value as they have rich carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. Therefore, pellets are a great choice for rabbits, especially when looking for a healthy, balanced meal.
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Fruits and Vegetables
The rabbit’s favorite fruits include carrots, apples, grapes, squash, pear, and cucumber. Meanwhile, typical bunny veggies should consist of spinach, parsley, lettuce, and zucchini. However, it would be best to give only small amounts of lettuce to your rabbits because their digestive systems take a longer time to digest them.
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Grains Treat
Just as an addition, you can sprinkle a bit of oat or barley cereal on their pellets just for them to enjoy the varieties. Bunnies love treats like this. However, note that this must be done sparingly so they do not develop complications in their stomachs.
What Should I Not Feed My Rabbit?
So far, you have seen enough answers to the question, “what to feed your pet rabbit?” Therefore, you’ve realized that there are so many diets rabbits enjoy. Moreover, we’ve mentioned the most important ones. Nonetheless, there are still some diets that must not get close to your bunnies. Below is a list of foods you must never feed your rabbits and the reasons you must avoid them:
- Yogurt: Yogurts contain harmful bacteria that can cause serious damage to a rabbit’s gut.
- Avocado: Although a rabbit’s meal consists mostly of veggies, you should never give them avocados. Avocados contain a lot of fat and cannot be digested easily.
- Cereal: Cereals must be introduced sparingly as a treat on their pellet and not as a whole meal itself.
- Walnuts: Walnuts are a complete no-no. They are too heavy for a rabbit as they contain a lot of fat.
- Bread: Bread is not an ideal meal for rabbits because of its high sugar content.
- Silverbeet: Siverbeets can cause bloating in rabbits.
- Iceberg Lettuce: Iceberg lettuce contains harmful chemicals that can affect a rabbit’s stomach.
- Oatmeal: You should not give a rabbit a whole diet of oatmeal. Although it might not be particularly harmful, it might not just be the best for their sensitive stomachs.
- Hamster Food: Don’t ever make the mistake of feeding rabbits with hamster food. They might be from the same family, but they both have different digestive systems.
What Foods Can Kill a Rabbit?
Of all the foods to never give a rabbit, some are deadly if consumed by a rabbit. You must be careful NEVER to introduce the following foods into a rabbit’s diet:
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Yogurt
As stated earlier, yogurts are completely off-limits for a rabbit. Yogurt contains very harmful bacteria. Since a rabbit’s digestive tracts are extremely fragile, a yogurt meal can be extremely disastrous to its health.
For instance, a common condition associated with rabbits is gastrointestinal stasis. It is a serious infection that blocks the intestinal tracts and breeds deadly bacteria in the rabbit’s gut. This condition is so serious that it can lead to death within a day. Moreover, you can’t be sure which bacteria are in the yogurt at any time; so, don’t be tempted to give it to your rabbit.
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Avocado
The irony about this is that avocados are a type of vegetables. So, why will you refrain from giving rabbits a meal of avocados when 90% of their diet is made up of vegetables? The truth is, avocados contain very high amounts of fatty content. Rabbits have a hard time digesting fat because of the narrowness and sensitivity of their intestinal walls.
If they consume any fatty food, it can clog their stomach and breed harmful bacteria and parasites that can lead to their deaths.
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Iceberg Lettuce
While lettuce can be a great vegetable supplement for a rabbit, iceberg lettuce should be completely off-limits. This is because they contain a harmful substance that can be very poisonous if when ingested by the rabbit and lead to death within hours.
Moreover, what is even funny is that iceberg lettuce has no known nutritional value. Therefore, it is completely useless risking your rabbits’ lives by feeding them with it.
What Fresh Food Can I Feed My Rabbit?
When it comes to What to feed your pet rabbit, you should know that fresh foods are very vital to a rabbit’s nutritional requirements. Moreover, they provide rabbits with the right moisture necessary to keep their bodies hydrated all day. 90% of a rabbit’s diet is already made up of fresh foods. This consists of vegetables, fruits, hay, and water. However, as a guide, we will outline a list of fresh food constituents you can pick when you need to feed your rabbit(s). They are as follows:
Fresh Leafy Greens For Rabbits:
- Parsley
- Mustard greens
- Spinach
- Radish tops
- Cucumber leaves
- Beet greens
- Swiss chard
- Sprouts
- Arugula
- Carrot tops
- Mache
- Kale
- Frisee Lettuce
- Red or green lettuce
- Bok Choy
- Romaine lettuce
- Spring greens
- Turnip greens
- Dandelion greens
- Escarole
- Wheatgrass
- Mint
- Basil
- Chicory
- Watercress
- Borage leaves
- Endive
- Radicchio
- Raspberry leaves
- Cilantro
- Yu Choy
- Fennel
- Dill leaves
Non-Leafy Vegetables For Rabbits:
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Roses
- Pansies
- Hibiscus
- Nasturtiums
- Summer squash
- Celery
- Zucchini squash
- Bell peppers
- Broccolini
- Brussel sprouts
- Cabbage
- Chinese pea pods
Fresh Fruits For Rabbits:
Note: When feeding your rabbits with fruits, make sure to remove all the hard barks and seeds from within before serving.
- Papaya
- Banana (They enjoy this one!)
- Apple
- Cherries
- Peach
- Apricot
- Pear
- Melons
- Pineapple
- Mango
- Plum
- Currants
- Kiwi
- Berries
- Nectarine
What Vegetables Can Rabbits Eat?
We’ve stated the importance of vegetables to rabbits previously in this article. Now, below is a list of vegetables that a rabbit can consume:
- Parsley
- Mustard greens
- Spinach
- Radish tops
- Cucumber leaves
- Beet greens
- Swiss chard
- Sprouts
- Arugula
- Carrot tops
- Mache
- Kale
- Frisee Lettuce
- Red or green lettuce
- Bok Choy
- Romaine lettuce
- Spring greens
- Turnip greens
- Dandelion greens
- Escarole
- Wheatgrass
- Mint
- Basil
- Chicory
- Watercress
- Borage leaves
- Endive
- Radicchio
- Raspberry leaves
- Cilantro
- Yu Choy
- Fennel
- Dill leaves
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Roses
- Pansies
- Hibiscus
- Nasturtiums
- Summer squash
- Celery
- Zucchini squash
- Bell peppers
- Broccolini
- Brussel sprouts
- Cabbage
- Chinese pea pods
Rabbits need good care, especially when it comes to feeding and cleanliness. Therefore, if you’re going to keep a rabbit as a pet, then the information in this article will help you. Hopefully, you save it for future reference, and share it with those you think would also help. These are the little things we do to ensure we keep all our bunny-friends around the world healthy.