The bunny food thread

[tabithakat64]

I try and give my girls as much variety as possible in their diets using different veg and herbs - I think when I've tried everything and found things they really love I will narrow my choice down but try to give them several types of herbs and veg a week and also treat hay too.

Things they all like so far are timothy and rye hay from hay for pets,
meadow hay from the garden centre.
They also have Excel pellets.
So this will be their staple diet alongside grass.

Treat hays they love the Oxbow botanical hay & also burns green oat hay.

Vegis they all really like brocoli, pak choy, bok choy, carrot, carrot tops, kale, rocket, spinach, watercress, spring greens, swede, purple sprouting, parsnip.

Herbs etc that they all like are plantain, dandelion, raspberry leaves, parsley, corriander, clover, nettle roots and strawberry leaves. They also like Excel country herbs and Naturals herby garden although Cinna's not as keen on this as it has mint in. (I'm sure the've had more though)

They like to chew cardboard, willow and wicker.

Things they don't all like are marigold, mint, only Prim likes mint, Katniss likes rosemary but no other bun does. They don't like some meadow and timothy hay but will eat the Oxbow orchard hay if needs be. None of them like the natural meadow hay, they don't like chewing their seagrass toys either.

On next weeks menu are my apple twigs thanks to another lovely RU member, dried blackberry, basil, fennel, chicory, two types of peas/beans, peppers and I think romaine lettuce.

Treat wise other than small amounts of spinach, carrot, swede, apple and parsnip they only things they have and like is Fenugreek Crunchies (thanks to the RU recommendations) and fibrefirst sticks.

What do your bunnies like best?

 

[Zoobec]

Mine like farm baled hay more than any of the expensive prepacked stuff (phew) they love their pellets (excel) fenugreek crunchies, rosemary, apple sticks, hawthorn, bramble leaves, cleavers, dandelions and homemade treats bought from BARC and Hugos There :thumb:

 

[tabithakat64]

Mine weren't wonderfully keen on my horses meadow hay which is a shame as that would have been tons cheaper.

 

[Zoobec]

Mine weren't wonderfully keen on my horses meadow hay which is a shame as that would have been tons cheaper.

Yes it is loads cheaper isn't it. I'd got some for the goats, and decided I'd try the bunnies on it and they are mad for it. Wonder if it's worth seeing if you can get a bale from elsewhere? I know once when my usual place was open I bought a bale from elsewhere, and neither the goats or the bunnies would eat it :roll: It wasn't dusty or anything,mine just seem to prefer it a bit green.

 

[Kirotea]

Millie and Maddie have yet to refuse anything I've given them! They eat everything with the same enthusiasm. I watch them to see if they go for something in particular first before the rest, but nope they just scoff whatever is closest first until it's all gone! :lol: They even liked basil which I didn't like the smell of at all.

ETA: Saying that they do go crazy for their pellets and their fenugreek crunchies.

 

[tulsi]

Mine seem to love all green things esp grass. The ADORE pellets (science selective and burgess excell) and eat organic small bale hay and timothy hay from hay for pets and from timothy hay.co.uk.

They are not quite so keen on celery or lighter green inside cabbage leaves.

They all like to chew willow, apple branches and cardboard.

 

[tabithakat64]

This weeks menu was my apple twigs thanks to another lovely RU member which they are not keen on, celery also yucky, dried blackberry, basil, fennel and green beans all of which they like lots. They are loving there new hay tunnel and the usual parsley, coriander, spring greens, carrot, brocoli and kale. They also ate some pepper. Tonight I have some cucumber to try them on.

 

[tabithakat64]

Update - they love the apple sticks now.

Cinna loves cucumber and prim will eat celery. Katniss & Prim also eat bananna.

I've got some courgette to try them on too. & from Galens Garden the herb mixes and flower mix as well as the blackberry which they go wild over.

This weeks veg is brocoli, swede, apple and parsley... I forget what else I ordered. Just checked it was rocket and spring greens. All of which they've alraedy tried and love.

My Chicory didn't appear in my last lot of shopping and they sent iceberg not romaine lettuce so the buns didn't try either yet.

 

[tabithakat64]

I have found something they don't like now, courgettes. They loved some rose trimmings I gave them and like the dried mixed herb and dried flower mixes from Galens Garden. They also tried and ate some stickweed.

 

[tashp90]

I have found something they don't like now, courgettes. They loved some rose trimmings I gave them and like the dried mixed herb and dried flower mixes from Galens Garden. They also tried and ate some stickweed.

Mine don't like courgettes either! They'll eat everything else lol

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[tabithakat64]

Have tried them on Hawthorne, fresh blackberry leaves, hogweed, peas and something which came in my forage bag.

This week they have runner beans, sugar snap peas, cauliflower and two new bags of dried herbs to try as well as a carrot and hay house, some timothy hay and something else which I forget.

 

[tabithakat64]

Not keen on the sugar snap peas, timothy hay or cauliflower florets.

This week they've tried grapes which are yummy and hazel twigs which are ok and are now eating the Science Selective too. And they loved the Ginko herbs too.
I've also brought them a naw stone which they have been using.

 

[tabithakat64]

This week they've tried chard, raspberries, strawberries, excel oregano pellets, corn on the cob, and red grapes all of these new things they really like. They've also tried coriander and died mellow which is ok but not their favourite.

 

[dumblepaws]

Mine are very very excited about coriander

They had cauliflower for the first time last night and both liked the leaves. DP also liked the florets a lot, Waffles much less convinced

 

[Hesperus]

Ludo likes everything except for asparagus :wave:

 

[tabithakat64]

This week the new things they have tried are dried nettle, orgeano, thyme, blackberry, fresh strawberry leaves and brussels and they like them all. They've also tried alfafa hay and excel birch bark herbage which they like too.

 

[tabithakat64]

This is what they still have to try on the RWAF safe food list. It's a shame they haven't added trees and bushes onto it...

Vegetables:

•Artichoke leaves
•Asparagus
•Beetroot (care with leafy tops as high levels of oxalic acid)
•Celeriac
•Chicory
•Pumpkin
•Romaine lettuce (not Iceberg or light coloured leaf)
•Squash (e.g. Butternut)•Swede



Herbs (often powerful tastes so may take some getting used to):

•Dill



Fruits (should be fed in moderation, due to sugar content – up to 2 tablespoons worth per day):

•Apricot
•Blueberries
•Cherries
•Kiwi Fruit
•Mango
•Melon
•Nectarines
•Oranges (not the peel)
•Papaya
•Peaches
•Pears
•Pineapple
•Plums
•Tomatoes (not the leaves)

Wild Garden Herbs/Weeds/Flowers:

•Borage
•Calendula
•Camomile
•Comfrey
••Lavender
•Nasturtium (leaves and flowers)
•Shepherd’s purse

 

[G-Man]

I've given Hoppity all sorts of expensive hay but she loves the stuff I get from local horse feed supplier. I've tried mixing them but she goes for the cheaper hay 1st every time. At the moment I go most days to Braes and get grass, dandelions (her absolute favourite.) leaves, brambles and raspberry leaves for her. She's a bit miserable as she's just been dressed and is stuck in a dog cage indoors (she's an outdoor rabbit.) so I'm trying really hard to give her healthy but tasty treats. She doesn't like any fruit or types of sticks but would sell my soul to be left in a field of coriander! I'm looking forward to my roses growing to see if she likes the petals. My shop for Hoppity is mix of broccoli, cauliflower, different types of lettuce, spring greens and curly kale. I have a bad habit of standing in front of supermarket conveyor belt feeling all healthy and supercilious while looking at others far unhealthier shopping. Then I remember it's not for me, I'm the fatty with the chocolate hiding under the lettuce!
I've taken note of some of your trials tabithacat and think I'll try out runner beans and sugar snap peas. When you say corn on the cob do you mean the whole fresh cob?

 

[tabithakat64]

The baby corn on the cob. I don't think they're allowed the full size...

This week they've tried dog rose leaves and stalks (very yummy), summer cabbage & lemon balm and smooth thistle. They have also tried as shreddie each as I read it's a good thing to use to hide medication and some of the oxbow digestive pellets that smell like aniseed.

I really should write this down as I feed them.
The good news is I found some more bramble in the garden and another couple of forage plants too that I can try next week.

Also my galens garden seeds are ready to be potted up and my herb garden is still growing. We've also brought some more rabbit friendly seeds so will be growing more plants too. I might try picking some white nettle too for them to try fresh.

I look super healthy in the supermarket too, then go home and eat cake

 

[G-Man]

Have just had a look at Galens and think I'll have a try at growing some different grasses. It will have to be in tubs, although I saw something online where the grass was planted in a big plastic dog bed. I already grow parsley, basil and mint but everything I've tried outdoors gets eaten by insects and/or slugs. I do have raspberries growing out back so I'll give strawberries a try. I am very lucky with having the braes on my doorstep though. Do you have any book recommendations with information and more importantly pictures of safe wild food, I've looked at pictures on this thread but would be handy to be able to carry a book up there when I go picking?

P.S I have spiced American carrot traybake baking in oven as I type!