Safe fruit,veg and herbs for rabbits

[little-laura]

There has been so many threads lately asking is this or that was safe for rabbits so I thought this would be a good idea

Could it be made a sticky?



Rabbits love their food and enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables as part of a balanced diet. The main part of a rabbit’s diet should be unlimited amounts of fresh hay (preferably Timothy or Meadow Hay), grass, and plenty of clean water available. See 'What do rabbits eat?' for more information.
When introducing any new food, always do so slowly over a few weeks to avoid digestive upsets. Rabbits, like humans are all different and as such some may be unable to tolerate certain foods. Only give a small amount and wait for 24 hours, if your rabbit produces soft poo, withdraw the food and try with something else after everything has settled back to normal. Allow 5 - 7 days before making any other additions. Always wash food first and don't feed plants from roadsides or that contain pesticides.
The first rule of feeding bunnies and their delicate tummies is: if in doubt - don't let them eat it! Rabbits have strong tastebuds and will try anything even if it's poisonous - it's up to you to protect them! The following list was taken from the RWAF website.
Which vegetables can rabbits eat?
A good guideline is to feed a minimum of 1 cup of vegetables for each 4 lbs of body weight per day.

Artichoke leaves
Asparagus
Beetroot (care with leafy tops as high levels of oxalic acid)
Broccoli (and its leaves, including purple sprouting varieties)
Brussel Sprouts (leaves and sprouts)
Cabbage (can sometimes cause digestive upsets)
Carrots (& carrot tops) – not the roots as they are high in sugars
Cauliflower (and the leaves)
Celeriac
Celery leaves
Chicory
Courgette (and flowers)
Cucumber
Curly Kale
Fennel
Green beans
Kohl rabi
Peas (including the leaves and pods)
Peppers (red, green and yellow)
Pumpkin
Radish Tops
Rocket
Romaine lettuce (not Iceberg or light coloured leaf)
Spinach (only occasional)
Spring Greens
Squash (e.g. Butternut)
Swede
Turnip (only occasional)
Watercress

Which fruits can rabbits eat?

Fruits should be fed in moderation due to sugar content (up to 2 tablespoons worth per day).
Do not feed the pips, stones, plants etc of fruits unless otherwise stated, as most of the time they are poisonous! Rabbits love sugary fruit and will eat too much of it, which is bad for them. Therefore it's up to you to limit it!
Apple (not the pips - they are poisonous!)
Apricot
Banana (high in potassium)
Blackberries (and leaves – excellent astringent properties)
Blueberries
Cherries (not the pits and plant - they contain cyanide and are therefore poisonous!)
Grapes
Kiwi Fruit
Mango
Melon
Nectarines
Oranges (not the peel)
Papaya
Peaches
Pears
Pineapple
Plums
Raspberries (and leaves – excellent astringent properties)
Strawberries (and leaves)
Tomatoes (NOT the leaves)

Safe herbs for bunnies
They can taste very strong so offer a little to start with to get your bunnies used to them.

Basil
Coriander
Dill
Mint (peppermint)
Parsley
Oregano
Rosemary
Sage
Thyme

Wild garden herbs, weeds and flowers that rabbits can eat

Double-check which plants are in your garden before letting your bunnies loose!
Borage
Calendula
Camomile
Chickweed (astringent)
Clover (leaves and flowers)
Coltsfoot
Comfrey
Dandelion (diuretic properties)
Goosegrass (cleavers) but may stick to coat!
Lavender
Mallow
Nettle
Nasturtium (leaves and flowers)
Shepherd’s purse
Sow Thistle
Plantain
Yarrow
You can see a list of some poisonous plants by clicking here.

This was taken from the save a fluff website
Source: http://www.saveafluff.co.uk/rabbit-info/safe-foods-for-rabbits

 

[Kirotea]

Thanks for the list. It says celery leaves but I've been feeding my bunnies the celery sticks too (chopped up because I read the stringy bits can wrap round their teeth) for a month with no problems. Is there any reason why you can't feed the celery itself? I'm sure I got it off another safe list somewhere. That's why it all gets so confusing! :?

 

[little-laura]

It's not an all inclusive list there may be things they can have that's not on it and is on other lists but be wary if sites that have miss information

You give them celery but some Bunnys in the past have chocked on them as they can get stringy so that's why some lists don't have them

 

[2Angels]

Brilliant post, really useful, will print a copy out, thanks x

 

[Kirotea]

It's not an all inclusive list there may be things they can have that's not on it and is on other lists but be wary if sites that have miss information

You give them celery but some Bunnys in the past have chocked on them as they can get stringy so that's why some lists don't have them

Ah ok thank you. I cut it up finely and they haven't had any problems so far, I will bear that in mind though. I've only had them a month so I'm still introducing things.

 

[luna]

Great thread, can I ask why spinach is only to be given occasionally ? Is it to do with the calcium content or something else?

Sent from my GT-I8190 using Tapatalk 2

 

[dbownes]

got my boys today and this list has really helped me...thanks

is it right that i can only feed em the pellets now and not the mix e.g russell rabbit??

 

[Zoobec]

got my boys today and this list has really helped me...thanks

is it right that i can only feed em the pellets now and not the mix e.g russell rabbit??

I would feed them the same food that they have been having at their previous home for a couple of weeks to allow them to settle in, then very gradually (over a couple of weeks ) start to change over to a pellet food . The changeover period is so that their stomachs don't get upset by sudden changes in diet .

 

[Lady Elf]

Perfect

This has been brilliant for me. I have just used this while doing my online shop.

My 2 girls have recently tried cucumber for the first time and they love it, plus cauliflower leaves.

My next step is to try them on fruit as everywhere I read, rabbits love a bit of sugar. Now I know which fruits they can have.

Thank you

 

[CrispyClaret]

got my boys today and this list has really helped me...thanks

is it right that i can only feed em the pellets now and not the mix e.g russell rabbit??

The reason some people recommend pellets over the rabbit mixes is economics. With the mixes, rabbits just eat the bits they like and leave the rest, this upsets owners as they are throwing away "good" food and they think their rabbits are fussy eaters. They also worry that the rabbits are missing out on some essential nutrients if they don't wolf down all the muesli, all in one pellets eliminates that worry.

The list is useful but I personally hate copied lists with all their copied "truths"
For example "high sugar content", why did is it bad for them?
Pips, yes do contain cyanide which is a poison, but the pips need to be cracked not whole to release the cyanide and can someone please tell me the fatal dose of pips otherwise it is just repeating "facts" by rote.
Potassium in bananas, as a statement it means nothing. Potassium can affect the heart, but in what quantity?
Anyone fancy explaining oxalic acid and its detrimental issues?

 

[CrispyClaret]

This has been brilliant for me. I have just used this while doing my online shop.

My 2 girls have recently tried cucumber for the first time and they love it, plus cauliflower leaves.

My next step is to try them on fruit as everywhere I read, rabbits love a bit of sugar. Now I know which fruits they can have.

Thank you

Mine love cucumber, basil, banana but are not bothered about parsley, carrots, apple, cauliflower. Experiment, often they will ignore new food but go back later and it has been eaten. But then they leave their fav foods as well sometimes.
They are like children, they eat what they enjoy, luckily they don't spit it onto a plate with an awful retching sound like children do when offended by new tastes.

 

[CrispyClaret]

Rabbits are ungrateful, I gave mine some tasty, to me, snackettes earlier. They just had a nibble and waddled off. Now I have just plonked a couple of twiggy branches in with them and you would think it was prime ateak the way they attack it.