Overeating can quickly lead to obesity in rabbits, which is a very dangerous condition. Since rabbits have such a sensitive digestive system, they run the risk of developing complications in their gut that will require medical intervention.
Using both hands, gently run your finger tips along the sides of your rabbit – you should be able to feel a slight fat covering over your rabbits ribs but you should still be able to feel them. If it becomes difficult to feel the ribs, your pet may be overweight.
Your rabbit will stop eating when it's satiated or during rest. However, it's important to keep in mind that it's normal for rabbits to eat numerous times throughout the day.
Feed your rabbits a small amount of good quality pellets or nuggets daily. Give them the right amount - measure 25g (an eggcup-full) of pellets per kg of your rabbit's body weight. For example, for a medium-sized rabbit (2kg), feed a maximum of two full egg cups.
Rabbits should be fed and provided with fresh water daily; hay should always be available. As nibblers, they should have food available at all times.
The total amount of fresh food that you may give to your rabbit daily (once your bunny has been gradually introduced to it), is a minimum of 1 heaping cup (loosely packed), per 5 pound of body weight, given two times a day.
Rabbits like to play and need plenty of exercise to stay healthy and happy. Ideally you want to provide them with up to 4 hours daily of supervised time out of their cage. Rabbits are subject to depression and poor health if they're not provided with daily interaction and mental stimulation.
As well as hay, grass and fresh food, you should give each of your rabbits one tablespoon of nuggets every day (or twice a day if they're over 3.5kg).
Myth #3 - Rabbits eat lettuce
Reality: a rabbit's diet shouldn't be based on lettuce. Rabbits shouldn't eat some lettuces (such as iceberg), as they contain lactucarium, which can be harmful in large quantities.
Yes, it is safe for rabbits to eat cucumber! Most rabbits will love the fresh taste. Rabbits can also eat cucumber leaves. Before feeding cucumber to your rabbit, wash it in cold water to remove pesticides.
It is possible for your pet to grow tired of eating the same kind of hay every day. Offering new types of hay opens your pet up to a variety of new tastes and textures to make mealtime exciting.
Any leafy green that is safe for a human or a horse to eat is safe for a rabbit to consume. An approximate amount to feed would be around 1 cup of greens for 2 lbs of rabbit body weight once a day or divided into multiple feedings a day.
Biting due to food aggression
When food is scarce, rabbits will fight with each other to defend what food they are able to find. This behavior is evident in domestic rabbits and can become a problem if rabbits bite their owners during normal feeding times.
Pellets can be good for rabbits in small quantities, but they are not a necessary part of a rabbit's daily food intake. If pet rabbits are given a balanced diet with grass-based hay and a variety of leafy green vegetables, they can still be healthy on a pellet-free diet.
A rabbit can go maybe 3-4 days without food before dying. However, they can also develop severe GI Stasis within 12 hours of not eating and can die.
You may wonder if your rabbit is malnourished, has an eating disorder, or if it's in danger of weight gain. However, in the majority of cases, this behavior is normal in rabbits. Rabbits always seem hungry – because they are. As grazing animals, they're designed to eat whenever they can.
Do not give broccoli to rabbits. It will give them painful gas. Never give your rabbit kale or spinach. Kale and spinach can cause health problems over time, due to the high amount of oxalates and goitrogens.
High in sugar, apples should only be fed to rabbits as a treat. Also high in sugar, it's safe for rabbits to eat bananas occasionally. Rabbits have a sweet tooth, so grapes are great as a treat.
You can offer fruits in small amounts because that fructose can quickly pile on the pounds! Can rabbits eat apples? Yes! They also eat pineapples, pears, plums, bananas, and watermelons.
Feeding takes place mainly in the early morning, evening and at night – this is because in the wild this is when the rabbit is safest from predators, and many owners notice this pattern in their pet rabbits.
What can rabbits not eat? These foods are poisonous for your rabbit and could make her ill: Potatoes, daffodils, tulips, rhubarb, lillies, mushrooms, avocado, broad beans, sweet peas, buttercup, kidney beans, jasmine, foxglove and iceberg lettuce.
Rabbits are herbivores. They will graze on herbaceous plants like grass and clover all the time. As they are crepuscular with nocturnal leanings, wild rabbits graze at dawn, dusk, and night. Digesting so much fiber requires chambered stomachs like cows do or long intestines.
A--No, you shouldn`t keep your rabbit in a cage all day. A rabbit is no different from any other animal. For its psychological and physical health, it needs exercise. This doesn`t mean that you let him out to cavort and hop all over.
Do bunnies like to be held? Whilst you may like to give your bunny a nice big cuddle every time you see him, this really isn't advised at all. Rabbits are prey animals and can become easily spooked and scared. They don't really like to be picked up and handled too often, even by humans that they like!
Your rabbit does not need a cage. However, an untrained rabbit probably should be kept in a home-base of some kind, like an exercise pen (x-pen), a large cage, or some other protected housing, while you're not home to supervise and at night when you sleep.