Ten Things about Vegetables in a
Rabbit's Diet:
- Vegetables can provide
nutrients plus water content for your bunny.
- Be aware that some vegetables can give rabbits soft stools so
try new vegetables one at a time.
- Some rabbits can develop gas
which can be dangerous so go easy on the broccoli, cauliflower and other
cruciferous vegetables.
- Be sure to rinse vegetables
and leave some water on them for the rabbit. It will helps with digestion.
- Give your rabbits a
variety of vegetables.
- Rabbits have
many more taste buds than humans and they enjoy their food.
- Try
out vegetables one at a time to make sure they agree with the rabbit and do
not cause soft stools.
- Lettuce is fine, but only
the darker green varieties like romaine have lots of nutrients.
Skip ice berg lettuce and salad dressings!
- Rabbits also enjoy herbs.
- Bunnies can become "beggars"
for certain vegetables, but give them a variety.
Here are some vegetables to offer your rabbit and their calcium content per cup
(less calcium is better):
Beet Greens 46mg
Broccoli 42 mg
Carrots and tops 30 mg
Chicory Greens 180 mg
Cilantro 16 mg
Collard Greens 218 mg
Water Cress 40 mg
Dandelion Greens 103 mg
Kale 94 mg
Romaine Lettuce 20 mg
Leaf Lettuce 38 mg
Mustard Greens 58 mg
Parsley 78 mg
Sweet Peppers 6 mg
Pumpkin Leaves 24 mg
Radish and Leaves 28 mg
Turnip Greens 105 mg
Rabbits also enjoy herbs like mint, basil, rosemary, anise and others in
small amounts.
What
NOT to feed your rabbit:
Beans – None of them! (dried beans can cause a blockage, too)
Beets
Cabbage (can cause gas)
Coffee or tea leaves or plants (I lived on a coffee farm in Kona, drink it
yourself and don’t give any part of it to your rabbits)
Corn (also, dried can cause a blockage)
Green beans
Onions
Nuts (can cause blockages)
Peas (dried can also cause a blockage)
Potatoes
Rhubarb
Spinach (high calcium oxalate content)
Packaged greens mixes in a bag (many contain spinach).
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