Questions and comments about plant safety for rabbits.

MaggieJ · Dec 27, 2009

This thread is intended to be a place for members to ask questions about plant safety and uses for rabbits and to suggest plants that they have found to be useful for their own rabbits. There is so much more to learn on this topic... and I look forward to your input.

I will also be posting a list of plants toxic to rabbits. This is always harder to compile since there are degrees of toxicity and many existing lists throw everything in there that might possibly be toxic to any animal species. I have seen clover and alfalfa on such lists because of photo-sensitivity issues that do not apply to rabbits. Again, ask your questions here and post your experiences, good and bad, so that we can learn together.

Brody · Dec 27, 2009

My rabbits have TOTALLY enjoyed supplementing hay this winter with dried sugar maple leaves ... and some willow leaves too

I will run out by mid January - hope the bunnies don't hate me

avdpas77 · Dec 29, 2009

A word about "sweet" clover (Melilotus officinalis/M. alba)

Sweet clover contains a substance known as coumarin, which is a blood thinner. It is the substance which gives its sap that characteristic smell. If the plant is damaged or "smashed" like is done when making hay, it can get a mold that is not readily obvious, which causes the coumain to be converted to dicoumarin, a much stronger blood thinner. Both substances are in the same group of chemicals as "wafarin" and other progressive rodent poisons. These chemicals inhibit the usage of Vitamin K in mammals. (Alfalfa, btw, contains a fair amount of vitamin K.)

One should be judicious about feeding the green plant or the hay.

A more in depth explanation can be found by Googling "sweet clover toxicity"

MaggieJ · Dec 29, 2009

Thanks, Avdpas77, for the helpful information about sweet clover. I knew it was not considered a desirable plant for rabbits, but I never knew why. Now I do.

Anntann · Jan 24, 2010

What about duckweed? Anyone know about that aquatic plant? it's invasive, but HIGH in protein (50%) so I was thinking about a simple manmade pond to harvest it.....

Ducks can eat it nicely, if that's a help.

MaggieJ · Jan 24, 2010

I'm pretty sure it is safe, but let me look into it further. I was thinking of growing it in a tank for my geese for winter greens but didn't manage to harvest any before freeze-up.

currycomb · Feb 14, 2010

what are you considering sweet clover? red clover white clover ladino clover?

Anntann · Feb 14, 2010

The tall lanky sweet clover. not the small red and purple and white round headed clovers (different genus all together). The sweet clovers are tall, with long spikes for seedheads. long taproots.

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=meof will give you a few images.
Avdpas77 did give the latin plant designation: Melilotus officinalis/M. alba (alba is the white type)

MaggieJ · Feb 14, 2010

Neither of the sweet clovers - yellow or white - are considered safe for rabbits. Thanks for the links to pictures, Ann, and for providing botanical names.

currycomb · Feb 15, 2010

thanks for the clarification, i was starting to panic, we have orchard grass and clover hay we feed to the rabbits, round headed type clover. they love it, and haven't noticed any problems with it. we give to moms for nesting material and munchies

Farm Girl · Mar 8, 2010

I was wondering if anybody feeds peppers to their rabbits?
I'm going to plant my peppers today and if they were good I'd plant extra.

Miss M · Mar 8, 2010

In trying to woo Pearl away from springing a leak in the water line to the toilet, I offered her a piece of crepe myrtle branch - likely Lagerstroemia indica, but possibly Lagerstroemia faurei. It is my understanding from the 3bunnies site that this is safe for rabbits. They didn't have the Latin name, and didn't respond to my query, but there is no other plant referred to as a crepe myrtle.

Pearl gnawed hers a little, preferring to lick it. Perhaps it was too large for her liking, or maybe she just didn't like it. Thumper gnawed the bark off of some of his piece.

That not being a big hit with Pearl, and with her continuing to munch on the water line, I had to get something else besides the hay, the toilet paper rolls, the cereal box, etc. I knew pear was safe, so I went out and lopped off a large twig of Bradford pear - Pyrus calleryana, cultivar Bradford, and hoped that ornamental pear, still being from the rose family.

It was budding, and those were the first parts to go, followed by bark and the small tips of the twig.

MaggieJ · Mar 8, 2010

Sounds like you are doing fine, Miss M. I'm not familiar with the plants down south, so am of limited help to you. Matching pictures to the plant your have in your yard to establish botanical names sometimes works... Google Image searches are great for that.

I'm not familiar with Bradford pear. I generally do not feed ornamentals, just out of caution, but you are going about it right... checking the plant family and starting with just a little.

Anntann · Mar 8, 2010

I tried green peppers with mama-san..she wouldn't eat them. Out in the garden last year, the cotton tails ate the bottoms off all my tomatoes, but completely left the peppers (which they had to go past to get to the tomatoes) alone.

However, I see that the bunny sites out there for home rabbits, etc., say that green peppers are just fine..right up there with romaine, chard, etc.

Miss M · Mar 8, 2010

MaggieJ":k30eddss said:
Sounds like you are doing fine, Miss M. I'm not familiar with the plants down south, so am of limited help to you. Matching pictures to the plant your have in your yard to establish botanical names sometimes works... Google Image searches are great for that.

I'm not familiar with Bradford pear. I generally do not feed ornamentals, just out of caution, but you are going about it right... checking the plant family and starting with just a little.

Thanks, Maggie! Yeah, we are a little farther south, aren't we? :lol:

Farm Girl · Mar 9, 2010

Thanks Ann, I guess I'll just have to see if my rabbit likes them.
And does anybody know about Common yellow woodsorrel, Oxalis stricta, is it good for rabbits?

Its really nice having a place where you can ask questions and lots of friendly people help with your question.

Have a good night,
Farm Girl

TeamHillbilly · Apr 16, 2010

has anybody ever used huckleberrie roots for their rabbits to chew on???????????????

MaggieJ · May 1, 2010

Farm Girl, Common yellow woodsorrel, Oxalis stricta, is not recommended for rabbits because of the high oxalic acid content. It's not one of those "one bite and bunny keels over" plants, but should not be used as a food for them.

TeamHillbilly, I'm not certain what you mean by huckleberrie... It is one of those terms that covers many different plants in different areas. Can you provide a botanical (Latin) name for it?

lemonthyme · May 9, 2010

I am wondering about a couple of salad greens. I grow greens all winter in an unheated greenhouse and hope to have enough for at least treats for the buns next winter. I will have Mache' (a.k.a. corn salad), mizuna (Asain green), Tatsoi (another Asain green), Claytonia (miner's lettuce), & Arugula as well as beet greens and lettuce which I know are okay. Do any of these raise a red flag? Thanks! Karen

MaggieJ · May 9, 2010

I'm not really very familiar with Asian vegetables. I couldn't find anything for Mache (corn salad) but I would think it should be just fine and so should arugula.

I've seen miner's lettuce on the undesirable lists... so I would give it a miss until you have done more research.

Grain grasses can be easily grown in dishpans in winter. Wheat, barley and oat grass are all great green feed for rabbits.

Questions and comments about plant safety for rabbits.

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