Growing a medicinal herb garden for rabbits

[rockyhillrabbits]

I am thinking of buying seeds and trying to grow a little garden of sorts for the rabbits. I'm thinking plantain, dandelion, Echinacea, Chamomile, Lemon Balm so far. I have space down by the barn but it will have to be fenced off to keep the horses out and I don't know if that part would be feasible. We could grow it in a small section of the yard also. Are there any others I should add? I thought about blackberry and raspberry bushes also.

 

[seashore]

Parsley, oregano, borage.
This might help too Rabbits & Herbs

 

[Alaska Satin]

I am thinking of buying seeds and trying to grow a little garden of sorts for the rabbits. I'm thinking plantain, dandelion, Echinacea, Chamomile, Lemon Balm so far. I have space down by the barn but it will have to be fenced off to keep the horses out and I don't know if that part would be feasible. We could grow it in a small section of the yard also. Are there any others I should add? I thought about blackberry and raspberry bushes also.

I like your choices. My rabbits love dandelion and plantain. And I don't know if anyone would intentionally plant it because it spreads everywhere, but they love chickweed too.

Raspberries are a great idea; their leaves contain an oxytocin analog that can be very helpful in helping a doe whose labor has stalled.

Parsley is another good one because it can help stimulate appetite in rabbits who are off their feed.

The other plants I wouldn't be without are willow and comfrey. Both of those are perennials and serve many uses.

Willow is an excellent forage; the whole plant is useful. The bark contains salicylic acid, a natural analgesic, which rabbits experiencing any sort of pain or discomfort can use to self-medicate. You can harvest the leaves or entire branches and dry them for later feeding. A nice willow hedge can be a combination privacy fence, windblock and forage source. It's easy to propagate; just cut a few branches off an established tree or shrub and stick them in the ground. Really.

Russian comfrey is another plant you can use for feed, and it seems to be a general tonic for rabbits. (You do need to start with it slowly, like all other dietary additions for rabbits). The dried leaves are high in protein, somewhere around 20-30%.

Most varieties are super vigorous and will take over your garden, so I grow a sterile variety called Bocking 14 Russian Comfrey. It won't reproduce unless you want it to, which by the way is super easy, a lot like willows. When we moved one year in the late fall, I dug up some comfrey tubers from our old garden and tossed them in a bucket with a little bit of dirt. The next spring I chopped them into pieces, stuck them in the ground, and now I have four huge plants at our new place. So don't buy a bunch of tubers - just one or two will do you, as they will get B-I-G and you can divide to make more plants if you want them. The older leaves and stems are a little prickly and the rabbits prefer the small fresh leaves, but once they're used to it they'll happily eat it all.

 

[rockyhillrabbits]

Willow trees are pretty. I might plant a tree down by the pond. I had read about comfrey and borage too. May add them to my garden.

 

[Buknee]

All of the above. My rabbits also love kale, spinach, dill and arugula.
Last spring I planted a garden mix of veggies and herbs. I harvested it all summer and fall.
It also had beets in it which I harvested the greens. Hoppy bunnies!

 

[HTAcres]

Willow trees are pretty. I might plant a tree down by the pond. I had read about comfrey and borage too. May add them to my garden.

Willow and mulberry trees supply much of my forage. The rabbits love it and I just have to microirrigate (desert). I also cut and dry for winter like Alaska Satin. The garden is a great idea, it's just hard for me here. One thing that did grow for me was sweet potato vines.

 

[ladysown]

chives, strawberries

 

[GreenAcresHomestead]

All of the above. My rabbits also love kale, spinach, dill and arugula.
Last spring I planted a garden mix of veggies and herbs. I harvested it all summer and fall.
It also had beets in it which I harvested the greens. Hoppy bunnies!

We have 16 rabbits too and looked to see if kale was safe for our rabbits for we give it to our Bearded Dragon.

***Copied from the Internet:
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.****

 

[Alaska Satin]

We have 16 rabbits too and looked to see if kale was safe for our rabbits for we give it to our Bearded Dragon.

***Copied from the Internet:
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.****

Our rabbits have always enjoyed kale, and to a lesser degree spinach, during the time of year when it's in the garden. You can find warnings about feeding rabbits cabbage and broccoli leaves as well, but in small amounts (often when rabbits got into the garden... um... without our permission!) I never saw any problems at all unless the rabbits were not used to fresh greens. In that case, any fresh greens can give them a bellyache if you give them a bunch when they're not used to it. Really, any change at all in a rabbit's diet should be slow.

Oxalates can be an issue for both rabbits and humans, since oxalates bind to calcium and can cause kidney stones, among other things. Many leafy greens contain oxalates, in fact our own bodies make them too, but cutting leafy greens out of your diet isn't something you'll hear many people suggest (maybe my teenage son), since the benefits far outweigh the slight risk.

Goitrogens are compounds that interfere with the normal function of the thyroid gland, which can cause goiters or other health problems. Again, leafy greens often contain these compounds. In fact, flavonoids (which are beneficial antioxidants and one reason leafy greens are considered healthy) can be converted into goitrogens in our gut...still, not a reason to eliminate them.

I think it's more about the amount and the balance of other things in the diet. A diet of nothing but kale and cabbage and broccoli would probably give anyone a bellyache!

 

[Fernie]

There are a billion lists of thing to and not to feed rabbits. This is the formula I use to figure out what to feed them every day. This is everyday per rabbit.

Hay	1/2 lb
Fresh Greens	1 cup
Fresh Vegetables	1 Tbl
Fruit	1 tsp
Water	1 cup

Now some rabbits drink more than others. Just like people many like certain foods more than others. This is just a guide. My son's pet rabbit eats more fresh than he does hay or pellets and yes we offer him pellets because he was on pellets when we got him. We are weaning him off at his pace.

 

[Alaska Satin]

There are a billion lists of thing to and not to feed rabbits. This is the formula I use to figure out what to feed them every day. This is everyday per rabbit.

Hay	1/2 lb
Fresh Greens	1 cup
Fresh Vegetables	1 Tbl
Fruit	1 tsp
Water	1 cup

Now some rabbits drink more than others. Just like people many like certain foods more than others. This is just a guide. My son's pet rabbit eats more fresh than he does hay or pellets and yes we offer him pellets because he was on pellets when we got him. We are weaning him off at his pace.

I feed pellets as well as fresh and dried greens and seeds, so I don't have an opinion on the food list. Though I agree, different rabbits do have different preferences and many seem to adjust their intake of certain things according to their condition.

But one comment I have is that it seems to be a good practice to provide unlimited water to rabbits. They will not eat if they can't drink. Almost all of my meat rabbits drink quite a bit more than a cup a day, and most of the bucks drink a lot more than that. My goal is to have the option for water available to them at all times.

We limit feed for the adults (they tend to get fat), but never limit the water. In fact in the winter when we give them fresh warm water twice a day (ideally, although teenagers are in charge of that chore so it's not perfect), I also freeze blocks of ice that they can chew on, to make sure they stay well-hydrated. I freeze carrot peelings, apple cores or bots of salad greens inside the blocks, which makes it a treat and a toy as well as a water source.

 

[Fernie]

I feed pellets as well as fresh and dried greens and seeds, so I don't have an opinion on the food list. Though I agree, different rabbits do have different preferences and many seem to adjust their intake of certain things according to their condition.

But one comment I have is that it seems to be a good practice to provide unlimited water to rabbits. They will not eat if they can't drink. Almost all of my meat rabbits drink quite a bit more than a cup a day, and most of the bucks drink a lot more than that. My goal is to have the option for water available to them at all times.

We limit feed for the adults (they tend to get fat), but never limit the water. In fact in the winter when we give them fresh warm water twice a day (ideally, although teenagers are in charge of that chore so it's not perfect), I also freeze blocks of ice that they can chew on, to make sure they stay well-hydrated. I freeze carrot peelings, apple cores or bots of salad greens inside the blocks, which makes it a treat and a toy as well as a water source.

The amounts are general. We have had rabbits that drink gallons and other rabbits that drank very little. If you look most rabbit bottles are 16 ounces which is 2 cups of water.
It varies from animal and the climate. Up in NE WI in the dead of winter the rabbits drank less. Down in Texas in August they will drink more. Over all it is a pretty good guide to use as a starting point.