What foods can and can't rabbits eat?

[ladysown]

perhaps not feeding rhubarb.......... (at least I've not heard of it being edible by rabbits)

 

[MaggieJ]

I yard has a ton of different trees (poplar, cedar, birch, etc.) . We also have some naturel growing rubarb. Willow. I can look around more this evening

Poplar and willow are very good for rabbits. When you get windy weather, gather up fallen branches or twigs -- you can bundle them and air-dry them for feeding later if there are a lot. Not sure about birch, but it should be fairly easy to research if you know what kind of birch it is. I don't know offhand about cedar.

DO NOT feed rhubarb. The leaves and roots are toxic. The stems are safe for people but I don't advise giving any part of it to rabbits.

 

[Preitler]

The problem with rhubarb is the very high content of oxalic acid, in combination of how rabbits process calcium that can lead to problems. The stems are just the most palatable part for humans, but even we should not eat too much of it.

 

[arachyd]

One group of foods to avoid is the brassicas. They include cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli that are commonly available in supermarkets. They cause gas. Some rabbits are ok with a bit of it but others cannot tolerate it. I fed a very small piece of cauliflower leaf to 3 rabbits years ago. 1 was fine, 1 developed severe diarrhea and one, my favorite, died a painful death from bloat.

 

[MnCanary]

I wonder what was going on. When I plant brassicas in the garden, the wild rabbits eat them within 24 hours. I've fed kale (a brassica) to rabbits many many times, without issue. They drop everything and rush over to eat the kale. The same with rapeseed plants (another brassica).

 

[Kay2322]

Poplar and willow are very good for rabbits. When you get windy weather, gather up fallen branches or twigs -- you can bundle them and air-dry them for feeding later if there are a lot. Not sure about birch, but it should be fairly easy to research if you know what kind of birch it is. I don't know offhand about cedar.

DO NOT feed rhubarb. The leaves and roots are toxic. The stems are safe for people but I don't advise giving any part of it to rabbits.

Thanks so much. We have a lot of clover at our place and my grandpa said its great for rabbits

 

[Kay2322]

One group of foods to avoid is the brassicas. They include cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli that are commonly available in supermarkets. They cause gas. Some rabbits are ok with a bit of it but others cannot tolerate it. I fed a very small piece of cauliflower leaf to 3 rabbits years ago. 1 was fine, 1 developed severe diarrhea and one, my favorite, died a painful death from bloat.

Sorry to hear that. I will make sure I don't feed those things to them

 

[MaggieJ]

One group of foods to avoid is the brassicas. They include cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli that are commonly available in supermarkets. They cause gas. Some rabbits are ok with a bit of it but others cannot tolerate it. I fed a very small piece of cauliflower leaf to 3 rabbits years ago. 1 was fine, 1 developed severe diarrhea and one, my favorite, died a painful death from bloat.

Kay,
It's certainly a good idea to avoid the brassicas until you are more experienced. The results of feeding them can be painful and even life-threatening for the rabbit, as arachyd has said. Some rabbits handle them without problems if they are introduced carefully -- in small quantities with a lot of safe greens fed at the same time.

Wild rabbits sometimes eat things that would kill a domestic rabbit. Also to be noted, wild rabbits in North America are not the same species as European wild rabbits. I don't see any way to predict the results of feeding problematic greens, so best not to try at this stage.

I once saw a young cottontail eat three-quarters of a large milkweed leaf -- and milkweed is definitely toxic. It seemed unaffected by it. I speculate now that the rabbit was self-medicating, probably for internal parasites. But that is no more than a guess. There is so much we don't know about rabbit food choices.

I hope you are keeping a list of plants discussed so you can check a plant's safety without having to read through all the info discussed on threads like this one. Record the username of the person who offered the info in each entry.
~~~~~

Clover is a safe plant for rabbits, as your Grandpa mentioned. It is a rich food, so phase it in slowly in a mix with other greens. Feeding several plant species at one meal is a good idea, since rabbits are nibblers. A leaf of this, a taste of that, a whole plant of something else. And note what gets eaten first!

 

[Kay2322]

Kay,
It's certainly a good idea to avoid the brassicas until you are more experienced. The results of feeding them can be painful and even life-threatening for the rabbit, as arachyd has said. Some rabbits handle them without problems if they are introduced carefully -- in small quantities with a lot of safe greens fed at the same time.

Wild rabbits sometimes eat things that would kill a domestic rabbit. Also to be noted, wild rabbits in North America are not the same species as European wild rabbits. I don't see any way to predict the results of feeding problematic greens, so best not to try at this stage.

I once saw a young cottontail eat three-quarters of a large milkweed leaf -- and milkweed is definitely toxic. It seemed unaffected by it. I speculate now that the rabbit was self-medicating, probably for internal parasites. But that is no more than a guess. There is so much we don't know about rabbit food choices.

I hope you are keeping a list of plants discussed so you can check a plant's safety without having to read through all the info discussed on threads like this one. Record the username of the person who offered the info in each entry.
~~~~~

Clover is a safe plant for rabbits, as your Grandpa mentioned. It is a rich food, so phase it in slowly in a mix with other greens. Feeding several plant species at one meal is a good idea, since rabbits are nibblers. A leaf of this, a taste of that, a whole plant of something else. And note what gets eaten first!

Thank you MaggieJ, it's very helpful! I will definitly keep note of what plants are good and who mentioned them!

 

[Cosima]

Can rabbits eat coconut?

 

[Kay2322]

I looked it up and the inside is too sweet and fatening for them but they shell is safe for them to chew on and it is a great thing to sharpen their teeth.