Most pet owners know that a rabbit’s diet will consist of things like water, pellets and vegetables. When it comes to fruit, it is important that this is only given on an occasional basis, as they can be bad for your rabbit’s health. Rabbits require a constant water supply as they dehydrate quickly. In order to help you care for your rabbit properly, please find below some rabbit food tips.

Pellets

Rabbits are generally fed a pelleted feed available from pet stores, supermarkets, and farm suppliers. An interesting fact is that pellets were once primarily used by the breeders who needed inexpensive food.

Hay

As well as pellets, all rabbits need hay in their hutches. Rabbits sometimes have digestive problems, but as long as there is enough hay in the hutch, they are sure to stay much healthier. As well as this, hay is also full of vitamins which your rabbit needs. Most rabbits enjoy nibbling on hay and this prevents them from chewing other things, so it is definitely useful to have.

Treats

In addition to hay and pellets, there are also many different rabbit food treats available. Don’t overdo the treats though, as they are bad in large quantities. Most treats sold in pet stores are filled with sugar and high food energy carbohydrates. If an owner is determined to feed the rabbit treats, the best treat to provide it with is fruit.

Acceptable fruits (seeds and pips MUST be removed): Banana, Mango, Pineapple, Peach, Apple, Kiwi, Berries, Orange and other citrus fruits.

Fruits or other treats must be given in moderation, as rabbits easily become overweight and suffer health problems. Their diet should consist of no more than half a tablespoon of fruits or treats per day.

However, fresh fruits should not be given to rabbits under the age of 4 months because their digestive systems are not always developed enough to handle the fruit. The worst case scenario is when fruit can cause enteritis which can be deadly in a very short space of time.

Please also note that lettuce isn’t recommended either, as it can also cause rabbit death due to the lack of nutritional value.

Caecal pellets

Something else you should be aware of is that some rabbits do eat their faeces. What many people don’t realise is that these faeces are called ‘cecal’ pellets and rabbits get a lot nutritional value from eating them. A rabbit needs to stay healthy, and cecal pellets help to give your bunny a good supply of vitamin B12. Due to the design of the rabbit’s digestive system, they cannot extract some vitamins and minerals directly from their food, so that is why they eat faeces. Don’t panic though, as this is normal practice.