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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum DIET & CARE Flummoxed

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    • Q8bunny
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        Ok… so I know the BB regulars know about Chewie’s weird food preferences, but things are getting ridiculous. This strange bun of mine has gotten to the point where he will literally try everything in his power to sink his tiny teeth into anything and everything I happen to be eating – no matter how strange, hot, smelly, or spicy.

        To the extent where in an effort to calm him, I let him sniff my plate right next to his delicious fresh salad – he ignored the dewy greens and pounced on my hot cheeseburger and vinegar fries. I pulled away the plate before he could gobble up a second mouthful, but he spent the duration of my meal hopping around my feet and periscoping, completely ignoring his own food. WTH??

        Let’s ignore for a moment the fact that things like salsa and grilled fish are not good for bunnies. Why are his tastebuds screaming out for this stuff? He eats his own food with gusto, but human food… he turns into the bunny from Monty Python for the stuff. I would venture to guess that his cravings might be a result of a weird nutritional deficiency, except that he gets an extremely healthy and varied diet, and all his labs at the last checkup are fab.

        Any ideas on why I have an omnivore rabbit?


      • Aki
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          It’s really not that weird, most rabbits will eat things that are bad for them – I once had a bunny who was crazy about eating zippers… most specialists say that domestic bunnies don’t have any instinct when it comes to food anymore so rabbits liking dairy products, meat or baked good are pretty common. You generally wouldn’t know it because most owners don’t let their bunny near that kind of goods. It’s like humans who eat fast-food, it’s not good for them but they will eat it if they have the chance and the more they eat it, the less they like healthy food because they become addicted to the salt / sugar / fat combo. After biting into a hamburger, lettuce tastes bland even for a bunny.

          What I don’t understand is what is your bunny doing near your plate? Aren’t you eating on a table? Considering that it seems to fuel his wanting to eat human food I would put his own food far from mine and not allow him to come close to the dinner table while people are eating (kinda managing him like he’s a dog). By making him sniff your plate, you act like you’re gonna give him the food and then you take it away as soon as he tries it – in a way you are encouraging his behaviour (you offered it once, why not twice ?).


        • Bam
          Moderator
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            I can only guess it’s a bit like it is with dogs. If a dog sees another animal or a human eat sth, the dog assumes it must be good. It is a deep instinct and if you have a dog that’s picky and unwilling to eat you can often resolve it by bringing in another dog – picky dog sees other dog eat and starts eating too. My dog will even eat dandelions when she’s able to steal some from the buns.

            To Chewie you are the most wonderful being in the world and that must of course mean that everything you eat is really, really good. I doubt letting him smell your food will make him understand that it’s not really appropriate bunny food. You want it, that means it’s good for Chewie too.


          • Ava
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              When I was young we had a rabbit that loved beef noodles. Being children and not understanding rabbit digestive systems, we thought it hilarious that our rabbit enjoyed eating beef. We never gave him much, but every time we had beef noodles, he would be bouncing about our feet and trying to jump up to get a bite. Looking back, I’m surprised that rabbit thrived and was as healthy as he was, considering all the non-rabbit safe things we let him eat. Rabbits can be hardy little critters.


            • Gina.Jenny
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                Maybe this is Chewie’s way of ‘encouraging’ you to replace your cheeseburger and fries with a nice tasty plate full of yummy green salad stuff that you can happily share together!


              • Q8bunny
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                  GJ: If only… I have a huge bowl of salad pretty much every day with my dinner (and I don’t like dressings, so my salad is literally rabbit food). This was me trying to use up the last of the stuff in my freezer & pantry when I got back from my trip. A burger was the quickest thing I could make with mince and a potato.

                  Aki: Chewie is 100% free range, which is why he can be periscoping around me while I’m eating – notice I said that I “gave” him my plate to sniff in the hopes that a sniff of pungent vinegar might deter him. And while yes, he’s definitely tried random bites of human food (what 100% free range bun hasn’t?) Chewie’s diet is extremely healthy, so it’s not like he’s running around the house pillaging all the human comestibles.

                  Bam: Now that I think about it, your theory makes the most sense. Our wolf used to take this approach to food. I just wish there were something I could do to help him not feel excluded… maybe I’ll split his salad in two and give him one half while keeping one half on my plate to handfeed to him when he starts circling like a fluffy little shark.


                • Vienna Blue in France
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                    @Aki – you haven’t yet read the part where Chewie gets to go to the cinema too??!!! LOL


                  • LittlePuffyTail
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                      Bindi steals hard cat food every chance he gets. I keep telling him he’s a vegan….

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                  Forum DIET & CARE Flummoxed