Feeding veggies

[Areti17]

Calcifer is about 12 or 13 weeks old now! So it’s time to start introducing greens
I tried when I first got him, but he wasn’t interested, and then I realized it was too soon anyways.

Should I just start with basic lettuces? Or an herb? I know to introduce them slowly, but don’t know what to start with. And if I buy a head of lettuce, is there any parts I should NOT feed him?

He’s laying on my chest at the moment with his feet under my chin. If it wasn’t so darn cute I’d be offended that his butt was under my nose.

[AKM]

When my buns were about that age I tried numerous greens, because they are very picky. I would start with something like romaine, green leaf, spinach, kale, mixed greens. I would also only feed a few pieces at a time to see how your bun likes them. My one little boy is 8 months and I still can’t get him to try much!

[kurottabun]

You could try with a small piece of herb or cilantro. The HRS has a list of safe herbs and veggies

With any vegetable, the general rule is to introduce it slowly, one type at a time as some rabbits are more sensitive to certain kinds of vegetables than others. If you give a mix of vegetables from the start and the bun gets an upset tummy, you wouldn’t know which vegetable caused it.

Once you know the bun is okay with it (no mushy poop, gas, bladder sludge etc), you can then slowly increase the size of the piece.

[Azerane]

I agree, just pick one green for now. Something that you are also likely to use yourself because when introducing a new green you’re unlikely to be able to use it all before it goes bad. So romaine lettuce, swiss chard, bok choy, basil, cilantro, all are good options to pick for the first one. So pick one and start out with a very small piece the size of your finger for the first day and slowly increase the size day by day if there’s no gut upsets. After 2 weeks you can pick another green to introduce and feed along with the first

[Areti17]

Update…

So far, I’ve tried giving him spinach and romaine, and be wont even touch it yet. ?

I thought I’d gotten free of picky eaters, but then this little nugget came along. Oh well. I’ll keep trying with the romaine for a couple days (or until I eat the rest of it), and then I’ll see if he likes cilantro.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Be careful if you are in the US. Romaine has made a lot of people sick so they are saying you should boycott it for now. Not sure how E.coli would affect bunnies but better not to risk it. You can try Green or Red leaf instead. My bun loves that just as much.

[Areti17]

The romaine was local, so not from the area that had the contamination. But he didn’t eat it anyway ?

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