Leafy greens for rabbit

[snowflake]

Hi All,

How much leafy greens should I feed my 10 pound rabbit a day?   She gets plenty of timothy hay and pellets as well.

Also just discovered, she LOVES apple slices.   How much of those can she have as treats?

Thank you!

[Wick & Fable]

For treats, it varies per rabbit, as sugar content is a concern, as well as supporting selective eating habits. Rabbits have different bars of expectations— for some rabbits, getting two treats per day heavily decreases their hay consumption because they’re waiting for more treats. Wick is limited to 1 Oxbow Veggie Treat per day, which he knows exactly when he gets it. I would definitely not go beyond 1 treat per day, every day. If it’s 2 treats in one day but it’s not a regular thing, then it’s quite harmless.

According to House Rabbit society (http://rabbit.org/suggested-vegetables-and-fruits-for-a-rabbit-diet/), it’s 1 cup per 2lb of rabbit, which aligns with what I give Wick. You can measure it out, but after you get a good idea of what the quantity looks like, feel free to eye-ball it. You’ll want to observe how many of the greens are high-calcium, because that may cause issues. Also, you want to make sure she’s still eating hay with all those veggies, but she seems like a big rabbit with lots of eating room, haha. Wick is at his max weight of 2lbs, so I cannot speak from experience!

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[snowflake]

Yes, she’s a big sweet girl!   Seems like 5 cups per day of greens is a lot!  If so, I’ve been underfeeding her 

[Wick & Fable]

It definitely seems like a lot. Perhaps read the link and see if there are any stipulations? Also you’d want to adjust if you see be not enough hay is being eaten. Honestly, the nutrients needed come from pellets, so veggies are just extra treats, is my understanding!

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[joea64]

Panda and Fernando are in the neighborhood of 3-4 pounds each – I’ll know for sure after their vet checkup this weekend – so I give them a total of 4 cups’ worth of greens, generally a little more, for their supper every day, which works out to 2 cups each and which they’re pretty good about splitting more or less equally.

They get approximately 1/8 cup each of timothy-hay-based Oxbow pellets in the morning, 1/4 cup total, and for the balance of the day they have mixed hay to eat. From my observation, they do their most active hay eating in the couple of hours or so following their breakfast and supper – I often see one or both of them sitting in their litterbox foraging for half an hour at a time or more – but they’ll nibble throughout the day as they get hungry.

[DanaNM]

My girl is 9 lbs, and I estimate she gets about 5-6 cups (loosely packed) per day! She practically eats me out of house and home.

I always eye-ball it though. It ends up being a pile on top of a dinner plate.

I rarely give fruit or treats at all (maybe the odd blueberry or tiny carrot piece), and they get a very small ration of pellets.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

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