Should you feed Rabbits carrots every day?

Question

I have a lop eared lion head female rabbit, the vet told me not to feed her a carrot every day but on many websites it says to give rabbits fresh fruit and veg every day - am a little confused, what shall i do?

Answer 1

We feed our six year old indoor bunn carrots and pellets and parsley and mint every day, and he's extremely healthy. And hay and water is always available to him of course too :-)

Generally speaking, before six months, bunnies' main diet should be hay, water, and lucerne pellets. Some say you can begin introducing vegetables at four months, some say not until six months of age. Most importantly, when you begin to introduce vegies, you must do it VERY slowly and gradually - begin with just one slice or one very small piece of your chosen vegie or fruit, and make sure it doesn't give her diarrhoea over the next 24 hours before giving any more. Please see my website, where I've written articles on this, at
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood

Also, NEVER give lettuce and NEVER give cabbage to rabbits - lettuce and cabbage are both very bad for rabbits, can cause diarrhoea and bloat which can kill them -
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood#lettuce

And please check out my site at
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood#safe&poisonous
for lists of safe and dangerous foods for bunnies older than six months of age, reproduced from the excellent "Rabbitlopaedia" by Meg Brown and Virginia Richardson.

Have a read of these great detailed rabbit sites too -
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/rabbits/a/?once=true&
http://www.tagyerit.com/hopline/cold.htm
http://www.rabbit.org/
http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html
http://www.houserabbit.co.uk/
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyhouserabbits.html - http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood.html - my own site - please have a browse and enjoy!

Answer 2

Yes But All So A Selection Such As Carrots, Apples, Green Vegs but mix it up also make sure you give the mixed pellets as this is good for there teeth. if its droppings become wet then your not giving her a well mixed balance of veg, fruit and rabbit pellets.
Carrots Are Quite Good As They Can Se In The Dark :D

Answer 3

Listen to the vet. Just because the myth says that carrots are the favorite food of a rabbit, doesn't mean that's all they eat. They also love chopped apples, lettuce, tomatoes, and even pea pods. You know, snow peas are a great snack for a rabbit. Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Not so sure about guinea pigs, but rabbits should be fed fresh vegetables everyday along with hay and pellets. I would stay away from the cabbage and rabbits should never have iceburg lettuce but romaine, kale, turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, broccoli, cilantro, mint ,parsley,carrots, bell peppers, apples, and grapes are all good for rabbits. I believe generally the same list is good for the guinea pig as well, just not sure if they require daily veggies, but rabbits definitely should get daily veggies. It is extremely important for their digestion. Hope this helps! Best of luck!

Answer 5

My vet told me carrots are good for them, but are high in sugar. I personally don't give my bunny a whole carrot everyday. Sometimes, I'll give him half of one (or several baby carrots) every 2-3 days or so. I usually feed my bunny turnip greens, mustard greens, or parsley daily. All other foods are treats.

I say, listen to your vet and not websites all the time. Sometimes other websites are just written by regular people. I trust my vet over them any day. My vet actually gave me this website and told me to use this as my list for foods. It's written and used by vets: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=673 . Hope that helps!

Answer 6

Like the vet and website said, there are other vegetables that the rabbit eats like Cabbage. You can feed them with fresh cabbage leaves and other edible greens.

Have pasted a link which says the Vegetables that you can feed the Rabbits.

Answer 7

carrots are treats and should be given
accordingly to your bunny. Carrots are high in sugar, therefore, you should be careful in
how many carrots you allow your bunny each week.
Contrary To Popular Belief, Carrots
Are Only OK For Bunnies In Limited Quantities
(Grapes Too!).
The most essential part of a rabbit’s diet is unlimited hay.

The House Rabbit Society of San Diego compiled the following list of approved
vegetables and fruits for bunnies:
Alfalfa sprouts, apples (make sure the seeds and stem are gone), blueberries,
radish sprouts, clover sprouts, basil, the tops of beet greens, bok choy, broccoli (mostly
leaves/stems), brussel sprouts, carrots, carrot tops, celery, cilantro
clover, collard greens, dandelion greens, endive, escarole, green peppers, kale, mint,
melon, mustard greens, orange (buns can eat the peels, too,) papaya, parsley, peach, pear,
peppermint leaves, pineapple, plums, radicchio, radish tops, raspberries, raspberry leaves,
romaine lettuce (never feed the iceberg lettuce,) spinach, strawberries, watercress and
wheat grass.
Bananas and grapes are also safe for bunnies, but they should be given as treats
and sparingly because bunnies tend to ignore all other food when a piece of banana or a
grape is put in front of them.

Answer 8

I to have a lionhead rabbit,I feed him rabbit excel pellets and the vet said all rabits need is fresh hay as they need this for their digestion it is very important.you may give them a treat of vegetables on some days but watch their droppings as they may become wet and you dont want that.the occasional treat will not do any harm but as I have said watch those droppings if they get too loose dont feed the ofending veg again.

Answer 9

My rabbit doesn't like carrots and if I give her too many greens or vegetables she gets an upset tummy. A mixed diet is best and turned out on grass as that is their natural diet

Answer 10

My rabbit often shuns carrots in favour of her hay, and esp dandelion leaves. You can buy them at the grocery store and she just goes crazy for them! Other things she loves are parsley, romaine lettuce and apples. As a really really special treat, ie. after grooming, I give my girl bananas, or a few raisins.

Karen

Answer 11

give them a varied diet a mix of Carrots, Apples, Green Vegs etc. but mix it up also make sure you give the mixed pellets as this is good for there teeth. if its droppings become wet then your not giving her a well mixed balance of veg, fruit and rabbit pellets.