All you need to know about Rabbit Diet: Treats
While every bunny should have access to hay, adding fresh leafy greens and vegetables is an excellent way to ensure your rabbit is meeting their dietary needs. But sometimes we want to give a treat.
ALWAYS Add new items slowly and one by one. Monitor for diarrhea, soft stools, and signs of gas pain.
What Should you feed your bun?
Safe treats Veggies:
Vegetables such as broccoli endive, wheat grass, radicchio, and squash.
Carrot tops can be given freely (the leafy green part), but make sure you only use a small amount of the orange part- not more than a quarter-sized amount and only once a week.
If your bunny is chunky, reduce the amount of veggies per your vet's instructions.
Giving Fruits:
A slice of apple, banana, mango, papaya, peach, pear, kiwi, pineapple, melon, star fruit, and plums (remove pits).
A few berries like blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, cherry (remove pit), etc
Regardless of what you choose to feed them, a good rule of thumb is 1 teaspoon per 2lbs, but make sure your rabbit is eating primarily hay. Remember the foundation is HAY to ensure good gut motility. We caution the use of fruits just due to the sugars in them. It is VERY important that you give a SMALL amount, if any at all, and they must have good gut motility. Watch for gas and bloat, which are extremely painful for rabbits.
If you are looking for a great training treat, look no further than your fresh leafy greens and herbs.
Baked treats
A fun way to make a treat uses a base of Oxbow Critical Care (herbivore; apple banana is the favorite in our house) & either 100% pumpkin puree, sweet potato puree, or unsweetened apple sauce.
Start off with 3 tablespoons of critical care and 3 tablespoons of puree. Mix thoroughly to a dough consistency. Add more critical care to thicken and water to thin out the dough, as needed. Then roll out and cut into small thin treat sizes about the size of a quarter. Place in an oven (at 200 degrees) or dehydrator for 2-5 hours, flip every half hour until dried through. Let cool and place in an air-tight container. As long as moisture stays away, this can be kept for months, if it lasts that long.
Add in shreds of dried, unsweetened fruit for a fun addition.
store-bought treats
Let's face it, sometimes we don't have time to bake, but we still want to give them a special treat. Store-bought treats should be given very sparingly as many are high in sugar and fats. Stick to brands that you know will offer high-quality treats.
Stay away from Yogurt dips, Honey, and Nuts or Seeds.
But honestly, your bun will love the fresh veggies and fruits, so if you don't have time to cook, stick with the fresh stuff!
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