Access to branches and sticks - is it bad for the teeth?

Question
QUESTION: Hello,

My rabbits often get various branches from the trees in the garden that I bring in. But I just read in "When your rabbit needs special care" that chewing on wood may actually damage the incissors and that their teeth are not meant for anything harder than grass (pg. 188). So does this mean that I'm actually ruining their teeth by giving them branches to chew for fun?

Hope you can clarify this.

ANSWER: Dear Ursula,

I have never heard that chewing branches is harmful to the incisors.  That's a new one on me!  In fact, all of my rabbits who have access to outdoors and spend a good deal of time chewing branches and leaves suffer fewer health problems and fewer dental problems than the ones who prefer to stay indoors.

Where did you hear this?  And what is the basis for this claim?  I'm just curious.

Hope this helps.

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I just read it in "When your rabbit needs special care. Traditional and alternative healing methods" by Lucile C. Moore and Kathy Smith. From what I know, all contributors to the book are respectable rabbit experts, that's why I needed to ask you.

On pg. 188 it says:
"Ironically, chewing on wood or metal may actually damage the the incisors and lead to tooth overgrowth! This is because most rabbit and rodent incisors are long and delicate and not intended for biting anything harder than grasses and food [...]. When a rabbit bites down on wood, the pressure from the hard unyelding material may twist and damage the tooth roots, eventually leading to crooked tooth growth (malocclusion)".

But if you haven't heard about this before, maybe I shouldn't rely on everything I read in this book. I would expect wild rabbits to chew on branches as well now and then.

Thanks.

Ursula

Answer
Dear Ursula,

Perhaps the authors meant by "wood" the type of material from which chairs and baseboards are made, not natural sticks and twigs as would be found outdoors.  I totally agree that a bunny chewing or pulling on metal wire (as the walls of a cage) can be doing some serious damage to his teeth.  Not quite so sure about the baseboards thing, though.  

Yes, if the bunny tugs and pulls with his incisors he can damage the "set" of his teeth and cause overgrowth because of acquired malocclusion.

But yeah...I always take everything I read about bunnies with a grain of sodium chloride.  There's so much information out there--both bad and good--that it really takes some sifting!  

Have a lovely holiday, and a happy new year!

Sincerely,

Dana