My Bunny - food and behavior

Question
My bunny is about 8 weeks old. I have been receiving many controversal pieces of information regarding fruits and vegetables that I should feed my rabbit, how much, and when I should start feeding it to her. Could you please set me straight? I don't want to feed her too much, because I don't want her to be overweight, but I don't want to feed her to little so that she is malnourished. The other question that I have was regarding her behavior.  Around 6:00 am my bunny runs around her cage.  Is this normal? If it is, why does she do it?  Thank you.

Answer
Dear Hannah,

If your bunny is running around her cage in the evening, it means she's playful and needs to get out and run freely to get exercise and have fun.  Every rabbit needs *at least* 4-6 hours of free running time, but our own rabbits are never caged at all. They just don't need to be, once you've "bunny proofed" the house by putting up electrical cords and protecting things she might chew.  (A free-range rabbit is often less destructive, too, since she's not bored!)

Please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/diet.html

for complete information on diet.  Fresh greens are an important part of the diet, but introduce them gradually to be sure to allow her intestinal flora to "adjust" to the new food.  Fruits should be given only in very small "treat" amounts, as described in the article above.  Too much starch in the diet can cause serious health problems for rabbits.

I hope this helps.

Dana