FOOD FOR RABBIT

Question
I HAVE A RABBIT IN MY HOME. ONCE I GAVE HIM A 1 BABY CARROT AND HE LIKE IT. MY QUESTION IS HOW OFTEN AND HOM MANY OF THAT PRODUCT I CAN GIVE HIM.AND ALSO CAN I MIX IT WITH BROCOLI, CABBAGE AND ALL THIS KIND OF STAFF TOGETHER.

Answer
Carrots and other vegetables are great for rabbits, though a whole carrot (top and all) is more nutritious for them. I would recommend staying away from cabbage, as it can cause gas in rabbits (which can be quite painful to them). Broccoli can also do so, but it is less likely. If you wish to feed broccoli, start out very slowly to make sure your rabbit does not have a reaction to it. In fact, you should start out all vegetables this way, especially since it is not yet used to eating them.

Here is a list of safe fruits and vegetables:

Apple *
Banana and dried banana chips
Basil
Beet greens (tops)
Blackberries
Blackberry leaves
Blueberries *
Bok choy
Broccoli (leaves and stems are the best)**
Brussels sprouts **
Carrots and carrot tops
Celery
Chicory
Cilantro
Clover
Collard greens
Cucumber
Dandelion greens and flowers
Endive
Escarole
Green peppers
Grapes *
Kale *
Melon rine and flesh *
Mint
Mustard greens
Oatmeal
Orange *
Papaya #
Parsley
Pea pods (the flat, edible kind)
Pear *
Peppermint leaves
Pineapple #
Raddichio
Radish tops
Raisins *
Raspberries
Romain lettuce (no light colored leaf or iceberg)
Spinach *
Sprouts (alfalfa, radish, clover)
Strawberries
Watercress
Wheat grass

* Feed these sparingly.
** May cause gas in some rabbits. Feed in small quantities at first and watch for a bad reaction.
# Is useful as an aid in breaking up injested hair or provides another digestive benefit.

Remember to feed fresh foods in moderation until you are sure the rabbit can handle them, at which point fresh foods can become a decent part of the daily diet (1 to 2 cups of it, depending on his size; you will need to reduce the amount of pellets if he is getting a lot of vegetables). Also keep in mind that fruit is actually quite high in sugar, which is converted into calories. If those calories are not burned off, they turn into fat. Be sure to wash all fresh foods thoroughly, and if they are gathered in the wild, avoid gathering in areas that have been sprayed for weeds/insects or that are near high volumes of traffic. The above foods can be mixed together or fed seperately, but they should be fed in a seperate dish from the pelleted food. Rabbits will often dig through their pelleted food to get to any other food types, and will spill out and waste the pelleted food.