Diet

A proper diet is extremely important to the health of a rabbit. Approximately 80% of a rabbits diet should consist of hay, then vegetables, pellets, and fruits and treats. Unlimited hay and water should be provided while the lack of other types of diet is acceptable. Under no circumstances should you feed only vegetables, pellets, and/or fruit to your rabbit as a diet. Hay is essential.

Age
The dietary needs of rabbits change as they age.

The following guidelines have been obtained from the HRS.

Birth to 3 weeks

 * mother's milk

3 to 4 weeks

 * mother's milk, nibbles of alfalfa and pellets

4 to 7 weeks

 * mother's milk, access to alfalfa and pellets

7 weeks to 7 months

 * unlimited pellets, unlimited hay
 * at 12 weeks, introduce vegetables (one at a time, quantities under 1/2 oz.)

7 months to 1 year

 * introduce timothy hay, grass hay, and oat hays, decrease alfalfa
 * decrease pellets to 1/2 cup per 6 lbs. body weight
 * increase daily vegetables gradually
 * fruit daily ration no more than 1 oz. to 2 oz. per 6 lbs. body weight (because of calories)

1 to 5 years

 * unlimited timothy, grass hay, oat hay, straw
 * 1/4 to 1/2 cup pellets per 6 lbs. body weight (depending on metabolism and/or proportionate to veggies)
 * minimum 2 cups chopped vegetables per 6 lbs. body weight
 * fruit daily ration no more than 2 oz. (2 TBL) per 6 lbs. body weight.

Over 6 years

 * if sufficient weight is maintained, continue adult diet
 * Frail, older rabbits may need unrestricted pellets to keep weight up. Alfalfa can be given to underweight rabbits, only if calcium levels are normal. Annual blood workups are highly recommended for geriatric rabbits.

Hay
Hay is the most important part of a rabbit's diet. It is the prime source of fiber to keep his GI tract working properly and also helps grind down their teeth to prevent overgrowth. Hay can also serve as entertainment, as it takes a while to chew. Some bunnies like digging and rearranging their hay.

Timothy hay is the most commonly recommended type of hay due to high fiber and low calories, but any grass hay is acceptable. Some other common grass hay types available are Bermuda, Orchard Grass, and Oat. Adult rabbits should not be fed alfalfa hay except under special circumstances. Alfalfa hay is much higher in calcium, protein, and calories than most rabbits need and will lead to weight problems.

Water
After hay, water is vital to a rabbit's survival. If a bunny does not drink sufficient water, the contents in his GI tract will dry up, and he will not want to eat either. Fresh cold water should be provided at least twice a day in a bowl, crock, or water bottle. Typically, a bunny will drink more from a crock or bowl than a sipper bottle. Rabbits will not drink warm or hot water. The water container should also be washed often with hot water and detergent to prevent bacterial buildup.

Pellets
Pellets provide rabbits some more nutrients but are not vital to a bun's diet. There are many rabbit owners who feed their rabbits a pellet-free diet due to teeth problems, chronic GI issues, and obesity. We recommend that you feed at most 1/8 cup to 1/4 cup of pellets per rabbit per day for every 5 lbs of bun. Too much pellets can lead to obesity and a lack of adequate hay consumption.

The type of pellet (alfalfa or timothy) fed usually depends on the age of your rabbit. Alfalfa pellets for buns under 7 months old, and timothy pellets for over 1 year old. However, it ultimately depends on the nutrition values listed on the back of the bag. Most commercial alfalfa-based brand pellets will have more calories and less fiber than a timothy-based brand.

Dana Krempels, Ph.D., recommends that a good pellet should have the following qualities: Both alfalfa and timothy-based pellet brands can come close to these recommendations.
 * at least 22% crude fiber
 * no more than approximately 14% protein
 * about 1% fat
 * about 1.0% calcium.

Good pellets do not include dried fruit, seeds, nuts, or other colored crunchy things. There should be only pellets and maybe hay and nothing else. Not of these additions are healthy for a rabbit, as they are strict herbivores, and in the wild, they will not obtain dried fruits and nuts and other starchy foods. As Krempel states, "The complex flora of the cecum can quickly become dangerously imbalanced if too much simple, digestible carbohydrate is consumed--especially if the diet is generally low in fiber. The result is often 'poopy butt syndrome,' in which mushy fecal matter cakes onto the rabbit's behind. This a sign of cecal dysbiosis, which can foment much more serious health problems."

Vegetables
Vegetables constitute an important part of your rabbit's diet and should be fed daily. Fresh vegetables are important and should make up approximately 10% of your adult rabbit's diet. Vegetables provide additional nutrients and different textures and tastes, an enriching experience for your rabbit. Wet veggies are also a good source of water if your bunny does not drink very much from his water bowl or bottle. Read more about vegetables at our main article.

Treats
While there are a variety of foods that you may feed your pet rabbit without severe digestion issues, we recommend using their regular pellets or fresh herbs and vegetables as treats. These foods will at least provide some nutrition to your rabbit, and typically rabbits will go crazy over anything that is not hay. Commercial brands with yogurt drops and grain and such, while not necessarily immediately deadly to your bun, are not nutritious at all and may cause long term health problems if fed too often because of wrong flora developing in their gut. Fresh fruit and carrots are a better alternative if you really want to let your rabbit have a "piece of candy" and are also lighter on your wallet. Read more at our Treats article.