What can you feed a rabbit who doesn't like hay?

Answer 1

First Answer: Vegetables such as lettuce, carrots, and celery

More Info: Actually, carrots and celery are fine as a treat but not as a regular part of the rabbit's diet. Carrots are too high in carbs (sugar, starch), which isn't healthy for rabbits, and celery just isn't very nutritious.

Rabbits on a pellet-free diet eat lots and lots and lots of hay. Offer a wide variety of grass hays (like timothy, orchard grass, brome, meadow mix, bluegrass, fescue) and legume hay, too (like alfalfa, clover). Many sources say to avoid alfalfa and clover, but that's because most rabbits get all the protein and calcium they need from their pellets: a bunny who isn't eating pellets needs to make up for it. If your bunny doesn't eat much hay, you'll have to do research and figure out how to encourage her to eat more: she needs the fibre content or else her digestive system won't work properly.

Otherwise, lots of dark leafy greens are good for your bunny. Again, offer a wide variety. A 6 pound rabbit that doesn't eat pellets could eat at least 3 packed cups of greens per day. Dark lettuces are good but avoid white and light-coloured lettuces and other vegetables because they're too low in nutrients. Also consider herbs, weeds, and the tops of root veggies (like carrot tops).

Non-leafy vegetables (like carrots and celery) and fruit are fine as a treat. Too many treats can lead to illness, though. The House Rabbit Society recommends no more than 2 tablespoons per day for a normal, healthy 6 pound rabbit.

The other thing pellets provide is the right mix of vitamins and minerals. It can be difficult to make up for that. Consider giving your rabbit a salt lick. (Salt licks only contain some salt: they also have other minerals.) Keep an eye on your rabbit's health and talk to your vet about supplements.

Don't feed your rabbit anything else. Some people think they can replace pellets with bread, cereal, oatmeal/mush, muesli, seeds, legume fruit (like beans, peas), or other processed foods, but this is very unhealthy for rabbits. The pet rabbit's natural diet (the diet of the European Rabbit in the wild) is lots of grasses, weeds, leaves, and flowering plants, and doesn't include grains and seeds.

See the related questions below for more info.

Answer 2

carrots