Carrots and other treats

Hello!

I have a question about treats. Are carrots as high in sugar as other fruits, such as grapes or bananas?

I'm looking for a 'treat' that I can give to Moby more frequently than fruits, which I understand can cause harm if given too freely.

Right now I give him a small piece of fruit every morning (and I know even that amount might be too much, but his poops are healthy and he eats plenty of hay and vegetables, so hopefully that amount is fine).

Is there another treat that rabbits love, that can be given more freely than fruit?

Thanks!

I also share your concern about treats. It seems that all foods in the USA have added sugar nowadays, hence the 66% overweight epidemic. I limit carrot intake to 1 baby carrot when I go to bed. I gave her a small amount of generic Cheerios until I recently discovered that they contain corn. I cannot believe I missed that in the ingredients - embarrassed. I give her a banana chip 3-4 times a day, but 1 only. They do contain sugar, but that is the only sugar she gets. She is 5 years, 2 months and is not overweight, and she runs from 1 end of our home to the other at full speed.☻☺

_Moby_ said:

Hello!

I have a question about treats. Are carrots as high in sugar as other fruits, such as grapes or bananas?

I'm looking for a 'treat' that I can give to Moby more frequently than fruits, which I understand can cause harm if given too freely.

Right now I give him a small piece of fruit every morning (and I know even that amount might be too much, but his poops are healthy and he eats plenty of hay and vegetables, so hopefully that amount is fine).

Is there another treat that rabbits love, that can be given more freely than fruit?

Thanks!

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Carrots are high in sugar and should be considered a treat, just like fruit. The general rule of thumb is 1-2 tablespoons worth of treat per day - max. Of course, that is provided that your bunny can tolerate that. Some rabbits are much more sensitive and can only handle treats a couple times per week (or even less).

So with the 1-2 tablespoons rule, that is total per day. So if bunny gets an apple slice in the morning, that is the quota for the day. That means no more of any other treat.

Dried fruit, however, is more concentrated with its sugar. So dried fruit should probably be less than that maximum amount. Again, if I give my rabbits a teaspoon of craisins, then he's not going to get any fresh fruit that same day because he's met the max.

If you are looking for "treats" to give more frequently, then just use sprigs of greens. Hand-feeding a sprig of cilantro is just as much a "treat" as offering a raisin. By hand-feeding it, it becomes a treat.

Blue eyes said:

If you are looking for "treats" to give more frequently, then just use sprigs of greens. Hand-feeding a sprig of cilantro is just as much a "treat" as offering a raisin. By hand-feeding it, it becomes a treat.

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Thanks! He definitely loves cilantro, it's the first to go whenever I include it with his veggies dish. Maybe I will leave those out of his veggie dinner and just give them to him as treats instead.