Are dried herbs safe for rabbits?

[ashleigheperry]

I have a list of bunny safe herbs, and I'd assume that dried herbs would be safe, but I want to be careful of course.

I buy herbs for tea making (organic with no additives) and I was wondering if I should share them with my bun. I was thinking mint, lavender, hibiscus, and rosemary. Can I mix these in with his pellet food or should I offer a small amount in a separate dish?

Any and all opinions appreciated.

 

[Imbrium]

If the herbs are on the safe list for bunnies and are labeled for human consumption then they're safe to give. You can mix some with the pellets, sprinkle them on fresh leafy green veggies while they're still damp, offer them separately, sprinkle them in with hay as a foraging treat, etc. - whatever you and your bunny prefer .

 

[MikeScone]

I was thinking mint, lavender, hibiscus, and rosemary. Can I mix these in with his pellet food or should I offer a small amount in a separate dish?

Those should all be OK. I'm not sure I'd mix them with pellets, though. If he's a picky eater, it might encourage the rabbit to pick out the herbs and turn up his at the pellets (or, if he really likes the pellets and doesn't like the herbs, it could turn him off the pellets by association).

I'd suggest trying each herb separately, one at a time, and see which he likes. He may well like some and hate others - every bun's taste is different. Then, as Imbrium said, you can mix them with whatever he likes - I'd start with the hay, since that's dried vegetation, too.

For what it's worth, Oxbow sells a "botanical hay" which is essentially just what you're talking about - timothy hay mixed with mint and other herbs. I bought some and found it smells much better to me than it did to either Scone MacBunny or Natasha Rabbitova. Neither one would eat it (in Scone's case because he hated timothy hay, and in Natasha's case because she didn't like the smelly stuff).

 

[Imbrium]

Yeah, the botanical hay didn't go over well here, either (both the Oxbow stuff and Kaytee's timothy plus stuff)... but then again, my girls won't eat either brand of timothy by itself.

 

[ashleigheperry]

Thanks for all the replies!
I tried a half teaspoon of lavender today and he seemed to like it. I'm going to give him a day or so to make sure he reacts well and then I'll move on to some other herbs and eventually I think I'll be using herbs mostly for treats. He readily takes his pellet food as treats. I don't think he's too picky!

 

[Imbrium]

Yay! Dried herbs don't have quite as many benefits as fresh ones do (ie they don't supply some water and don't help wear down the teeth a little like big leaves do), but herbs in general are great additions to a bunny's diet - they're considered "leafy greens" and none that I know of are high in oxalic acid or calcium, which means they don't have to be limited like many other veggies do. Herbs are also very flavorful and "different" tasting, so they're a great way to add variety to a bunny's diet .

 

[Rhinelander]

Here is a very interesting article on medicinal herbs for rabbits http://riseandshinerabbitry.com/2012/06/09/medicinal-herbs-for-rabbits/

 

[lovelops]

Yes, I mix dried with fresh to mix it up a abit for my bunnies...

Vanessa

 

[Azerane]

Yay! Dried herbs don't have quite as many benefits as fresh ones do (ie they don't supply some water and don't help wear down the teeth a little like big leaves do), but herbs in general are great additions to a bunny's diet - they're considered "leafy greens" and none that I know of are high in oxalic acid or calcium, which means they don't have to be limited like many other veggies do. Herbs are also very flavorful and "different" tasting, so they're a great way to add variety to a bunny's diet .

Parsley is one to use in moderation, it's high in oxalic acid. I try to feed it less than half the time