bunny doesn't like vegetables

[cousteau]

My bunny is 9 months old. I got him last month from a breeder. I've tried to give him some vegetables but he won't eat anything other than his pellets and timothy hay. I've tried carrots, spinach, romaine lettuce, green peppers, raisins, apples, pineapple and bananas. He just picks them out of his bowl.

The breeder told me he gave him black oil sunflower seeds and I have tried them and he loves them but I only give him a very small amount about once a week. He also loves oats (Quaker quick oats), but again I only give him a small amount about twice a week. I'm not sure how much oats is ok.

Does anyone have any suggestions. I would like him to have a more varied diet and would also like him to have some treats. He's a little skittish about being picked up and figured some treats would also be a good reward (bribe).

 

[SOOOSKA]

Hi, have you tried Kale, Dandelion Leaves, Dill, Parsley, Carrot Tops? All of mine love those veggies.

I've also read here that you should give the regular Quaker Oats not the quick ones. Now don't ask me why but that's what I read.

I sure hope you can find some veggies that bunny will start eating.

Susan

 

[Flick]

Here's a video about rabbit safe vegetables. It is based on information from MediRabbit.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/FastUpOnRabbitCare

 

[Hazel-Mom]

Hi Coustea, best thing you can do is, just keep offering the veggies to your bun, and be patient.
My Hazel will sometimes not like something at first, but then later decide to try it afterall.
If your bunny is not used to eating vegetables though, you need to start very slowly when introducing vegetables.
Just offer one vegetable at a time, a little bit at the time, and gradually increase the amount, once he starts eating it.
And just keep trying, he'll get interested eventually.

 

[cousteau]

He's not much of a nibbler. Which is good when he outside of his cage because he doesn't really chew on anything, but he also doesn't nibble on the vegetables I offer either. I'm not sure if he even knows its food or not. I also worry because he doesn't chew on the chew toys we have for him either. I know his teeth are good now but worry that he won't be wearing them down.

 

[tonyshuman]

Has he been to a vet? It's possible that he has molar spurs that make eating veggies painful. However, I would expect that they would make eating hay painful as well. Does he approach the veggies, sniff them, and then look away or does he ignore them completely? The approaching but not eating veggies can be taken as a sign that he wants to eat them but can't because it hurts. A vet can get a look at the back molars which can grow spurs. If you haven't taken him yet, it's a good idea to get started with a vet so you can do annual exams and have someone to go to in case of an emergency.

I also wonder if his tummy is sensitive to veggies and he knows this so he purposely avoids them. I haven't heard of that happening before, as I think most bunnies love veggies and will gobble them down even if they give them tummy trouble. Does anyone have a veggie-sensitive bun that shies away from veggies?

 

[hartleybun]

Flick wrote:

Here's a video about rabbit safe vegetables. It is based on information from MediRabbit.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/FastUpOnRabbitCare

have just watched this - really informative:nodhas given me some great ideas for varying the bunny buffet.

 

[bijoux]

Bijoux is very careful about how much he eats. He does have a sensitive tummy and it doesn't take much veggies or fruits to cause runny poos. He's pretty good about limiting his intake, even if he really likes whatever it is.

 

[cousteau]

He just shows no interest what so ever to the vegetable. He eats everything else ok so I don't think he's in pain. A couple times he just picked the stuff out of his bowl and continued to eat his pellet. Almost as if he was saying what is this crazy thing in my bowl. I just assumed all bunnies loved vegetable so I thought it was odd.

 

[Kyla]

I have heard that (for humans at least) you have to try something 6-8 times in order to find out if you actually like it or not. I wonder if it goes the same with bunnies.

I tried to give Diggs a brussel sprout the other day, and when I pulled a leaf off and gave it to him he ate it, but then i gave him a bowl of veggies with some cut up sprouts, and he left only the sprouts. Dont know if he dislikes the texture of chopped leaves, but likes the whole leaf! I'm going to keep trying though, he may change his mind! :thumbup:

 

[tonyshuman]

Yeah, he may like them if you hand-feed them to him. I still want to caution that tooth spurs can cause bunnies to go off a single type of food at first, and then as they progress they stop eating altogether.