Questionable food list at sanctuary...

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leo (they/them)
Joined
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So the sanctuary I volunteer at has a questionable veggie list that they give to people they adopt rabbits out to and that the people who actually feed the buns can see... I think their list isn't that great... and I'm thinking about emailing the main guy about it. So, I was wondering if you guys could tell me what YOU think. Thank you all for any help in advanced!

Key:
??? = questionable to me
The asterisk (*) means to them: "with one each day that contains Vitamin A, indicated by an *"

Alfalfa Sprouts
Arugula
Asparagus (???)
Basil
Beets and tops* (??? the tops yes, but the beets themselves?)
Bok choy
Broccoli (mostly leaves/stems)*
Brussel sprouts
Cabbage (very small amounts) (??? I have heard bad things about cabbage and I wouldn't feed MY rabbits it...)
Carrot & carrot tops*
Celery
Chard
Chives (in moderation) (??? Aren't these onions? I saw green onions that may have been chives last time I socialized... well NO bun was interested at all :/ I threw them all out.)
Cilantro
Clover
Collard greens*
Corn on Cob (sparingly) (??? even sparingly.. I wouldn't...)
Cucumber (???)
Dandelion Greens
Dill
Endive*
Escarole
Fennel (???)
Frisee (??? I dunno what this one is)
Green pepper (??? I'm thinking they should add "bell" in there...)
Green Leaf lettuce (???)
Kohlrabi (???)
Leaf Lettuce (not iceberg) (???)
Lemon balm (???)
Lilac (???)
Marigold (??? I thought I heard this was bad for rabbits...)
Marjoram
Mint
Mustard greens*
Parsley*
Parsnips (not wild) (???)
Pea Pods (Chinese pea pods)*
Peppermint leaves
Radicchio
Radish and tops (??? Tops I know, but the radish itself? Same thing with the "chives" happened with these.)
Romaine lettuce *
Red Leaf lettuce (???)
Sage (???)
Savory (???)
Spring Mix (Mesclun)(???)
Tomato (fruit only; greens are toxic) (???)
Turnip greens (???)
Watercress*
Watermelon (???)
Wheat grass
Zucchini (???)
 
Some of the stuff on their can contribute to gas problems and a few of the others are high in calcium and can aggravate sludge problems. Not all rabbits will have a problems, but, we had one with a sludge issue and another that got a huge bladder stone.
 
Most of the stuff you have the ??? beside is safe. (you should know lettuce is safe)
The raddish/tops yes gives the tops, the bottoms are questionable, but i dont believe its because their toxic. Theres the typical cabbage, corn and what not but thats due to possible gas and well nobody likes to recomend corn. And cabage in moderation is safe. Bok choy is a cabbage, and its safe too. Unsure about chives.
The rest seems pretty obvious.
 
Thank you Larry for your input.
Lol, Katie, my buns seem to like collard greens too. C:

Watermelons, your response seems pretty rude... :/
"You should know lettuce is safe"... I have never seen anything about green leaf and red leaf lettuce for rabbits. I know iceberg is not safe, and I give my rabbits romaine.
And I have no idea what half the stuff with ???'s beside it are or I never saw them spoken about before.......
I never knew bok choy was a cabbage. My buns get that.
 
Thank you Emily, that's what I thought... I'm always tempted to grab the green-leaf lettuce when we go buy veggies at Randazzo's cause it's right next to the Endive and Escarole and it looks like a pretty good veggie, but I never do, cause I had a feeling Romaine was the only okay one and I'd never seen that it was okay to feed buns that anywhere. :p
 
Just take a look atsome of thelists on the forum if you dont believe me, hopefully the fact that somebody else posted them will help. Lettuce is totally safe only iceberg is pointless to provide. Romaine is NOT the only safe lettuce. Romaine actually borders on low nutritional content its just not as high in water as iceberg. And I said that as you seem to be one of those active people on here that knows a fair amount.

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=54630&forum_id=17
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=57996&forum_id=17
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=54628&forum_id=17
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=13618&forum_id=17
 
Bailee, I can help with some of them :)

Cucumber - Sabrina likes it! In fact before I even read this post she had a few bites of my cucumber tonight.
Frisee - its a type of lettuce, its also known as chicory. its safe.
Green pepper - I agree with the addition of bell pepper so that people won't accidentally buy a hot one!
Green Leaf lettuce - I've fed it in a pinch with no problems
Lilac - Sabrina gets dried lilac sprinkled over her hay...and she loves it!
Marigold - Calendula is sometimes called pot marigolds and that variety of flower is not poisonous. "regular" marigolds are.
Spring Mix (Mesclun)this is the salad mix that you often see in stores in bulk (i.e. fill your own bag) I've fed this before with no problems.
Watermelon - a special treat due to the amount of sugar in it but sabrina goes mental for it!!

I hope I helped a bit! Good luck, and its good that you are concerned for the buns' safety in their new homes.
 
When I adopted from them, I was explained of the practices that are commonly suggested on this forum (or at least, what I've seen from questions from new members.) They also list the sources of where they got the list, so that the reader can look them up for further information.

I was also told something that is not in the link below, and that's to watch out for fertilizers. I've found that my adoption coordinator was very easy to work with and is still checking up on Cheeto and I (recently got a "how's everything going?" email, and it's been a year since I adopted.) So, a lot of the things not explained below are generally covered by the person adopting the rabbits out.

Here's link to what they give out:

http://www.rabbitsanctuary.org/PDF/bunny_basics.pdf

(you need to scroll a bit to find the food section)

Not trying to be rude, if that's how I came across. Just trying to point out all of the facts.:) And you're right, if the list is questionable, I want to fix it too.
 
Q-tip eats green leaf lettuce every day...all of our bunnies have. I've never had a bunny that liked asparagus (nor have I heard of a bunny who liked it...hey, more for me), but I don't think it's poison, just not healthy. As for cucumbers...they're all water. Not the world' most nutritious snack, and most of my bunnies haven't liked them (Tippy hasn't tried them yet), but in moderation they're okay. Tops of beets are one of Q-tip's favorites...
I avoid giving her cabbage, but when her boyfriend at the food store gives me bok choy, I feed that to her...ironic....
 
I give Bonkers Romaine, green leaf, red leaf and french? I think, its the one with the curly leaves hehe and my vet told me that they were all okay, I've never heard before that Romaine was the only safe lettuce until now. I not trying to be rude either, but im with Watermelons here that list doesnt seem questionable to me at all, maybe youre just over-concerned a bit? It happens a lot when you have bunnies.
 
The only thing on this list I would question is chives, but otherwise, it's all safe (as in non-toxic) for bunnies. Variety is important so they aren't getting overloaded with the some nutrients and neglected in others.

Hope that helps!

Rue
 
kkiddle wrote:
When I adopted from them, I was explained of the practices that are commonly suggested on this forum (or at least, what I've seen from questions from new members.) They also list the sources of where they got the list, so that the reader can look them up for further information.

I was also told something that is not in the link below, and that's to watch out for fertilizers. I've found that my adoption coordinator was very easy to work with and is still checking up on Cheeto and I (recently got a "how's everything going?" email, and it's been a year since I adopted.) So, a lot of the things not explained below are generally covered by the person adopting the rabbits out.

Here's link to what they give out:

http://www.rabbitsanctuary.org/PDF/bunny_basics.pdf

(you need to scroll a bit to find the food section)

Not trying to be rude, if that's how I came across. Just trying to point out all of the facts. :) And you're right, if the list is questionable, I want to fix it too.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the information, you did not seem rude at all!

Who was your adoption coordinator if that's okay to ask?
 
At first it was Carol, but then Carrie took over? They've both been very helpful nonetheless. :)
 
At one time or another I have fed everything on that list. I'm a big believer in giving the rabbits lots of veriety so their diegestive systems are more robust. I checked in with my vet and she agrees it helps to make them less sensitive to issues as long as they don't have an underlying medical condition. As this is happily tollerated by my buns it works for us. It's also more fun shopping since I can pick what looks good that week.

Certain things like cucumbers or raddish bottoms are given in small amounts and not very frequently. Other things like green or red leaf lettuce make an appearance at least every other week. Some things depend on the bun. Becky will eat anything, including the chives that no one else will eat (chives are related to garlic, not onions which make them very different than green onions BTW). Houdini doesn't like zucchini. Cinderella doesn't like cucumbers. They all go bonkers for little cherry tomatoes. I just experiment and see how they react.

I buy produce for the buns, turtles, and myself so we all like to mix it up to keep things interesting. :)
 
I bought 5 books & their lists of foods by ok, sparingly & never varied quite a bit & the shelter I got Honey from was more restrictive [eg, no pellets]. If we limited the food to just what EVERYONE agreed was ok, the rabbits wouldn't be eating much. For example tomatoes are on half the never give lists, but that is a mistaken assumption about the fruit when it's the leaves & stems that are meant.
 
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