Healthy Diet

Unlimited hay is necessary and a rabbit should eat a minimum of its body size in hay. We feed a mix of Oxbow Timothy hay (1^st+2^nd cut) and APD Timothy High Fiber hay (1^st cut). Hay Blend (Oxbow Timothy + Orchard), 2^nd cut hay (Momi 2^nd cut, APD Timothy Gold) and 3^rd cut hay (SPS Diamond) are softer hay good for picky eaters but you should always mix in 1^st cut for better teeth grinding. Rabbits do not eat every strand of hay so we will top up twice a day to keep the smell fresh. Once a day, we throw out all remaining hay. Alfalfa hay is recommended only for very young rabbits (<6 months) and senior rabbits who require added calcium.

This is what Bunny Wonderland feeds to our rabbits:

You can also consider these bunny-approved hay for variety:

We feed at least 1 cup of leafy greens to our rabbits a day to give them fiber as well as natural vitamins and minerals that cannot be obtained through hay and pellets. At the wonderland, we typically feed a mix of Chye Sim, Xiao Bai Cai and occasionally will add herbs such as Cilantro and Parsley for variety. Once in a while, you can also include a baby carrot or half a slice of strawberry and apple cubes to make your rabbit happy.

Rabbits do have sensitive gastrointestinal systems and it is best to avoid ‘gassy’ vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage. Roots like potatoes and beans contain sugar and starch which can cause indigestion. The onion family (leeks, chives, onions) can also cause blood abnormalities. Below are some recommendations:

We feed hay-based pellets twice a day to our rabbits and usually after vegetables. Each time, we feed 1 tablespoon of pellets which gives them fiber and fortified vitamins and minerals. We recommend pellets from Oxbow, Burgess as well as Sherwood due to their quality standards. At the wonderland, we feed a mix of Oxbow Adult Rabbit pellets and Burgess Excel Adult Rabbit with Oregano. For young rabbits, we feed Oxbow Alfalfa pellets and for senior rabbits, we feed Burgess Excel Mature Rabbit with Cranberry and Ginseng. You should never be feeding colourful pellets which have high fat and sugar and are bad for digestion.

Treats are just for fun and should be no more than 1 tablespoon per day. We recommend giving small cuts of fresh fruits such as carrots, strawberries, blueberries and apples. Oxbow, APD and Burgess also make delicious hay-based treats that are very enticing for the rabbits. We do not recommend milk cookies or yogurt drops as rabbits are lactose intolerant and can get diarrhoea. They also should not have access to chocolate, bread or fried food which are toxic to rabbits!

Another healthy form of treats is natural herbs. In fact, wild rabbits do hunt for a variety of plants and flowers to ‘self-medicate’. Example of fresh herbs that are safe for rabbits include basil, oregano, parsley, dill, cilantro, mint and rosemary. You can also find dried herbs such as birch, chamomile, dandelion, echinacea, milk thistle, plantain and willow. A great way to introduce these herbs is to sprinkle them over their hay, vegetables or mix into their pellets to ‘spice’ things up.

Hydration is very important and our rabbits naturally drink more from a bowl than a bottle. At the wonderland, we serve water in a 500 ml metal bowl and change it twice a day. A rabbit should drink 50-200ml of water (per kg weight per day) to stay hydrated. Filtered and boiled water is good and we do not recommend mineral or tap water due to the extra minerals that can cause bladder sludge/stone. For rabbits who like to flip their bowls, a wide-base bowl or a ceramic bowl is recommended. For rabbits who drink a lot, a water fountain may be ideal. We do not recommend water bottles but if your rabbit has long fur and can have wet chin, a bottle with a well-designed spout to ensure easy drinking will be better.