Did you know the average rabbit needs a ball of hay the size of their body everyday?
Unlike humans, rabbit’s teeth continue to grow for their whole lives. Hay requires a lot of chewing, which helps to wear their teeth down so they don’t become overgrown. Hay also provides much needed fibre to keep your rabbits guts moving properly.
Hay should make up around 85-90% of a rabbit’s diet with a further 5-10% being fresh leaf greens and herbs such as spinach, kale, broccoli, mint, coriander and parsley. This is roughly equivalent to a portion the size of your rabbit’s head. Only small amounts of root vegetables and fruit such as carrots and apples should be provided as they are very high in sugar with low nutritional value.
The remaining 5% of your rabbit’s diet should be high fibre pellets. Muesli based rabbit food is not recommended as they can lead to selective feeding. This is when the rabbit chooses to only eat certain parts of the muesli, often the sweeter pieces and then therefore doesn’t get a complete and balanced diet.