Bunnies and watermelon

[WindyOaksYokes]

Just wanting to know, can bunnies have watermelon as a little treat??? I know that certain types of bunnies cant have lettuce because of their digestive system... but I was unsure about watermelon. If anyone out there raises bunnies, I would appreciate a reply. We have two bunnies, just your everyday pet bunnies that we got at the local feed store.

Thanks
Tes

 

[Krazy]

You can try for your bunnies but I don't think they would eat it.

Edit: My bunnies wouldn't

 

[WoodlandWoman]

If they are babies or haven't had much fresh food before, you have to be careful introducing fresh food to them or they can get diarrhea. Iceberg lettuce doesn't have much nutrition in it, but other types of leaf lettuce are good for bunnies. The only thing I would worry about with watermelon is that it has a lot of sugar in it, so I would only give them a small amount. When I gave my rabbits banana, which they loved, I would only give them a slice at a time. With vegetables and greens, you can work up to giving them more. I always fed a wide variety of fresh greens, vegetables and fruits. Mine ate everything! Including dandelion blossoms and leaves.

Here are some guidelines from the House Rabbit Society on diet, by age.

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/diet.html

 

[WindyOaksYokes]

Woodland - Thank you so much for the information and site... really helped!!! I was just trying to think of something cold that I could give them... I ended up bringing them in the house for a while to cool them off... it's been so hot and they did not look like they were fairing to well in the heat. And since I give watermelon to my chickens... which they love!!!!!! I thought maybe a little for the bunnies to cool them down since it was refrigerated. Anyways, I will do as you suggested and will keep an eye on that site as they grow...
Thanks again... Tes

 

[WoodlandWoman]

You are very welcome. HRS does have a lot of good information on their site. They usually have the most up to date diet and medical information on there.

You could try freezing water in bottles for your bunnies to lay next to. That's what they do at the fairs here, in the summer. It seems to help and the buns do lay next to them. Hot weather is really hard on them. It's good you brought yours in for awhile, if they weren't doing well.