No lettuce, thats a shock, I thought they d be up there with carrots !

No lettuce gives rabbits the runs which plays havoc with their stomachs..rabbits tummies operate similiar to horses..

Best diet for a rabbits is lots and lots of hay,a high fibre pellet or mix and some veg..as one person said no potatoes,onions,lettuce..also no rhubarb leaves they are toxic to rabbits..spinach in small amounts is OK but again too much is toxic.

Their diet needs to be kept to high fibre..think of their stomachs as needing fibre constantly to flush everything through..too much protein and not enough fibre eventually stops the gut working and for rabbits this can be fatal..they develop bloat and although their are lots of methods you can try to remedy this..including a visit to the vet for a gut mobility injection it is hit and miss once they stop eating and develop bloat as to whether they make it or not.Usually the first thing they do is sit in a corner looking a bit sorry for themselves..they will not drink from their bottle so if you ever see a rabbit looking a bit hunched and doesnt seem to be drinking..always pop a bowl of water in and try and encourage them to keep drinking..rabbits are prey animals and hide illnesses..they only breathe through their noses and have no gag reaction so unlike cats and dogs if their is stomach problem there is only one end for it to come out and if the gut has stopped it will sit in the stomach producing poisonous toxins into the stomach and will eventually kill the rabbit.

Hay is the most important part of their diet..rabbits are constant grazers and nibble all day long..consider your hay like a bottle brush going through the gut clearing everything out and keeping the gut working..they will get their protein from their pellet or mix food but even this should be a good quality feed that is high in fibre..lots of the cheaper mixes have a really high protein content and low fibre..ideally the label should be approx 12-15% protein and a similiar fibre content too..

You can add other forms of fibre to their diet..readi grass is naturally dried grass and is very high in fibre..but also has a higher protein content than hay..so fed in moderation.

Lots of people spend a fortune on expensive hay with alfalfa etc..these are good..but usually have a higher protein content than bog standard timothy hay..and they do not need anymore protein to their diet other than their feed..so I would opt for normal bales of hay..not haylage (this may contain some plants that are toxic to rabbits0

hOPE THIS HELPS

SO basically, what you are saying is that... in nature.. in the wild, rabbits spend their time grazing grass... a bit like sheep and cows...

no shortage of food then ?

Haywise, I buy it from farm shops or round here you can directly buy from farmers.

It's shot up in price. I was paying £3.50 for a large bale in the summer but it's now about £6.

It's way cheaper than a pet store, and lasts my 3 bunnies a month or more. Of course you have to be able to store it (our's is kept in the outhouse where the bunnies lvie).

They need at least their own body's size in mass of hay per day. Here it's the same price as straw so I bed my buns on hay as well. But people who rely on pet stores etc usually find they can't afford to bed on hay and have to bed on straw and feed hay.

So find a horse feed suppliers/farm shop/farmer selling direct and you will save a fortune.

My vet is a rabbit specialist and he sells the usualy expensive bunny feed. But he said to me quietly:
"You know, they'd be perfectly fine on hay alone - think about it - in the wild all they do is eat grass all day". I think he has a point (clearly he doesn't say that to all his clients!)

Mine are fed a pelleted food as well just to be sure (those 'cereals' are not nutritionally as sound as the bunnies pick out the bits they like and leave the rest). Vet told me they only need an eggcup ful each a day - and they're big bunnies.

But as the vet says they would be perfectly fine just on hay.

Should add, it's bog standard hay - not that fancy timothy stuff that costs a bomb. They also get oats (Just the Tescos basic porrige oats) once a week and the occasional bit of banana/papaya which in longhaired buns prevents woolblock.

Exactly..

They could survive on just hay..but as most of our rabbits are locked up securely I dont recommend this..some pelleted or mixed food will give them their source of protein.

Do not go and buy mega expensive hay..get them a bale from stables/farm shop and bed them on this too..a large bundle every day..a good tip is to put a net curtain wire across the front of the netting of the hutch or inside and tuck it in there..that way they always have a fresh supply without peeing and pooing on it.

I kept,bred and showed rabbits for 12 years plus and often had 30 plus adult french lops at any one time..so all I have said is just my personal experience of keeping them during this time..I still have 5 french lops..which doesnt seem many now..but their feeding pattern is exactly as i have stated to you..and i have found you can never give too much hay..but if you get a greedy monkey you can overdo the protein in the pellets.

Whever your rabbit comes from it is always best to ask what they have been raised on..take a small bag of the food and gradually wean them onto what you are going to feed..then stick to the same brand..you cannot swap and change a rabbit feed like a cat or dog it can play havoc with thir tummies..

make sure to ask iof they have been out on grass or if they have had veg..if not then introduce everything slowly..1/2 an hour on the grass a day then gradually build it up,small amounts of veg..like 1/2 a carrot and gradually build up.

The main rules for rabbits is..keep them dry and out of direct sunlight and draughts..feed a high fibre diet and have a constant supply of fresh water and hay...they are clever and comical and have real personalities..good luck

carry the hutch onto the lawn.... put some chicken wire up, staked at each corner.... allow the rabbit to graze on the lawn,
a week later move to a new patch of lawn.

Put the lawnmower in exch and mart, you wont need it anymore !

I do this, but found a brilliant way to connect the hutch to the run. Now my bunny can go in and out day and night, whenever he feels like it, and of course going down burrows is instinctive so they enjoy playing in it as well. I move the run about every 3 days at the mo, as it is not as big a run as I'd like.

http://www.runaround.co.uk/

I still give him the same amount of hay as in winter (a lump about the size of his body) and put it in the hutch so if it is raining, he can still graze as they need to eat nonstop or they go into stasis.

careful he does nt try to dig his way out to freedom !

Don't go mad with the veggies/plants you feed them if they're not used to it. It can give them terrible diarrhoea if they're not accustomed to it. Likewise when you get the bunny (I would get two personally) take some of the food it's been eating & slowly introduce new food (if you're planning on feeding it something different obviously) over the course of 10 days. Find a good hay supplier, don't bother with the tat you buy in supermarkets, it has to be fragrant else they won't touch it.

We get ours online it is quality hay.

http://www.dustfreehay.co.uk/index.html