Disclaimer
Let's start with the disclaimer. I'm not a veterinarian. I did not attend school to learn how to raise or medically treat animals. All information I share on my website is what I have learned from various sources and trial and error. Some information may not be 100% correct. Use all information at your own risk. If something bad happens as a result of you using any information on this website, you assume full responsibility for all consequences.
Food
We feed our rabbits organic rabbit pellets. A Holland Lop should eat around 4 ounces of pellets per day. Some rabbits are good with self monitoring their own food intake, while others are little piggies in rabbit suits. You will have to determine your rabbit's personality.
The bulk of the food that your rabbit consumes should be hay. We offer orchard grass hay to our rabbits. It gives them roughage to keep their bowels moving and helps them wear down their teeth. (Their teeth never stop growing.)
Rabbits under the age of 6 months only get to eat the organic pellets & Timothy hay or orchard grass. I like to play it safe.
You can also feed your rabbits who are over 6 months old certain rabbit safe fresh herbs. They should be clean, fresh, & free from any sprays. We like to give our rabbits basil, parsley, cilantro, dill, & plantain (the herb, not the banana). At first, only give your rabbit a very small quantity of the herb (like 2 square inches of leaves) per day to slowly introduce the new food to his/her diet.
The bulk of the food that your rabbit consumes should be hay. We offer orchard grass hay to our rabbits. It gives them roughage to keep their bowels moving and helps them wear down their teeth. (Their teeth never stop growing.)
Rabbits under the age of 6 months only get to eat the organic pellets & Timothy hay or orchard grass. I like to play it safe.
You can also feed your rabbits who are over 6 months old certain rabbit safe fresh herbs. They should be clean, fresh, & free from any sprays. We like to give our rabbits basil, parsley, cilantro, dill, & plantain (the herb, not the banana). At first, only give your rabbit a very small quantity of the herb (like 2 square inches of leaves) per day to slowly introduce the new food to his/her diet.
Treats
Treats should be reserved for rabbits who are over 6 months old. When introducing a treat for the first time, start out with a small quantity, like the size of a pea or a dime. All treats need to be fresh & clean. Some treats that are happily enjoyed are a baby carrot, an organic/not sprayed strawberry top, a fresh green bean, a piece of banana, a grape leaf, & a piece of kale. NEVER give your rabbit lettuce, especially iceberg lettuce. Please do not give too many treats no matter how much your bunny begs. They will get fat, and a bunny that is too fat cannot clean itself properly or eats its own cecotropes.
Nails
Nails need to be trimmed when needed. It's hard to say exactly how often since some rabbits wear their nails down faster than others. When trimming nails, just clip off the tip. If you look carefully you can see some pink in the nail. That is called the quick. If you cut it, the rabbit will bleed & you don't want that. So, just cut off the tip, leaving some nail between the cut and the quick. There are 5 nails to trim on each front paw (1 is a dew claw), and only 4 on each back paw.
Not all rabbits are tolerant of this activity. Some of my rabbits we trim while they sit upright on my lap. Others are fine with laying feet up in the air on my lap while I trim away. You will have to find out what works for you and your rabbit. You may consider wrapping your rabbit up in a hand towel to help secure your rabbit for this hygiene activity.
Not all rabbits are tolerant of this activity. Some of my rabbits we trim while they sit upright on my lap. Others are fine with laying feet up in the air on my lap while I trim away. You will have to find out what works for you and your rabbit. You may consider wrapping your rabbit up in a hand towel to help secure your rabbit for this hygiene activity.
Heat
Heat can be deadly to rabbits. Temperatures of 85 F or higher can cause heat stress, (and infertility). Make sure your rabbit's living quarters are not in the sun. When temperatures reach 85 F, introduce 2L bottles of frozen water into their living space. They lay next to, or sometimes even on top of, the frozen bottles to stay cool. In California we also had an automatic misting system that would mist the rabbitry once a certain temperature was reached. On extremely hot days, we moved each rabbit into the house for the day.
Bathing
Rabbits clean themselves. You do not need to give your rabbit a bath. Since rabbits are unable to cough up hairballs or vomit, it is important to continually provide clean dry hay to make sure that the hair they ingest from licking themselves is able to travel through the digestive system. If your rabbit gets a blockage within the digestive tract, it may die within 24 hours. If you rabbit gets a dirty bum, you may want to reevaluate their diet. Too rich of foods can give them sticky poo. Additionally, if your rabbit has become too chubby, it may be struggling with being able to reach their bum to clean it. Offer fewer pellets (and perhaps treats), and clean their bum with a wipe or damp cloth. Always have clean dry hay available.
Toys
Many toys can be constructed from empty toilet paper rolls. A quick "rabbits toys diy," Pinterest search will reveal many simple creative ideas.