Hay, vegetables, pellets, and fruit — rabbits love to eat all four, but do you know how much your pet should be getting of each? Here’s how to prevent your bunny from gaining too much weight.

They love to eat and they adore sweets — and, in turn, pet rabbits have a tendency to become overweight bunnies. In fact, obesity is the second most common health issue faced by pet bunnies, after tooth problems. What’s more, they often spend a lot of time inactive in cages, so they don’t tend to burn off the food they are eating.

This can lead to a number of health problems, including digestive issues, urinary tract problems, a weak heart, and dirty fur. An overweight bunny also can face problems performing an essential part of their diet — rabbits produce a type of night feces called cecotrophs, which are rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals, and they need to eat some of these feces to be healthy. Overweight rabbits cannot reach their rump to eat the cecotrophs, and they may become malnourished as a result.

About 2.2 million U.S. households have a pet rabbit, which is the most popular type of small animal kept as a pet. The Dutch rabbit is one of the most common rabbit breeds in the United States, featuring fur that is often white mixed with brown or black. Some people prefer the smaller dwarf rabbits or lop rabbits, which have ears that hang down rather than standing up. Other pet owners like angora rabbits, which have long hair that is always in need of grooming.

So how can you keep your pet rabbit in shape?

Choose the Healthiest Rabbit Food for Your Pet

Pet bunnies are vegetarians, so rabbit food should mostly consist of fiber and carbohydrates. When people think about a pet rabbit’s diet, they are likely to think mainly of food pellets. However, a diet of just pellets is a sure way to an overweight bunny. In fact, pellets should be used sparingly, as they were originally designed for the growth of meat rabbits.

The healthiest diet for a pet rabbit is apportioned this way:

• Hay. At least 85 percent of a pet rabbit’s diet should be a grass hay like timothy, oat, or barley. Hay is essential to a rabbit’s digestive process, and it also helps their teeth. You can give your rabbit unlimited amounts of hay. Alfalfa hay is also acceptable, but keep in mind that it must be doled out because it has more protein and calories than grassy hays.
• Vegetables. The second most important rabbit food is fresh leafy greens such as kale, collards, romaine lettuce, mustard greens, beet tops, carrot tops, parsley, endive, and radicchio. You should serve your adult pet bunny about two to four cups of leafy greens daily for every five pounds of body weight. You also can provide smaller amounts of other vegetables like Brussels sprouts, broccoli, green peppers, and pea pods.
• Pellets. You can supplement your pet rabbit’s diet with a pellet rabbit food, but you should do so sparingly. An adult bunny only needs one-quarter cup of pellet feed daily for every five pounds of body weight. Be sure to buy pellets with 18 to 20 percent fiber and between 14 percent and 16 percent protein. And don’t buy more than six weeks’ worth at a time because it will go bad.
• Fruit (and carrots, too). Think of fruit as your pet bunny’s version of sweets. A bunny will likely eat all the fruit you provide, but will gain weight as a result. Limit fruit to no more than two ounces for every six pounds of body weight. Because carrots are so high in sugar, you should treat them as a fruit and serve them just as sparingly.

How to Help Your Rabbit Lose Weight

An overweight bunny must lose weight the same way an overweight person does — by eating right and exercising.

• Exercise. Wild rabbits usually cover a home range of about 2 acres every day in their hunt for food. Keeping your pet bunny cooped up all day is a surefire route to rabbit obesity. You need to get him out of the cage an hour or two every day and encourage him to run around and play. You also can provide some toys in his crate for him to chew and enjoy.
• Diet. If your rabbit is obese, you should cut out the pellets and fruit completely. You also can limit the veggies if your bunny doesn’t start losing weight. A pet rabbit can live on an all-hay diet for a month or two, if necessary.

Rabbits can become overweight very quickly through a poor diet and sedentary lifestyle. Feed your pet rabbit right and you’ll have a happy companion who will be around for years.

By Dennis Thompson Jr. | Medically reviewed by Jennifer Garcia, DVM