Guidelines for Proper Feeding
Feeding is probably the most important part of rabbit care. The most important thing to give a rabbit is actually water. Ensure that your rabbit has a large, untippable bowl or water bottle full of fresh water every single day. Rabbits without water will only live a short period of time, and it is even more crucial in the hot months. Rabbits also will not eat if they don't have food, so they will lose codition very quickly without water. The most imporant thing about feeding is to not overfeed, and to feed the right kind of food. The best kind of food for a rabbit is commercially prepared food. This has been produced and tested specifically so you don't have to. Especially if you are a new rabbit owner without rabbit experience you will want to use this type of feed. I use this and very highly suggest using it. I also give my rabbits a small amount of hay every other day as a supplement. There are many arguements over which kind of hay is the best to give rabbits. Because hay is the main ingredient in rabbit food, it is not nessecary to give any hay, and I do so mainly to give my rabbits something to do.
The next thing is how much to feed. This will depend on the size, type and condition of your rabbit. You can leave a rabbit on free feed (food is available all of the time) but it will probably gain weight and not be in very good show condition. Obesity (caused by overfeeding or genetics) is the leading cause of pet rabbits. A good guideline is to not feed a rabbit older than 5 months more than it can eat in half an hour. Rabbits should greet you at the door, eagerly waiting for food. Another guideline to help you to know whether you are feeding too much, too little, or the right amount is to feel your rabbit's backbone. If you can feel the spine and it is bony, your rabbit needs more food. If it is smooth and doesn't stick out then your rabbit is in good condition. If the backbone seems to be embedded into the back, your rabbit is overweight and you should slowly decrease rations. To help new rabbit owners, I've created a table below to take a look at to get an idea of how much food your rabbit should need. This is just a general chart so please adjust to your rabbit's needs.
| Age/Day Pregnant | Small | Medium | Large | |
| Bucks | any age over 4 months | 2 oz. | 3-6 oz. | 4-9 oz. |
| Does | any age over 4 months | 3 oz. | 6 oz. | 9 oz. |
| Doe, Bred | 1-15 days | 3 oz. | 6 oz. | 9 oz. |
| Doe, Bred | 16-30 days | 3-4 oz. | 7-8 oz. | 10-11 oz. |
| Doe & Litter | 1 week old | 8 oz. | 10 oz. | 12 oz. |
| Doe & Litter | 1 month old | 14 oz. | 18 oz. | 24 oz. |
| Doe & Litter | 6-8 weeks old | 22 oz. | 28 oz. | 24 oz. |
| Weaned Kit | 2-5 months | 2-3 oz. | 3-6 oz. | 6-9 oz. |
The best thing to feed rabbits is a diet of mainly pellets. Hay and store purchased treats are okay for treats every once in a while along with fresh un-treated grass, let them eat it off the ground.
