What are Rabbits Favorite Treats ?
Like humans, each rabbit has its own personality and especially its favorite treat that you have to detect; but rabbits have a well known performance when it comes to treats and this is what we will see in this article.
As a treat, rabbits love pieces of sweet ; fresh or dried fruits and vegetables , such as Carrots, Bananas, Strawberries, Raspberries and Pineapples ; green leaves and fresh grass, such as Carrot tops, Celery or Broccoli, not to mention wild herbs such as Dandelion and Arugula, some commercial bunnies treats and even homemade treats such as carrot cake or banana cookies.
This was just a little recap, but if you want to know everything about the different treats that will surely please your rabbit, how to choose them, how much to give them to your rabbit, how to prepare them yourself, which ones to buy and the rabbit treats you should avoid, how to make them yourself and what they can be useful for you to finally see which treats to avoid in order not to make your rabbit sick.
Is there a treat that all rabbits love above all else?
Yes, despite their different preferences and personalities, rabbits have some common preferences when it comes to treats. Of course, it won’t be “salt-free pecans or corn chips” which I strongly advise against, and any other seeds or seed mixes and especially treats that contain yogurt, because rabbits can’t digest dairy products…
Apple pieces, fresh, sweet and juicy are the treat that all rabbits love, followed by pear, banana and carrots.
Apple pieces are even the treat that most parents like to use as a reward when they train their rabbit, like during litter box training for example.
It is not uncommon that as a rabbit gets older, it will show a preference for another treat, for example, your rabbit may like banana pieces, strawberries or raspberries, whereas before it was apple pieces that were its favorite treat.
Your rabbit may also develop a preference for a new treat because of a specific nutritional need, for example, it has been noticed that rabbits during moulting period have a preference for dried pineapple pieces, because of the enzymes they contain, which help to break down the hair ingested by the rabbit when licking its fur…
Your rabbit will also prefer crisp green leaves if he feels that his teeth are starting to grow a little too fast because the darker the color of the leaves, the more silica they contain, which is what files the rabbit’s teeth.
But the treats that rabbits love the most are well known, and I’ll give you the complete list right away, and it’s up to you to discover the treat that your rabbit would prefer more than the others.
The complete list of rabbit’s favorite Natural and healthy treats
| Type of Treat | The favorite rabbit treats |
| Fruits & Veggies | Apples Pears Banana Papaya Mango Cherries Grapes Strawberries & Raspberries Ananas Kiwi Persimmons Cucumbers Horseradish Cranberries Blackberries Blueberries Cantaloupe Pineapple , Peaches , Watermelon , Zucchini and Tomatoes |
| Leafy Greens | Celery & Carrot tops Broccoli Leaves Kale Leaves Spinach , Spring greens Turnip greens Romaine Lettuce Strawberry tops Arugula Basil Broccoli leaves Frisee and leafy lettuce Cabbage Cauliflower stems , Sprouts Cilantro Collard greens Dill Lemongrass Mint Oregano Radicchio Watercress Wheatgrass Yu choy |
| Weeds & Fresh Herbs | Rocket ( arugula ) Milk thistle The Plantain Dock Leaves The Dandelion Alfalfa. Coriander Parsley Peppermint. Rosemary. Sage. Thyme. Trees leaves like willow … |
| Dried Fruits and Vegetables | You just have to be careful to choose only the dried fruits and veggies that your rabbit loves as treats, I advise you not to buy bags where there are too many mixtures, (Strawberry, Papaya & Banana …), and especially be careful to buy only natural products and without added and extra sugar!! Organic Bunny Fruit Snacks Sun Dried Reduced sugar fruits |
| Dried herb blends | You can also give a mixture of herbs and dried flowers as a treat to sprinkle on the hay you give to your rabbit. This treat is to be used when your rabbit doesn’t eat enough hay because this very fragrant and natural mixture will increase the palatability of the hay and make it irresistible to your picky rabbit. |
| Fresh or dried flowers | Some flowers are perfectly edible and very appreciated as treats by rabbits, such as the flowers of : Nasturtium Dandelion Clover Thyme Serpolet Marjolaine Oregano Savory Air-dried roses are excellent treats for rabbits. |
| Homemade treats | You can, of course, please your rabbit by making him his favorite treats yourself. Use your favorite fruit as a main ingredient, you can find recipes for rabbit treats on the net like carrot cake, raspberry cake dried pesticide free roses, baked apple and Carrot slices and banana cookies… Ad some hot water , some honey and half banana to Timothy pellets , make a cake, bake in the oven and cut into small slices. If you don’t have time to bake for your rabbit, I recommend these cookies: Kaytee Timothy Baked Treats |
How do I know what my rabbit’s favorite treat is?
It’s essential to know what is your rabbit’s favorite treat, you must actually find at least two or three in order to vary its diet.
To find out what your rabbit’s favorite treat is, just put different treats in front of him on the same dish, small cubes of banana, apple, pear, grapes, pieces of strawberry, raspberry…. and you will see which treat your rabbit will eat first, and which ones will stay in the dish …
Do the same with other kinds of sweets, dried fruits … etc.
Then make a short list of the treats your rabbit loves most.
Why is it useful to know the treats that your rabbit dreams about?
It is very useful to know what your rabbit likes to eat the most, and what his favorite treats are.
You should quickly find out what treats your rabbit likes or ask the breeder for some, because they will help you to get closer to your rabbit from the very first days.
Treats are the best way to get your rabbit to trust and love you
You will also use them to reward your rabbit when he behaves well “positive reinforcement”, or during trainings like the litter box training or just to teach them new tricks like jumping over obstacles …
You will also need to know what your rabbit’s favorite treat is when you suspect that your rabbit is sick and is not eating; because if you give him his favorite treat and he refuses to eat it, you will know that it is time to take him to see his Veterinarian.
What are the foods to avoid as treats
I told you previously to avoid treats made with yogurt, seeds and nuts, pellet and seed mixes, this kind of mix is behind many digestive problems in rabbits.
Also never let your children share their snacks with the rabbit, human food can be very dangerous for rabbits, I quote: chocolate, cookies, coffee, eggs, animal proteins, crackers, ice cream, dairy products, popcorn, peanut butter, bread and cheese…
Finally, don’t give anything else than the normal rabbit food and the different treats I mentioned in this article !
How many treats to give to my rabbit ?
The treats should be given to the rabbit exactly like you give candy to children.
One tablespoon per day of treats for medium sized rabbits (2 lbs to 6 lbs) and two for large rabbits.
You should also know that when you give your rabbit sweet treats, you must take it out of its cage so that it can exercise a little and burn off all the excess sugar.
Never give treats to your rabbit before he has eaten a little hay and his vegetable ration …
Let’s wrap this up
Every rabbit has his favorite treat but just at the moment, so don’t be surprised if today your rabbit loves raspberries whereas yesterday he was doing everything for a piece of apple !
Don’t give your rabbit just one kind of treat, vary his menu and don’t forget that the basic rabbit food is hay !
