So we have the nursery rabbit for the weekend, last night I gave it lettuce and crusts just like I gave mine as a child

[compo]

Just read the 'instructions' it came with and they say no lettuce or bread
Anyone know why? Never did our rabbits any harm when we were younger....

I thought all rabbits ate lettuce.

It gives then the trots - so does grass. As a child my rabbits lived on the grass, but when i had a rabbit a couple of years ago, the vets told me to limit how much grass it had, and other fresh stuff. I think we have bred hyper sensitive rabbits, or is it global warming!

Lettuce apparently gives them runny poo? Or at least I vaguely remember reading that! Mine won't eat it anyway..

But rabbits eat grass. In the wild. That's what they are designed to do.

mine dont have lettuce
but does have bread and love it....

really nice that some schools still have pets

I give mine lettuce sometimes, her poo is always normal.

They like carrots and brocolli.

Perhaps the lettuce makes them sleepy/docile? no fun for children!!!!!

Lettuce does not make bunnies sleepy

no my rabbit ceratinly is never docile/sleepy!

Rabbits get runny tummies if they eat lettuce. Rabbits double digest their food i.e. eat their poo, so it shouldn't be runny. Our love kale, carrot tops, cabbage - anything dark green.

OneLieIn- but if my rabbit doesn't get the runs when she's eaten lettuce, then presumably I can continue giving it to her - small pieces though, not very often - she gets very excited when she sees it!

I guess so. I was just told that lettuce and salad type stuff was not best. Darker green is better (so the vet said)

it gives them colic.

Apparently romane lettuce can be given occasionally but iceberg lettuce should never be given.

It's all Beatrix Potter fault that people think rabbits should eat lettuce!

Surely it's not the 'done thing' to still have school pets ? From an animal welfare pov.

We had the school rabbits for half term when I was a little.

They escaped down the side of the garage and emerged smothered from head to toe in motor oil.

They had been pristine white before this.

My dad had to smother them in Swarfega.

Lettuce does actually have mild sleep inducng powers. It contains something thats similar to an opiate and is a mild poison to rabbits. Hence the runs they get.

.

washing up liquid works much better on animals. It's what they use on oiled birds...

at the swafega rabbits

i read that lettuce causes them to hallucinate too.

mine have it in very small amoutns

how do you know if a rabbit is hallucintating?

I will watch out for that when I next give our rabbit the rest of the lettuce!