When Fall comes around many homesteaders and rabbit pet owners start putting together baked pumpkin, pumpkin stews, pumpkin pie and other tasty treats. You may naturally wonder if this squash can be offered to your furry friends and if the seeds and skin of pumpkin would hurt your rabbits.
Fortunately, this guide contains all you will need to know about feeding pumpkin to your rabbits including risks, benefits, and best practices, so read on!
Yes, rabbits can eat pumpkin, pumpkin rind, as well as the vine, leaves and flowers of the pumpkin plant. Conversely, pumpkin seeds and the pumpkin stem are not recommended for your rabbit. Now that you know that rabbits can eat pumpkin, let’s address some of the specifics about feeding pumpkin to rabbits.
Note: House Rabbit Society publishes a very helpful guide discussing suggested vegetables and fruits for rabbits. This guide is widely shared among rabbit owners and promotes feeding fruit at no more than 2 teaspoons per 2 pounds of body weight daily.
Does Pumpkin Have Nutritional Value?
Pumpkin is a winter squash and is technically a fruit! And Healthline confirms that although it is about 94% water, pumpkin is considered a nutrient dense food. Benefits of pumpkin include significant amounts of
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin C
- Potassium
- Antioxidants
- Manganese
- Cpper
- Vitamin E.
Why Is Pumpkin Good for Rabbits?
All these nutrients and antioxidants help keep the rabbit healthy and the rabbit’s immune system in top shape. Without doubt, pumpkin is a great fall treat to offer to mature bunnies!
In addition, pumpkin can help increase a rabbit’s hydration in hot, dry climates as getting enough water is very important for the rabbit’s health. Water helps keep the rabbit’s immune system healthy, flushing out cell level wastes as well as toxins and other bodily wastes. In addition, the outer skin of the pumpkin has some fiber content which is important in rabbits’ diets.
Why Too Much Pumpkin May Be Harmful to Rabbits
Pumpkin has many good nutrients but it contains much more water and sugar than the rabbit’s digestive tract is used to. This means that pumpkin should be offered in moderation and introduced to a rabbit slowly, without overwhelming thier digestive system.
You may already know that rabbits have very sensitive digestive systems. New foods that are not part of their regular healthy diet must be slowly introduced into the rabbit’s diet and owners should be attentive to their rabbits as they introduce new foods! Too much water or too much sugar will aggravate the rabbit’s digestive system, causing diarrhea and other harmful impacts.
Now the rind of pumpkin does provide some beneficial fiber, but rabbits get most of their fiber from their core diet of hay, grasses, and green leafy vegetables. Even manufactured rabbit pellets provide more fiber than an equal amount of pumpkin! As such, the most you wanna offer your bunny is several one-inch cubes of pumpkin or pumpkin rind each week.
Can Baby Rabbits Eat Pumpkin?
No, Baby rabbits, known as Kittens or Kits, should NOT eat pumpkin or rind.
A baby rabbit’s digestive system is still developing and is not ready to process pumpkin, hay, or vegetables.
Baby rabbits should not eat pumpkin or rind until they are almost fully weaned off their mother’s milk or until they reach 12 weeks old.
Kits will become very sick and perhaps die if they eat pumpkin or rind before weaning.
How to Feed Pumpkin to Your Rabbit
If providing some rind with the flesh of the pumpkin, then first wash the rind thoroughly to remove dirt and grime or residual pesticides. Then cut the pumpkin into thin slices or small cubes. It is easier to control and manage how much the rabbit eats when you use these smaller pieces of pumpkin.
You can then place the cut pumpkin into your rabbit’s feeder or in a bowl. Remember, we do not recommend that fruits treats amount to more than 5-10% of your rabbit’s diet.
Why Can Pumpkin be Harmful or Risky to My Rabbit’s Health?
Diarrhea, Stress, Weight Loss, Weakened Immune System
The rabbit digestive tract is not used to pumpkin. In the wild, the rabbit may find and eat some pumpkin, but only seasonally.
Eating too much pumpkin on a continued basis may lead to diarrhea or some other painful and potentially debilitating condition in the digestive tract. These situations create stress for the rabbit and over time they weaken the rabbit’s immune system.
Additionally, eating too much pumpkin could aggravate a rabbit’s delicate digestive system that is not used to the high-water content found in pumpkins. This may cause diarrhea which may also lead to weight loss and a weaker immune system.
Remember, your rabbits should eat a balanced diet of grasses and various leafy greens, some vegetables, and some fruits. Additionally, most manufactured rabbit pellets include a healthy and balanced nutrition package for your rabbits.
Seeds and Stems
Again, it is recommended that you do not feed pumpkin seeds and stems to rabbits. Seeds and stems are harder to digest and may cause irritation, or even a blockage, in the rabbit’s digestive tract.
Can Rabbits Eat Other Forms of Pumpkin?
Can Rabbits Eat Pumpkin Puree from a Can?
Many people ask about feeding a rabbit some pumpkin puree from a can purchased at the grocery store. We recommend against this. The processed pumpkin puree from a can often has sugars added to it. Although a thimble of puree is not likely to cause any damage, there is no good reason to provide this processed food to your rabbits.
Can Rabbits Eat Pumpkin Pie and Cooked Pumpkin?
Again, we recommend against feeding a cooked pumpkin pie or even cooked pumpkin “meat”. Even if the pie used raw pumpkin, the rabbit’s digestive system is designed for raw foods, not cooked foods. There is no good reason to stress your rabbit’s system with cooked food.
Here is nice one minute video that promotes moderation in feeding raw pumpkin to rabbits.
Final Thoughts About Can Rabbits Eat Pumpkins
This Can Rabbits Eat Pumpkins post is part of our larger post about What Can Rabbits Eat? Please click and give it a read! It is full of great information and I guarantee you will learn something valuable.
As we discussed throughout this article, adult rabbits may eat a small amount of fresh, raw pumpkin each week as it is a highly nutritious squash. However, we recommend no more than 2 teaspoons per 2 pounds of body weight daily.
Remember that overfeeding pumpkin may lead to digestive issues for your bunny such as diarrhea. Further, overfeeding your rabbits treats such as pumpkin may result in a decrease of core diet intake, weight loss and a compromised immune system.
There we have it. We hope you have learned all you need to know about feeding pumpkin to your rabbits. More questions about rabbits eating pumpkin? Feel free to ask them in the comments section below, we would love to hear from you!
Want to know more about fruit for rabbits? You can click on this post:
Fruits Rabbits Can Eat