Why do some say lettuce is a no-no?

[Dr. Doolittle]

Hi All,

My neighbor told me not to feed my bunnies lettuce because lettuce killed her bunny when she was a kid (this would have been, oh, the 1960s, I guess?). I “yessed” her rather than get into it as I follow the HRS diet recommendations. I did a quick Google search and was surprised to see how many people post not to feed lettuce. What’s up with that? Are they taking what happened to one bunny in their lives, blaming lettuce, and applying to all? 

I’m just curious if someone who has been a house rabbit “parent” for a while knows why this information is floating around out there.

Thanks for any info you can give me.

[Sarita]

My guess is that breeders take the baby rabbits away from the mom too quickly (weaned too young) and the truth is that coccidia caused the deaths.

Also most breeders normally just feed pellets and people didn’t realize that baby rabbits must be introduced to greens slowly as you initially just want to replicate what the mother rabbit was fed.

That’s just my best guess. As obviously we know that greens and lettuce are full of fiber, nutrients and help hydrate the gut…we know that wild rabbits eat greens and not pellets….

Also in the past I think people just probably fed scraps that they wouldn’t eat so I have to wonder as well if the fact that they weren’t suitable for humans usually means they aren’t suitable for our animals as well.

[Sarita]

It’s the same thing with iceberg lettuce – it’s not bad stuff – yes the conventional is full of pesticides because it retains so much water and it does have little nutrients but if you could find organic, it would be fine to feed with all the other greens. Poor iceberg lettuce has such a bad rap LOL.

[Dr. Doolittle]

Thanks, Sarita. It did seem to me that the sites saying “no! For the love of all that’s holy, NO!” were more fear-based than thoughtful analysis of what is good for a rabbit, LOL.

We just started our two girls on lettuce a little more than a week ago–very small amounts of green leaf to start. We’re now up to about 1/2 cup each once a day. They looooove their green leaf. (They’re 5.5 months now.)

[Stickerbunny]

People I know who have had rabbits and didn’t look into how to care for one do things like: Go to the fridge, grab a head of iceberg lettuce, don’t wash it and then put it (whole) into the cage (in the hot sun, since “rabbits are outdoor pets”) with no slow introduction (“rabbits eat from gardens in the wild, they’ll be fine”) and then don’t pay attention when bunny gets an upset tummy from it. Then, they say how fragile rabbits are and how it’s so hard to keep them alive and how fresh foods are AWFUL and deadly to rabbits. *frown*

Lettuce is a staple in my bunnies diets and they love their romaine. : )

[lozzkate]

i remeber reading that iceberg lettuce is poisonous for rabbits but i dont really know about that but I’m being safe and using round head lettuce i think it’s called my three love it and it’s gone by the time i put the bowl down. I’m more scared of what my dad throws into the pen from the garden than i am from what comes from our fridge

[Roberta]

Not a fan of any lettuce for mine…. All of the have had greens from a very young age and a wide variety but any time I feed the Cos (Romaine) lettuce someone gets the runs so now I avoid all lettuce… The don’t like the curly ones at all. I’m not going to risk iceberg….

[JackRabbit]

Interesting Roberta. Everyone seems to push romaine, but Moshi gets soft poop if he gets more than a couple of bites. Thought he was the only one!

I think the “no lettuce” thing is only about iceberg (the round ball kind of lettuce). Other lettuce is “approved”. Iceberg just doesnt have the nutrients that the other store bought lettuces have so it’s not best for them. Green leaf seems to be the easiest on tummies. Ours also get red leaf. For ours, the rest is herbs and a bite of kale.

Without lettuce, what all do yours get Roberta? Been looking for some variety!

[Roberta]

Mine get mixed salad twice a daily with at least 3 kinds from the following…
Bok Choy/Pak Choy
Kale
Coriander (Cilantro)
Italian Parsley
Spearmint
Nasturtiums
Fennel fronds
Sweet Basil
Fresh Oat grass (from a specially cultivated spot)
The occassional Broccoli leaves…
I have been wanting to try lavender as I usually have an abundance of that too… Sometimes I add a few fresh rosemary twigs as well.. Carrots, Snow Peas and Apple slices are for treats.

[JackRabbit]

Wow, lucky bunnies! I’ve given mine spearmint. Ever given peppermint?

[Roberta]

Yep… They don’t like the round leafed one it has to be the pointy leafed spearmint… Fussy little wildebeest.

[Deleted User]

You know it’s funny….. I was told to never give Henry iceberg lettuce, so I never did and never asked why! Before this ‘I’ had never tried the other types of lettuce available, and since buying cos, butter, red for Henry – even I couldn’t go back to eating iceberg lettuce, lol!

I was also told to never give Henry ‘white’ potato, only sweet…. why?

[LongEaredLions]

Andi-White potato is very starchy, and can upset the gut. The eyes are also toxic if green.

[Deleted User]

Cool! Thanks Amanda – good to know.
Hey, what about ‘one’ McDonald’s chip??? We have Macca’s about once a month/2 months and Henry lines up to be given ‘a’ chippy with the dog’s…… This started when I threw a chip to one of the dog’s and Henry got it – he’s been hooked since! Silly bunny! (here’s your chance to go crook at someone LEL – ha ha ha ha…..). Cheers.

[LongEaredLions]

Ummm….. I don’t think that’s a good idea, LOL!
They are BAD ENOUGH for people to eat, let alone bunnies!

[LongEaredLions]

But of course, I don’t even know if what they claim is potato at McDonald’s is actually potato….

[Roberta]

Spuds are definitely off the menu… Listed as toxic I wouldn’t risk it… Some buns have gotten into the slaves potatoes and been lucky you just never know when it is going to be their undoing.

[Deleted User]

Ok Amanda and Roberta – no more Macca’s chippies for Henry!
And when he asks why, I’m blaming you BOTH!

LOL!

[LongEaredLions]

I did nothing, Henry.

[Deleted User]

Roberta!!!!!!!!!

[LongEaredLions]

Good good.

[Deleted User]

LMAO!!!!! Poor Roberta…….

[Roberta]

Have some carrot and apple chips ready for hi when you have macca’s and he won’t feel left out.

[Deleted User]

Henry said ‘but, it won’t be the same…….’! LOL!

Yes, I will Roberta – I promise!

[Sarita]

To get this topic back on track, I also think that in the past most rabbits were kept outside, so they just didn’t get the care they needed – the vet care and rabbit owners most certainly didn’t do a necropsy to have some proof of why their rabbit died. I think that is part of the myth of rabbits dying from eating lettuce as well. Of course, if people didn’t wash their lettuce back in the days it was possible too it was full of pesticide…

[Roberta]

Very true Sarita, incl those nasty old snail pellets that never quite wash out of the stumps…

[Beka27]

Similarly, continuing on with what Sarita said, many people believe the pet rabbits natural lifespan to only be 3-4 years. In females, if they are not spayed, this is the age when cancer becomes a very real threat. So the uninformed rabbit owner thinks that poor Fluffy passed away from “old age” at 4 years old, when really she was likely overcome with cancer. This could have been easily prevented with proper care and a preventative spay.

And then the “no lettuce” thing really is (usually) due to an easily treatable parasite. Recommendation for introducing veggies is 12 weeks. And 12-16 weeks is about the age that Coccidia overwhelms the system. So deaths are often believed to be because of the new diet, when really, the timing is just coincidental.

(I say ‘usually’ about the veggies bc some buns do have more issues with digestion, but most can be fed some greens…)

[Stickerbunny]

Posted By Roberta on 6/01/2014 8:37 PM

Not a fan of any lettuce for mine…. All of the have had greens from a very young age and a wide variety but any time I feed the Cos (Romaine) lettuce someone gets the runs so now I avoid all lettuce… The don’t like the curly ones at all. I’m not going to risk iceberg….

Mine have never had issues with diarrhea from veggies, but they can’t have italian parsley or it causes gas. Bok choy unless it’s SUPER fresh causes their tummies to get upset as well. So, I just cut both those out to avoid the staying up until 4am giving tummy massages to avoid stasis. Given how some buns are sensitive to some veggies, I imagine that is a large part of why people think vegetables could kill their rabbit. 

[Sarita]

I found this on the House Rabbit Society Website which I though was interesting and relevant to your post:

Another important part of the house rabbit diet is fresh, leafy greens. These foods provide not only fiber, but a variety of vitamins, such as A and C, minerals, proteins, and carbohydrates. Most rabbits really enjoy their greens. The old stories about greens causing ‘diarrhea’ are usually referring to rabbits that have been on a low-fiber or high-calorie diet, such as a commercial pellet or a high-grain diet, that are suddenly introduced to greens. On commercial pellets or grains, the flora in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract may not be as varied as in a hay and greens based diet. Additionally, the GI tract may become a bit sluggish due to the high calorie content and lower fiber content. When greens are introduced to these rabbits, more water is introduced into the GI tract than the rabbit got on the dry commercial diet. In addition, the GI flora has to shift to accommodate the new food and the GI tract ‘speeds up’ to a more normal rate. All this can result in temporary soft stools, which usually stabilizes within a week. However there is no reason for your rabbit to have to experience this if you follow this rule. For rabbits that have never been on anything but pellets, first introduce hay and once your rabbit is eating hay well for at least four weeks, then introduce greens.

Here is a link to the whole article:

http://rabbit.org/small-animal-nutrition/

[LongEaredLions]

Sarita, that is interesting!

[Bam]

I so love you guys and your wisdom and knowledge! I’m taking a MOOC now called Do you have what it takes to be a vet? There was a section about rabbits the first week. There were warnings about lettuce all over the forum after that, but noone (incl. me) could produce any insightful info like you’ve done in this thread. People were also deeply surprised to hear that carrots are not the basis of a rabbit’s diet.

So the misconceptions about rabbit care really are profoundly anchored even among people who actually care about pets. You guys are doing a wonderful job of enlightening rabbit owners, incl me. My bunnies have you to thank for so much.

 Edit: I now posted Sarita’s link on the course-forums. I hope that’s ok.

[Dr. Doolittle]

Great info, Sarita. Thank you. They’re still doing just fine with their green leaf. We bought some parsley today. I’ll introduce a teensy bit tonight when they get their greens.

[Miyavp]

I’d read no iceberg so I’ve always fed cappy the dark romaine because I hear the darker the leaves the more vitamins. Not sure if that’s true but he’s never had a problem with it. I got cappy when he was about 6-8months and I slowly introduced the greens after introducing the hay. I found him abandoned so I had no way of telling what he’d been eating before but slowly introducing them seems to work really well, no upset tummys here

[Eepster]

Back in the ’60s, lettuce was almost always iceberg. Other varieties were not widely available as they are today, so unless you knew an old fashioned farmer it was iceberg. Iceberg isn’t poison, but suddenly giving a large amount to a bunny who has previously only ever had pellets would usually induce severe diarrhea leading to dehydration and death.

Also, back in the ’60s pesticides were much more toxic than they are now. They were toxic enough that it made the farm workers sick. It was one of the reasons the farm labor movement started the lettuce and grape boycott.

[Author]

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