Sorry not to have replied before now...I'm at work and it's been a very busy week.
RE your questions about a rabbit diet: many, many rabbit vets don't like the pellets for the reasons I stated: it's a man-made product, too high in calcium and protein, too low in fiber. The high calcium can cause the bladder problems, low fiber can cause digestive problems and too high protein adversely effects their organs.
You might look at www.rabbit.org This organization is the premier experts in having rabbits as house pets. They do allow pellets but only about 1-2 Tablespoons per 5 lbs of bunny...so it's a treat and not the diet mainstay:
1. number one food should be unlimited amounts of timothy (not alfalfa--again too high in calcium) should be the primary food for rabbits. Great for the digestive system, which is delicate in rabbits.
2. Then dark green veggies: green leaf lettuce, romaine, spinach, collards, dandelion greens (my buns favorite food), turnip and mustard greens (my buns won't eat either one), endive, outer leaves of boston lettuce. Notice I did not mention iceberg lettuce.....it has too much water in it and not enough nutrients and can cause diahrea in buns. Buns can have a limited amount of broccoli, cauliflower, the dark green outer cabbage leaves. Just like in people these can cause excess gas in the tummy which is very painful and, if bad enough, can kill rabbits. My buns love kale too but it needs to be given in limited amounts as it contains calcium. Regarding carrots....carrots are high in sugar so the carrot should be limited to 1-4 inch piece per day. My buns love parsnips, beets, kohlrabi (peeled). Never ever give cucumbers, tomatoes, any kind of beans or peas, no corn. No cereal, bread, crackers, cookies, popcorn, etc. Fruit: they can have small amounts of blueberries, strawberries, applie slice, raspberries, a small piece of banana (1-2 inch). Never overfeed fruit as it can cause runny poo.
There are a number of rabbit care websites and most of them will all say the same thing about diet. Rabbits as pets really became popular about 12-15 years ago; before that most were considered farm animals and raised for meat. Pellets were developed for the farmer as a fast way to feed them. Also, since their life expectancy was so short no one ever worried about the contents of pellets or the imbalance of calcium, fiber and protein in the pellets.
When people began to realize that buns made good pets, researchers and veterarians started studying their diet, health and social needs. Information about the care of rabbits has changed dramatically with these studies and unfortunately much of the old theories of rabbit care remains, handed down by word of mouth. Improved diet, treatments for ill rabbits, medications and their social requirements have led to rabbits having a longer life span. Life expectancy for rabbits, esp house rabbits, as gone from 3-4 years to an average of 7-11 years, while outdoor bunnies in hutches still tend to have a much shorter life, due to weather, being forgotten, lack of plentiful food, water and limited, if any, interactions with people or other bunnies.
Sorry didn't mean to make this such a long reply or for this to sound like a lecture....but I DO teach rabbit care classes and it's pretty hard for me to get off my soapbox! They are the BEST pets and I would do anything for mine so I seldom pass up the chance to spread the word about these furry bundles of affection.
Hope this info helps.
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