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Does Blueberry Have Beneficial Nutrition for Rabbits?

Blueberries For Rabbits

Rabbits are commonly known to eat hay for their diet. It has been established that 80 to 90 percent of their regular diet should come from consuming hay and water. The remainder of 10 percent should come from high-quality grains or, for other options, fresh and leafy vegetables.

However, when it comes to their desert or treats, bunnies are recognized to love juicy fruits. One of these fruits is blueberries. To ensure that your rabbits eat foods or treats that are good for them, you look for the nutritional facts of fruit like blueberries if they can offer great benefits to your rabbit’s overall wellness and health.

This article will discuss whether Blueberry will be a safe fruit for bunnies. To understand it more clearly, let’s closely examine its composition.

Blueberry

Blueberries are abundant in natural antioxidants. They are one of the highest antioxidant fruits recognized nowadays. They can help preserve the rabbit’s tissues toward oxidative impairment. Antioxidants are good at protecting their cells.

Additionally, blueberries are low in calories. It holds quintessential health-benefiting phytonutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals. These elements can offer immensely towards wellness and good health of your bunnies.

The phytochemical composites in this fruit can support eliminating destructive free radicals from the rabbits, and it can defend your bunnies from various unlikely problems and diseases. They are high in fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, Calcium, Potassium, Magnesium, and other good nutrients.

However, with the benefits of blueberries for your bunnies, excessive consumption is not good as blueberries include a great number of carbohydrates, which we typically know as sugar, which can make them overweight if given in great amounts. Thus, satiating too many blueberries may cause bloating or problems for your pet’s digestive system. High sugar can also make rabbits hyperactive.

Feeding Guide

It is not hard to present blueberries to the rabbits as they will love them. However, there are things that you should be aware of when feeding them. Below is a sample guideline to use in feeding your rabbits.

  1. Ensure it is washed to prevent exposure to chemicals such as pesticides, which can harm them.
  2. If your rabbit is new to the fruit, have a proper transition by starting with a few blueberries per week. 
  3. Remove the seeds from the blueberries to prevent your rabbit from choking. Though seeds aren’t reported to be dangerous for them, it is not that bad to make sure. Besides, ensuring it is better than taking a risk.
  4. If your rabbit is still young, you can cut the blueberry into quarters and feed them just as a treat once every other day to prevent high exposure to sugar, as blueberries are small and deceivingly addictive.
  5. Make sure that all their required nutrients are being filled in. The majority of the nutrients that they need come from hay. The remaining 20 percent can be given and covered by vegetables, fruits, and treats.

Read More: The Definitive Guide To What Foods Rabbits Can & Cannot Eat

Types of Blueberry

There are two types you can feed your bunny with.

Fresh Blueberries

Fresh blueberries are known to be the usual ones purchased from your local grocery store. As a bunny lover, it won’t hurt too much if you can make it even great by growing your own in your backyard or purchasing from a different store, which may have another texture and taste. Ensure that these freshly purchased or picked blueberries are thoroughly washed before giving them to your rabbits.

Dehydrated Blueberries

Dehydrated blueberries are blueberries that are commonly dried. 90% percent of the water in them is removed, but rabbits will still enjoy the texture and flavor of the fruit. However, dehydrated blueberries tend to have more sugar composition. You have to give them less to prevent further digestive malfunction or abnormalities.

Rabbit and Blueberry in a Nutshell

  • Blueberries are rich in antioxidants that are very good at protecting their cells.
  • Blueberries contain low calories, good minerals, and vitamins that can contribute to their overall wellness and health.
  • Blueberries include a massive amount of sugar that can affect their gastrointestinal activity and can further lead to serious gastrointestinal problems.
  • Blueberries can be very addictive and somewhat deceivingly small, which can cause obesity.

Rabbits can safely eat blueberries but in moderation. Aside from their nutrient and beneficial composition, blueberries can be given as treats during training to develop their attentiveness and mentality and lessen the boredom.

And although your rabbit may enjoy a variety of fruits and vegetables, you are still in charge and the sole liable for their health. So better feed them the right amount of blueberries before even suffering from the consequences of negligence. A happy rabbit always comes with a wise master.

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