I’ve known a lot of rabbits in my short life, and they are especially fond of fruit. Have you ever wondered if rabbits can eat kiwis? This is a question I get asked a lot. Maybe you have already searched the Internet to see if anyone has answered it before. Well, now is your chance to find out.
Can rabbits eat kiwi? Kiwi fruit is a delicious treat and a super healthy snack for pet rabbits. It is a great natural source of the essential fatty acid necessary for your pet’s health. Their seeds and skins also contain nutrients that are vital to a rabbit’s well-being.
Rabbits can eat kiwi in moderation. Considered a rare and exotic treat for your pets, these fuzzy fruits are excellent in keeping them healthy. Even the seeds and skin (only organic kiwis) are safe and nutritious for your furry pets. Rabbits can also eat golden kiwifruits and might even prefer them over green kiwis. However, if you have a kit, you should wait at least 3-4 months to feed them kiwis.
This article covers all grounds for feeding kiwis to rabbits. If you have any doubts and queries about the subject, stay with me until the end.
Can kiwi be healthy for rabbits?
For all the concerned pet parents out there, the health of their beloved pets always comes first. If you’re one of those, you must be wondering about the impact feeding kiwis will have on their health. Will it benefit them as it benefits us? That’s what we’re going to talk about in this section.
To begin with, let’s take a quick glance at the nutritional table of kiwis:
| Nutrient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Vitamin A | 87 IU |
| Vitamin B1 (Thiamin) | 0.027 mg |
| Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) | 0.025 mg |
| Vitamin B3 (Niacin) | 0.341 mg |
| Vitamin B4 (Choline) | 7.8 mg |
| Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid) | 0.183 mg |
| Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) | 0.063 mg |
| Vitamin B9 (Folates) | 25 mcg |
| Vitamin C | 92.7 mg |
| Vitamin E | 1.46 mg |
| Vitamin K | 40.3 mcg |
| Calcium, Ca | 34 mg |
| Iron, Fe | 0.31 mg |
| Magnesium, Mg | 17 mg |
| Potassium, K | 312 mg |
| Sodium, Na | 3 mg |
| Phosphorus, P | 34 mg |
| Zinc, Zn | 0.14 mg |
| Manganese, Mn | 0.098 mg |
| Copper, Cu | 0.13 mg |
| Selenium, Se | 0.2 mcg |
| Water | 83.1 g |
| Carbohydrates | 14.7 g |
| Dietary fibers | 3 g |
| Sugar | 9 g |
| Ash | 0.61 g |
| Protein | 1.14 g |
| Fat | 0.52 g |
| Calories | 61 kcal |
Serving size: 100 grams
If we’ve learned anything from the table above, it is that kiwis are quite a storehouse of nutrients. Following are the benefits of feeding these fruits to your pet rabbits:
- Kiwis are rich in vitamin A, which can not only improve your pet’s eyesight but also boost their reproductive functions.
- Vitamins C and E, which are two primary antioxidant sources, are both present in kiwis. These antioxidants protect your rabbit’s cells from oxidative damage and strengthen their immune responses.
- Kiwi also contains vitamin K that is crucial in the blood coagulation processes. The absence of this vitamin in their diet can make them bleed to death from even a small wound or cut.
- Calcium is essential for the proper growth, development, and maintenance of your pet’s bones and muscles.
- Potassium maintains the fluid balance in their body and prevents them from Hypokalemia.
- Kiwis are rich in fibers, the macronutrient responsible for the smooth functioning of their digestive system.
Risks involved with feeding kiwi to rabbits
Before you get carried away with feeding kiwis to your little pets, it is necessary to consider the cons of it as well. As with most fruits, kiwis are safe for rabbits in moderation as well. However, the problem arises when you don’t limit your pet’s kiwi intake.
Take a look at what can go wrong if you overfeed these fruits to your rabbits:
Gastrointestinal issues
When we eat fruits like kiwis, the natural sugar leads to the growth of our gut bacteria that run on sugar. The same thing happens with rabbits; only, due to their smaller size, they need a much smaller amount of sugar.
Therefore, eating too many sweet treats can overwhelm their gut health easily, resulting in liquid stool. Furthermore, too much sugar in their diet can also interfere with their ability to produce cecotropes, shortening their lifespan.
The risk of Fatty Liver Syndrome
Fatty Liver Syndrome is a condition in which the fat in your pet’s cells grows, often due to their increased consumption of carbs and sugar.
It can ultimately damage their liver and can also kill them. Although most of the Fatty Liver Syndrome are non-specific, here are some signs you can look out for:
- constant teeth grinding
- a hunched body posture
- lethargy
- loss of appetite
Since kiwis are rich in both sugar and carbs, you must feed these to your rabbits in moderation.
Other health problems
Apart from the health issues we discussed above, overfeeding kiwis to your furry pets can also lead to the following problems:
- obesity
- foot pain
- arthritis
- cardiovascular issues
- respiratory problems
Can rabbits eat the outer skin of kiwi?
Like apples and oranges, the outer skin of kiwis is also the most nutritious part of these fruits, containing vitamins C, E, and antioxidants in abundance. Although we discard these peels due to their unpalatable taste, what about your pet bunnies? Would they be willing to eat kiwi skin?
Well, that depends on the individual taste of your pets. While the wild rabbits can readily find anything they can find, domestic ones who live in captivity can be notoriously fussy about their diet. You’ll have to serve unpeeled kiwis to your rabbits to find out whether they’re interested in eating them or not.
If your furry pets do seem to eat the kiwi peels, it’s great news for you. However, before you feed them these peels, make sure that you’re purchasing organic kiwis, not commercially grown ones.
Organic kiwis are grown in a safe environment and are free from any toxic chemicals that might have been sprayed on the outer skin of non-organic kiwis. If your little pets eat peels that are infected with pesticides, it could hurt their health.
What about kiwi seeds? Are they edible to rabbits?
Kiwis have tiny, black seeds present at the center of their flesh. These seeds might appear tough but are too soft and squishy to pose a choking threat to your pets. Moreover, they are also rich in some vitamins and minerals and can contribute to your rabbits’ health.
Therefore, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t feed kiwis to them with the seeds intact. Some pet parents prefer to remove these seeds as a precaution, so can you, but it would be unnecessary.
Is it safe to feed kiwi to kits (baby rabbits)?
Most people consider rabbits to be one of the cutest pets. But if you see their little ones, you’ll realize that they’re downright adorable.
Do you have one of these adorable little guys as pets and are thinking of adding kiwis to their diet? Well, whether or not kiwis are safe for kits depends on their age.
From the moment they’re born to the first three weeks of their lives, kits should drink their mother’s milk (or a replacement formula) for their proper growth.
Once they’re older than three weeks, you can start introducing solid food to their diet. However, it would help if you fed them only high-quality hay for the next couple of months to meet their nutritional requirements.
Once your kits are three months old, you can add fruits and vegetables to their diet gradually. Kiwis can be fed to them around this time as well.
Dried kiwis for rabbits: safe or not?
Unfortunately, delicious fruits are grown seasonally, but if you want to enjoy these little treats outside of their season, dried kiwis are the way to go.
Dried kiwis have a tart taste and a soft, chewy texture. But can your pet bunnies enjoy these treats? Well, while there is nothing in dried kiwi that could be outright harmful to your pets, it would be best to avoid feeding it to them.
Wondering why? I’ll tell you.
Concentrated sugar
Can you guess how much sugar would dried kiwis contain? They have 60 grams of sugar (per 100 grams of kiwi), which is more than five times that of fresh kiwis.
In the drying (dehydrating) fresh kiwis, all their water is removed, resulting in a much more concentrated sugar content. And as we’ve already discussed above, excess sugar can be very unhealthy for your furry pets.
The risk of additives
If you dehydrate kiwis at home by yourself, these can still be fed to your rabbits on rare occasions. However, store-bought dried kiwis are even more dangerous for their health.
These kiwis are basically processed foods that might contain artificial flavors, additives, and chemicals, all of which could be lethal to your pet friends.
For these reasons, you should avoid feeding dried kiwis to your bunnies. This is true not just for kiwis but also for most other fruits; fresh fruits always make a better treat for your pet friends.
Can rabbits eat golden kiwi?
Golden kiwis are considered to be the attractive cousins of green kiwis by many. These kiwis are shaped just like the regular kiwis but have a smooth, hairless skin that is golden-brown, unlike the fuzzy, dull-brown skin of the latter.
Golden kiwis are different from green kiwis on the inside as well; they have a smaller core and fewer seeds, with the color of their flesh ranging from lime green to golden. These kiwis also lack the tanginess of green ones and have a sweet, tropical taste.
However, if you look at the nutritional value of golden kiwis, you will find no difference between the two. In fact, golden kiwis are the ones with higher sugar content and calorific count. Therefore, while both golden and green kiwis are safe for your pet’s consumption, green ones are a healthier option for them.
Frequently asked questions
Is it okay to feed apricots to my pet rabbit? Yes, apricots are safe for the consumption of your little pets as long as you feed these to them in moderation. Also, as with all pitted fruits, you must remove their pit before feeding them your rabbits, or they could choke on it.
Can my rabbit eat blackberries? Yes, blackberries are entirely safe for your rabbits and are also part of their natural diet in the wild. In addition to blackberries, rabbits can also eat blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries in moderation.
Conclusion: Can Rabbits Eat Kiwi?
Rabbits can eat kiwis! They’re very healthy for them, and some owners say their pets love them. They are fantastic for the digestive system, and the skins (the rabbit may not eat them anyway) are great for rough, scaly skin. In addition to these benefits, they taste great.
Kiwis make a delicious treat for your pet rabbit and have an array of nutrients that will keep them healthy – especially their teeth and digestive system!