Last Updated on March 8, 2023 by Marjon Ramos
Quick Facts About Carrots:
- Scientific name – Daucus carota subsp. sativus
- Origin – Iran, and Afghanistan.
- Most commonly found in – China, Netherlands, United States.
- Average weight – 62 grams
The only part of carrots that should be fed to rabbits is the top part (greens). The body (orange part) contains too much vitamin A and starch, even in small amounts.
100 grams of carrots contain 16,706 IU of vitamin A. While the limit of vitamin A a rabbit should consume per day is 5000–12,000 UI.
Feeding your rabbits too many carrots could lead to vitamin A toxicity.
Rabbits that are experiencing vitamin A toxicity could experience reproductive abnormalities, paresis, muscular dystrophy, abortions, and poor survivability of kits in the breeding colony.
The starch content of carrots could lead to digestive problems like GI stasis, diarrhea, and uneaten cecotropes.
Now that I’ve given you the gist of the article, read on as I explain in more detail why rabbits can’t eat carrots:
Table of Contents
Do rabbits like eating carrots?
In my case, both of my rabbits (Tyr and Freya) like to eat carrots.
Your rabbits would likely eat every part of the carrot if you gave them some.
Rabbits don’t know what’s good for them.
They would eat whatever felt tasty to them.
That’s why it’s your job to only provide them with a proper diet.
I’ve also asked several of my friends who are rabbit owners and breeders if they ever fed carrots to their rabbits and if their rabbits liked carrots.
All of them reported that their rabbits do indeed like carrots.
They just don’t give them the orange part.
They do, however, give the top part to their rabbits every time.
Are carrots safe to be eaten by rabbits?
The only part of the carrot that’s safe to be eaten by rabbits is the top part (leaf part).
The body of the carrot (the orange part) is not good for rabbits because it contains too much vitamin A and starch.
Rabbits that are fed too many carrots could suffer from vitamin A toxicity.
The starch content of carrots could lead to digestive problems like diarrhea, GI stasis, or soft uneaten cecotropes.
Why are carrots bad for rabbits?
To properly understand why feeding carrots is bad for your rabbits, let’s first take a look at what nutrients your rabbits are getting whenever you feed them carrots.
We can use this nutrient constraint calculator, which shows the different nutrients your rabbit is getting and if the amount you’re giving is within the nutritional constraint.
You can also click on the blue icon beside the nutrient to show the different benefits and deficiencies of each nutrient: