# Why is cilantro so important in a rabbits diet?



## Number1Sticky (Nov 7, 2011)

Iâve heard that cilantro is good for rabbits, Iâm just wondering why? My rabbits get unlimited Timothy hay, Â¼ cup of pellets (oxbow) and four different kinds of leafy greens a day. I donât mind feeding it to them; Iâm just wondering if they actually NEED it. And how much a day?

Thanks for any advice!!


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## Watermelons (Nov 7, 2011)

They dont need it however...

Cilantro seems to be a favourite for most bunnys, they go nuts for it!!
Its a very healthy herb!
http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/cilantro.html
It helps reduce inflamation, cleans up the blood, helps to prevent UTI's, helps the digestive tract both with enzymes and reducing gas, which is important for bunnys, making it even more useful especially for a bun going into stasis or who has tummy issues.

The list of why Cilantro is so amazing just goes on forever, plus buns love the stuff so why not feed it 

http://www.indepthinfo.com/cilantro/health.shtml
http://factoidz.com/coriander-cilantro-health-benefits-of-coriander/
http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/13-health-benefits-of-coriander-seeds-and-cilantro-leaves.html


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## LakeCondo (Nov 7, 2011)

Like anything else, introduce it slowly.


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## turnerasylum (Nov 7, 2011)

Stew loves cilantro and parsley. So much so that when she's in the yard, she parks her body in the middle of the patch in our garden and sits like a queen surveying her kingdom. So much for using it in our food. Neither bunny has had messy poops like with kale and too much other greens. They sure run to enjoy it.


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## Nancy McClelland (Nov 7, 2011)

All I know about it is that it is our bunnies favorite--they all like it.


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## Lucy500 (Nov 7, 2011)

I didnt know it was so good for bunnies! I just feed it because theres always some at my house and Bonkers loves it! Is parsley just as good for them too?


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## Watermelons (Nov 7, 2011)

Im not too familiar with the good properties of parsley but I've heard it can be high in calcium which isnt a very good thing for bunnys. So just dont give lots of it.
Might as well stick with Cilantro 

When my turdlets were little I would go through 2 large bunches of Cilantro per week, I would imagine at 4lbs each now, 3 bunches/week sounds about right... if that helps you at all for ammount fed. This was ofcoarse with a whole whack of other leafy greens.


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## Lucy500 (Nov 7, 2011)

Ohh ok, thats very good to know about parsley! 
Bonkers salad consists of romaine, cilantro, parsley (which im going to reduce now!) and sometimes chard (if my mom cooks with it hehe). My mother is mexican, so she always has all kinds of herbs in the house to cook with. She recently brought home a dry hibiscus flower named "jamaica" (like the country) that we use to make a drink (agua fresca, it means fresh water). I read that bunnies can eat hibiscus flowers so I gave Bonkers a tiny bit to try and he loved it! I would like to top his salad with it sometimes but I havent because Im not really sure if its safe for him. Does anybody know about it?


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## Number1Sticky (Nov 10, 2011)

Thanks, everyone for your help. One of rabbits LOVES it, we actually play a game with it. I'll hand it to her and I need to get her another piece before the other one is gone. She will get very upset with me if we don't play or if I run out of it. But my other rabbits doesn't like it too much, but she eats it. So I will continue to feed it to both of them.


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## Acacia-Berry (Nov 10, 2011)

Aw, everytime I buy cilantro it rots in the fridge. I HATE the smell and Acacia never really liked it. However, I had a stint once where I was growing cilantro! I love growing herbs! Maybe I'll try again. Currently I only have marjoram ^.^


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## gmas rabbit (Nov 10, 2011)

Benjamin loves it, but the smell make me sick. I have to give him some parsley after to cleanse his breath. lol


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## Number1Sticky (Nov 10, 2011)

gmas rabbit wrote:


> Benjamin loves it, but the smell make me sick. I have to give him some parsley after to cleanse his breath. lol



When I first started buying it I couldn't stand the smell of it either. But I've actually grown to like the smell of it now.


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## MiniLopHop (Nov 11, 2011)

Nothing gets the buns at my house to run to the refrigerator like cilantro! For the four of them I get 4 bunches of cilantro, 2 bunches each of flat and curly parsley, assorted greens, and a little something sweet each week. I'm very happy that our grocery store has very fresh produce. I also keep a couple cans of plain pumpkin and a frozen box of plain squash on hand because both the rabbits and the turtles love it. You never know what is for dinner at our house but you can count on a mutany if it is late!


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## LaylaLop (Nov 11, 2011)

I tried giving Layla a tiny tiny piece of cilantro. She's 3 months old so I didn't want to do too much, so I tried a piece about the size of a split pea and she turned her nose up at it and ate her food around it... 

Maybe it's like wine and she'll learn to appreciate it with age..


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