Do Rabbits Eat Lemongrass?
Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus), also known as citronella, has grown in our homestead herb garden for many seasons.
We use it to flavor soups, be enjoyed as a morning tea, or to be offered as a treat to our farm rabbits.
If you’ve been wondering ‘Can Bunnies Eat Lemongrass?’, we are here to help you know all about the benefits and risks of offering your rabbits this leafy green.
Yes, mature rabbits can enjoy lemongrass as it is a nontoxic leafy green. This naturally lemon-flavored herb can be a great treat for your bunnies, but should only be offered as a once-in-a-while dietary supplement.
Read On To Learn All The Benefits and Risks of Feeding Your Rabbits Lemongrass
Nutritional Value: Lemongrass for Rabbits
To better understand the benefits of lemongrass and why rabbits like lemongrass, let’s take a look at its nutritional value.
According to the University of Rochester, a tablespoon of fresh lemongrass contains 0.09g of protein and 4.75 calories.
This may not seem impressive, but take a look at the various minerals that lemongrass contains:
| Mineral | Milligrams Per Tablespoon |
| Calcium | 3.12 |
| Iron | 0.39 |
| Magnesium | 2.88 |
| Potassium | 34.7 |
| Zinc | 0.11 |
| Copper | 0.01 |
| Phosphorus | 4.85 |
Lemongrass also contains some acidic compounds, including:
- Limonene
- Citral
- Citronellol
Is Lemongrass Good For Rabbits
Lemongrass is chock full of an impressive array of essential nutrients that are immediately available to your rabbits when they ingest it.
However, it also contains natural acidic components. For this reason, lemongrass is good for rabbits but only when offered in moderation, as acidic foods are not good for rabbits.
Can Pet Rabbits Eat Lemongrass
Yes, your pet rabbits can enjoy lemongrass as a nutritional treat as long as you do not overfeed it to your rabbits.
How Much Lemongrass Can Rabbits Eat
Before we answer how often rabbits can eat lemongrass, let’s revisit the best daily diet for your rabbits:
- Unlimited hay (75% to 80% hay)
- Quality pellets (10% to 15%)
- Leafy green vegetables (5% to 10%)
Rabbits require unlimited hay because their stomachs and digestive systems are sensitive and accustomed to a high fiber diet.
Therefore, healthy greens should make up no more than 5-10% of your rabbit’s diet.
We practice offering about half a handful of lemongrass to our rabbits on any given day and they have never shown negative effects. However, we also always follow certain rules that we will discuss below.
How Often Can Rabbit Eat Lemongrass
Can Rabbits Eat Lemongrass Everyday
Lemongrass is a rabbit-safe herb and can be offered every day.
However, due to its acidic character, it is very important to make sure you don’t offer lots of this herb to your rabbit.
Like we stated before, rabbits’ digestive systems have evolved to break down and metabolize lots of high fiber foods such as hay and pellets. If rabbits do not receive high fibers, they can suffer from stomach issues and even GI status. Lemongrass offers your rabbits essential minerals but not much fiber.
If lemongrass is eaten too often, your rabbits may experience gut issues and nutritional imbalances.
Are Rabbits Allowed Lemongrass
Rabbits are allowed lemongrass as long as it remains a once-in-a-while leafy green supplement, making up no more than 5-10% of their diet.
Will Rabbits Eat Lemongrass
Yes, many rabbits will eat lemongrass. If your rabbit refuses to eat lemongrass, don’t worry, this simply means they don’t like the smell and/or taste.
This can happen with lemongrass and other strong herbs such as Thyme or Rosemary.
How To Feed Lemongrass To Rabbits
We recommend the following steps when feeding your rabbits lemongrass:
- Choose only fresh and fully green lemongrass. Avoiding wilted, yellowed, or insect eaten grass.
- Inspect the lemongrass well to remove any insects or slugs that can cause digestive issues or sickness to your rabbits.
- Wash the lemongrass well with cool water, removing any residual dirt and potential pesticides.
Next steps:
- Place a bit of washed lemongrass into a clean bowl.
- Place this bowl in the hutch or house of your rabbit.
- Allow your rabbit to enjoy the nutritious grass.
- Be sure to remove the feeding bowl and any excess lemongrass later in the day.
Remember, you can always mix this grass in with the unlimited hay that your rabbits enjoy daily.
This method allows your bunnies to appreciate a bit of the flavor and benefits of lemongrass while ensuring they’re ingesting high fibers.
Can Rabbits Eat Fresh Lemongrass
Yes, mature rabbits can eat fresh lemongrass, as this is the most nutritional form of the herb.
Can Rabbits Eat Dried Lemongrass
Dried lemongrass contains slightly different nutritional value than fresh lemongrass and, if not dried correctly, can contain fungi or mold.
We recommend sticking to fresh lemongrass for your bunnies.
Can Rabbits Eat Lemongrass Plants
Yes, mature rabbits can eat the crunchy stalk and green blades of lemongrass herb. However, the scallion-like roots should not be offered to your rabbits.
Will Rabbits Eat Wild Lemongrass
Yes, mature rabbits that have a taste for this herb will eat and enjoy any wild lemongrass they come across.
Is Lemongrass Oil Safe For Rabbits
Lemongrass oil is a very concentrated form of the herb and is too potent to be offered safely to your rabbits.
Lemongrass for Rabbits: Concerns and Risks
Parasites
Any plant can host parasites.
Therefore, it is extremely important to inspect lemongrass well and remove any bugs, slugs, or insect eggs before offering it to your rabbits.
Pesticides
Unless you harvest it from your own pesticide-free herb garden, wash lemongrass well in cool water to remove any residual pesticides that could harm your rabbit.
Over Ripened Lemongrass
Over ripened lemongrass means any blades that are starting to wilt, yellow in color, or are wet and rotted. Avoid giving your rabbit over ripened lemongrass as it can cause illnesses and digestive issues.
Overfeeding Your Rabbit Lemongrass
If you overfeed your rabbit lemongrass, your furry friend will suffer from unbalanced gut bacteria which will lead to bigger stomach, digestive, and health issues.
Can Baby Rabbits Eat Lemongrass
No, we never recommend feeding baby rabbits lemongrass.
While lemongrass offers lots of essential vitamins to rabbits, all bunnies that are less than 12 weeks old have stomachs and digestive systems that are much more sensitive than mature rabbits.
These immature rabbits cannot yet digest lemongrass properly.
To save your baby rabbits serious health issues, wait until they reach 12 weeks of age before offering lemongrass. Even then, begin by offering just a blade or two of lemongrass to see if your newly mature rabbit likes it.
Frequently Asked Questions Related To
Can Rabbits Have Lemongrass
What Does Lemongrass Do For Rabbits?
Lemongrass offers rabbits essential nutrients such as calcium, potassium, and zinc. These support the long term health and happiness of your farm, homestead, and pet rabbits.
Does Lemongrass Repel Rabbits?
It’s true that some rabbits don’t like the lemony flavor of lemongrass, and that this herb can repel some rabbits. However, lemongrass is not a strong choice if you’re looking for a rabbit repellent.
Will Lemongrass Give My Rabbit Diarrhea?
If you offer your rabbit too much lemongrass they may experience stomach upset and diarrhea.
If this happens, simply stop offering your rabbit lemongrass and move to unlimited hay and high quality pellets until your rabbit is defecating normally. You can then offer your rabbit lemongrass, or other leafy greens such as Basil, in strict moderation.
Mischievous bunnies munching lemongrass!
Final Thoughts on Can Rabbits Eat Lemongrass
What have we learned about giving rabbits lemongrass? We will highlight the most important facts again:
- Lemongrass is a nontoxic herb that you can offer to your mature rabbits
- Don’t feed this grass to your rabbit often as it contains too much acidic compounds and no fiber
- Always inspect and wash fresh lemongrass before giving it to your rabbits
- Don’t worry if they refuse to eat lemongrass, this aromatic herb isn’t for all!
- Never feed lemongrass to baby or immature rabbits
Here at Hobby Farm Heaven we believe in the natural benefits of herbs.
We do our best to practice “Herb of the Week” plan.
What is The Herb of the Week plan?
The herb of the week plan is where we feed a different herb to our rabbits each week.
How do we do this? Most often we mix a few sprigs of the Herb of the Week in with the rabbits’ hay, whenever we feed hay. This is easy and hassle free.
Want to know more about the benefits of feeding herbs to your rabbits?
Go to this post: Herbs That Rabbits Can Eat