What Wild Rabbits Actually Need
When temperatures drop across Waterloo Region, you might feel tempted to share fresh vegetables with wild rabbits visiting your yard. Wildlife experts want you to know: that a well-meaning gesture could be deadly.
❄️ How Rabbits Survive Winter Naturally
Wild rabbits thrive on winter forage, including dry grasses, twigs, and tree bark. Their specialized digestive systems are perfectly adapted to process these low-moisture, high-fibre foods.
During winter, beneficial gut bacteria adjust to break down tough, woody vegetation through slow, steady digestion. This natural system keeps rabbits healthy even when fresh greenery is scarce.
Why Fresh Vegetables Are Dangerous
Moist produce like lettuce, carrots, or cabbage severely disrupts a rabbit's winter-adapted gut balance.
What happens when wild rabbits eat fresh vegetables:
- Moist foods ferment rapidly in their digestive tract
- Gas accumulates (rabbits cannot burp or vomit to release it)
- Digestion slows, then stops completely
- GI stasis develops—a painful, often fatal condition
In the wild, there's no veterinary care. Once a rabbit stops eating due to GI stasis, survival typically lasts only days.
⚠️ The Unpredictable Risk
Not every rabbit fed vegetables will develop GI stasis, but the risk is real and impossible to predict. Winter conditions already stress their digestive systems, making them particularly vulnerable. Wild rabbits eat opportunistically without recognizing grocery produce as dangerous.
How to Actually Help Wild Rabbits
The best way to support rabbits through harsh winters? Protect their habitat first.
Create Rabbit-Friendly Spaces:
Leave brush piles for shelter and natural cover
Allow native grasses to grow along fence lines
Keep unmowed edges on your property
Preserve natural vegetation that provides winter forage
These habitat improvements offer protection from predators and weather, plus access to foods their bodies are designed to digest.
Emergency Feeding in Severe Weather Only
During extreme cold snaps or deep snow that buries natural forage, Timothy Hay can be offered as short-term supplemental feeding. Timothy hay is high-fibre grass hay very close to what rabbits naturally eat, and is the safest option if you must intervene.
How to offer Timothy Hay safely:
✅ Scatter small handfuls under shrubs, hedges, or natural cover so rabbits can eat while hidden from predators
✅ Use modest amounts and vary the location each time
✅ Don't create dependency – stop once weather improves and natural forage is accessible again
✅ Never use this as regular feeding – only during genuine emergency conditions
Where to purchase Timothy Hay in Waterloo Region:
Pet supply stores: Ren's Pets (multiple locations), PetSmart, Pet Valu
Farm supply stores: TSC Stores (Elmira, Cambridge, Kitchener)
Local feed mills: Floradale Feed Mill, Breslau Feed & Supply
Online options: Local farm suppliers often deliver bulk hay
Important: Timothy Hay should be a rare emergency measure, not routine feeding. Wild rabbits are built to find their own food—our job is to protect their ability to do so.
A Kind Intention, An Unintended Harm
You thought you were sharing your salad. Instead, you may have given them a condition they cannot survive.
This winter, show compassion by supporting wild rabbits the way nature intended—through habitat preservation first, and emergency intervention only when truly necessary.
Questions about wildlife-friendly gardening in Waterloo Region? Contact your local conservation authority or visit naturescapewr.ca for native landscaping resources.
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This message is brought to you by Saunders Tremblay Realty Team - helping Waterloo Region residents make informed, wildlife-friendly choices.
Saunders Tremblay Realty Team - Making Waterloo Region Feel Like Home™
February 1, 2026