Question about fresh apple wood

[mysweetbunny]

Does it need to dry out before giving to bun as chew treat?

Our bun loves to chew the bark off the packaged apple twigs from thepet store. So I gave her a fresh twig (approx 7"long)today from anpesticide freeappletree. I took off all the big leaves, but it had small leavesand some buds. She ate the top softer wood section rightaway.. then chewed off the remaining buds and consumed the whole twigwithinprobably half anhour.

She sure did love it... but... is this ok for her health? Thepackaged twigs are thicker and she eats only the bark. Theyare also dry, and this one was fresh... green wood. I guess Ishould have thought and asked for advice before hand.

Carolyn I did a search here on "apple tree" and found that you have anapple tree and thought maybe you could help me out with this... thanksin advance.. ! LA

 

[CorkysMom]

As long as it hasn't been sprayed I'd think itsok...I got some deader branches off my mom's trees and have given em tomy bunnies and they love it...have never had any ill effects.

 

[Carolyn]

Welcome to the forum, MySweetBunny,

As long as you're sure that the tree was pesticide free of sprays andbugs, you're giving your little one a great treat. They love the barkand it's fine for them. The wood is one of the hardest woods there isout there, hence being great for keeping their teeth trimmed down. I dolike to dry it out in case of any bugs that you can't see.

If there were any concerns of bugs in the wood, you can bake it at 350degrees for 40 minutes and that would insure that any bugs that were init would die.

-Carolyn

 

[Rowena]

I gave Chinny a couple bigger pieces and shelikes to run under them lol She's chewed them up pretty good too. Haveto get more! hehe

Virginia

 

[mysweetbunny]

Thanks for the replies everyone! Thewood twigs I've given are fresh and clean looking.. I wasjust surprised that she devored ALL of the twig... instead of just thebark.

Carolyn, Thank you for all that you do here! I'mstill finding my way around, and figureing thingsout.. this forum has been amazing placeto learn from.. and the people are so nice and supportive.I'm learning so much.. thank you! LA

 

Keep in mindApple treesand Maple trees are goodfor bunnys. Plese donto givethem cherry or apricot orpeach , they are toxic ( all parts ) ,

My Rabbits especially love theMaple buds in spring when sapis starting to run , Although I knowit doesnt taste sweet to me,maple can be high in calories ,after all thats where maple suryp comefrom , A few brach tips canthurt but a lot will reallygain them weight inthe Spring, One goodadvantage is if Buns came thruwinter a bit light itdoes help them gain up a bit.

 

[Carolyn]

I'm glad you're enjoying it here,mysweetbunny. We definitely have a great group of people witha wide range of knowledge about all aspects of rabbit fancying.

See you around the board! :sunshine:

-Carolyn

 

[Jenniblu]

Can they eat the bark off the maple branches too?

 

yes

they can eat the bark onapple and maples with no ill effects ,and its actually healthy for them , notto mention they go bonkerseating it lol I have seen someof mine spen an entire day chewingthe wood , almost to t he point ofrefusing theirHay silly buns !.

 

[dajeti2]

We just trimmed a good sized limb offthe maple tree in the yard so Dale could get his truck in easier. I hadhim cut it up for the kids. All five kids had a blast eating a few ofthe leaves, and gnawing those sticks down to nothing. They all love htemaple sticks. Almost as much as the willow. Jenni, Vash just has to trya Maple stick. he'll love it.

Tina