Bunnies love to munch on hard foods--so much so that pet rabbits might chew on something you don't want them to, like the wood holding their pens together.

Rabbits aren't being destructive on purpose, though. Their teeth never stop growing, and the rabbits have to eat hard stuff so their teeth don't grow out of control.

It all goes back to their wild ancestors. Rabbits are herbivores--that means they only eat plants and veggies. They have front teeth, called incisors, that they use to cut off grass and gnaw on bark. The back teeth, or cheek teeth, grind the food into tiny bits so it's easier to swallow and digest.

Right behind the incisors are a second set of teeth, called peg teeth, that the bottom teeth rub against. Rabbits have a big gap in their mouths along the sides. That's where the canine teeth are in meat-eating animals. (Canine teeth are the pointy pairs of teeth in dogs and cats--those teeth help them bite into their food.)

In the wild, rabbits wear down their teeth as they gnaw on their dinner of bark and plants and as they grind against each other. But pet rabbits are often served soft foods that they don't have to chew very much. If this happens too much, the teeth don't wear down enough.

So, feed a rabbit a carrot--and help keep its teeth in shape!

Scientifically yours,

Twig

Date: 6/21/05

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