How Long Can a Rabbit Go without Food?

A rabbit can go without food for about ten days. After the first five days its health deteriorates, it will lose weight and become weaker. Once a rabbit has reached day 10 it will be on the verge of death.

How long can a rabbit go without food?

A healthy adult rabbit can go for about ten days without food. A diet of plants and grasses that is low in sugar and starch means that the metabolism of the successful lagomorphic animal is slowed down to an extent where it can survive with very little energy coming in from its diet. When food is scarce in the wild, rabbits can also live off their fat reserves.

Rabbits that are ill or very young may only be able to go without food for a day or two before they start to show signs of illness or malnutrition. One of the ways vets will test whether a rabbit is healthy is by checking how long it can go without food, and whether any weight loss occurs.

On the tenth day without food, a rabbit’s health will be seriously affected, and it could even be on the brink of death. If you were hoping to keep your rabbit alive for as long as possible without providing him with regular meals of hay and vegetables, you should bear in mind that ten days is the maximum amount of time he can go without food. After that, you can expect your rabbit to be very weak, malnourished, and quite possibly ill.