It turns out rabbits may be getting calcium from their own teeth
Because rabbits eat a lot of fibrous grass and vegetables, they have teeth that continue to grow throughout their lives, called
Rabbit teeth serve as a calcium source for rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) - ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090023324002077
Rabbits may have a surprising source of calcium — eating their own teeth | Live Science
https://www.livescience.com/animals/land-mammals/rabbits-may-have-a-surprising-source-of-calcium-eating-their-own-teeth
The grass and vegetables that rabbits eat are rich in dietary fiber, so they need to chew the food thoroughly with their teeth. When chewing, their teeth rub against each other and gradually wear down, so rabbits need to keep growing their teeth throughout their lives.
Previously, researchers had assumed that wild rabbits intentionally ate calcium-rich foods such as leafy vegetables to maintain tooth growth. However, a Swiss-Finnish research team pointed out that this assumption overlooked the fact that rabbits swallow food along with the 'tooth powder' that is scraped off when they chew. They suggested that the rabbit's own tooth powder could be digested and absorbed, providing a stable source of calcium outside of food.
To investigate whether rabbit teeth are a source of calcium, the team conducted a two-week feeding experiment in which eight female rabbits were given food pellets containing either a standard calcium supplement or ground-up rabbit teeth. The rabbits' droppings were analyzed to measure how much calcium the rabbits digested and absorbed from the supplements and tooth powder.
The results showed that rabbits could indeed absorb the calcium from the tooth powder: Analysis of fecal samples showed that rabbits who ate a standard calcium supplement digested and absorbed 20 percent of the calcium they ingested, whereas rabbits who ate the tooth powder digested and absorbed 33 percent of the calcium.
Generally, food given to pet rabbits contains calcium to support the growth of their teeth. However, this study suggests that rabbits can reabsorb calcium from their own teeth, so humans may be giving rabbits too much calcium. Healthy rabbits can excrete excess calcium in their urine, but if they have kidney problems, excess calcium can cause illness.
The researchers also found that the rabbits' teeth were gradually worn down and swallowed along with the food during the experiment, but the effects of this were not shown in the study. It is also unclear how much calcium rabbits need to continue to grow their teeth.
'This is an intriguing piece of the puzzle about one of nature's great inventions,' said Dr. Jean-Michel Hutt, a professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Zurich and co-author of the study. 'We will continue to study tooth wear and regeneration.'
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