How to tell if your rabbit is overweight?

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This topic has 3sd replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 1 month ago by Wick & Fable.

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- 07/01/2017 at 3:48 PM
  Starla
  Participant
  165 posts
  My female is a big girl weighing around 9 pounds. However, she is big breed meaning she is long. The online photos that help you determine aren’t really helping me. This is because she only looks like she may be over weight when sitting in a ball. When she is I climbing or laying down, she really doesn’t look that big. I’m going to attach photos. Please note she does have a dewlap. The pictures are in a link on drop box because the files are too large and I can’t think of a way to make them smaller on my iPad. In the photos you can see her in her little “ball” and her reaching or laying down. You can tell how big she is just from her feet size. There is also pictures of her next to her 3 pound jersey wooly male soon to be mate and a full grown boxer. (Yes my rabbit loves dogs & cats, they aren’t left alone).
  https://www.dropbox.com/sh/kjrgo9sd2nvlzdt/AADyZIG6IOB4hJFWBHMXMzJ8a?dl=0
  
  What do you think?
  Also her vet (more than one) never said she was overweight or that her weight was a problem, however we never discussed her weight.
- 07/01/2017 at 4:14 PM
  ThorBunny
  Participant
  824 posts
  I think she looks fine to me! The pictures have never really helped me either, since I have a lop. She has such a round body naturally it is hard to tell if she is overweight or not. The best indicator I have found is the spine and hips. If you can feel them easily, like they are covered in a thick piece of fabric, then she is about the right weight. If they are very sharp, she is underweight and if they are hard to feel or non-existant then she would be overweight.
  
  This is coming from what my vet told me, if yours thinks she is an appropriate weight then I wouldn’t worry much
  
  You can start weighing her every week or every month to get a good idea of fluctuations. So if you know she is a good weight now, then you would notice if anything suddenly changed!
- 07/01/2017 at 5:16 PM
  Starla
  Participant
  165 posts
  Thank you! I don’t have a scale :/ However, I have recently been giving her less pellets and less veggies at night to just make sure she doesn’t gain to much weight. The problem with her is that she is always eating lol. Literally, she “makes” me put hay by her door of her x pen, she also has a hay bin. If I don’t give her hay by her door she will chew the bars up and down. If I give her a new batch of hay and open her door for her to run around, she will literally stay in her cage to eat. Obviously I would never short her hay lol, she also had to have most of her carpets in her bunny condo removed, any cardboard forts, and has to have two litter boxes on top of each other. The bottom has the litter and newspaper, and the top has washcloths. The bottom catches any urine that goes of the corner/side. If she could dig and get any newspaper or litter she will. She literally eats EVERYTHING!! So it’s a battle, if I don’t keep fresh hay by her door or short her pellets amount or veggies amount I have to worry about her finding something else to eat. I have a good system right now thankfully! But if I ever had to really do weight management with her, it would be a whole new challenge lol. I am trying to get her to run around my room more too!
- 07/01/2017 at 6:50 PM
  Wick & Fable
  Moderator
  5825 posts
  The veggies don’t really make rabbits gain weight, it’s mainly pellets I believe. Just keep giving hay to satiate that hunger!!
  
  The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
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