Hard ‘cellulite-like’ fat around abdomen?

[Theodorusrex]

Hi all,

Theodore was recently at the vet for his 6-monthly check up. All was good – the vet had no real concerns. He had a bout of stasis at the beginning of the year and we realised that Theo had gained a bit of weight (around 300g – I felt like a terrible bunny mom), which I was really shocked about because he wasn’t getting a lot of food. Since then, with the vets advice, we have (albeit a little reluctantly) stopped giving him pellets. He now gets half a fibafirst stick in the morning, hay all day, scoop of probiotics in the evening and then around 2 cups of fresh herbs/leaves for his dinner. Since we started this he has dropped that 300g and is back to the weight he has been steadily since we got him. I have two questions

1) The vet would like to see Theo as low as 2kg (he currently weights 2.5kg) – this seems really low to me, considering he weighed 2.2kg when we adopted him and he wasn’t fully grown. Does this seem reasonable?!

2) The vet commented that Theo had slimmed around the tummy but that he had some ‘hard, cellulite-like feeling fat’ around his abdomen. When I asked him whether this was a concern/what could be causing it he didn’t seem to be able to answer me. Frankly, he changed the subject. Has anyone experienced this with their rabbit? Is it a concern? Is there anything we can do to improve it? I’ll attach some pics of Theo for a) cuteness and b) size approximation. 

Theo when we got him: (2.2kg)

Theo now (2.5kg)

Theo with his bowls for scale:

[GarfyTheLop]

What breed is he? From what I’ve seen “The Mini Lop rabbit is classified as a medium-sized rabbit no more than 6.5 pounds (3 kg). Ideal weight is 5.5 pounds (2.5 kg)”

[GarfyTheLop]

OH also, the photo of him with his bowls is the cutest thing!

[Deleted User]

I agree with Garfy, he seems fine. Both of my boys are at 4.5 pounds, and look similar to Theo, which the vet has said several times is perfectly healthy. I’ve also never heard of bunnies getting cellulite.

[Sirius&Luna]

He is super cute!

I don’t really know about ideal weights as I don’t think all bunnies stick to their ‘breed’ weight. I think its more accurate to go on looks, but also weigh to make sure they’re not gaining. I would say he looks a little chubby in that second pic as he has an almost dewlap. But he’s definitely not significantly overweight as he looks pretty well proportioned in the final pic.

[GarfyTheLop]

It’s hard to compare to Garf because he’s on 2.8 pounds (1.3kg) hahaha

[Theodorusrex]

No idea what breed he is to be honest – I suspect a mixed breed. We adopted him from a family who had bought him for their 5 year old but realised how much work he would be. He spent 100% of his time in one of those small pet shop cages :'( I think they got him from pets at home (a big pet store chain in the UK).

I just wish I knew what could be the cause/how do we get rid of the ‘hard cellulite-like’ fat :/

[LBJ10]

When rabbits are overweight, they can develop lipomas. You often see them in dewlaps, but they can appear anywhere extra fat is being stored. The problem is that they don’t go away if the rabbit loses weight. My guess is that is what is on his tummy. Do they feel like rubbery lumps that are detached from the skin? If they are lipomas, then they are harmless.

As far as his weight goes, can you feel his spine and ribs? At an ideal weight, you should be able to feel the spine and ribs but there should be tissue between all the spaces.

[Bam]

He’s so cute!
I think it’s weird that the vet wants him to weigh less than he did as a tiny fluff ball. He doesnt look ft to me in the pictures. Bam is 2 kg now (2007 g last Tuesday) and there’s still some fat under his chin, but his vet says he’s a good weight now.

I have never heard about hard cellulite like abdominal fat in rabbits. I felt Bam’s tum now, but no hard cellulite-like fat. They can get fat around their inner organs just like humans can, but I don’t think you really see or feel that from the outside. A human can be quite fat on the inside and still look slim. It’s thought to have a lot to do with epigenetic markers and a little less to do with environmental factors. I’m sure you know all this though.

As a rule hard fat isn’t good, fluffy subcutaneous fat is better from a health perspective. You could perhaps ask if your vet means the hard fat is something like what humans can get, hard fat around the inner organs, the kind of fat that can lead to high blood pressure and type II diabetes (metabolic syndrome) in humans. Sometimes vets don’t explain things because they feel like they have to start with the very basics of biology and there just isn’t time for that and there’s a gazillion things the patient can misinterpret along the way.

Or maybe, perhaps most likely, the vet didn’t know and and felt he needed some time to think about it.

Theo really is seriously adorable.

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