Is our rabbit too thin?

[RaybundReddington]

We have a four month old minilop rabbit and we are concerned about his size. His diet consists of greens (mostly bok-choy and romaine) a small number of pellets and of course unlimited hay. He is definitely in his awkward teenage years at the moment being that he is tall and lanky like a teen, however, is quite bony and slim. He eats A LOT of food, however, doesn’t really seem to ever gain anything. I am unsure whether he is supposed to have unlimited pellets or not. Some people have told me he should and others have told me he shouldn’t. We have an adult rabbit and I’d say that the baby easily eats more than she does. He is a very inquisitive boy and runs around a lot as we don’t have him in a hutch/pen situation so perhaps he needs more food? I wouldn’t say that visually he looks too thin, but when I pet him I can definitely feel his spine and hipbones. 
Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated, we want to make sure he is getting the best care possible! 

[Sirius&Luna]

Have you weighed him at all? That would be a good way to keep track of whether he’s putting on weight! You should be able to feel a healthy rabbits spine and hip bones, but they shouldn’t feel too prominent – it’s quite hard to judge without seeing and feeling a bun yourself.

Obviously younger rabbits do need to eat more than adult buns as they’re still growing.

I would say that there’s no harm in gradually increasing his pellets a bit. Just watch out that it isn’t making him produce excess cecatropes.

Has he had a vet check up? It’s always best to take new young buns for a check at the vets (especially if you’re in a country that needs vaccinations) and the vet will be able to tell you if he’s a healthy wait.

[RaybundReddington]

Thanks so much for your reply! He is getting his first vaccine next week so will talk to the vet. The problem with the pellets is that even just a few will cause him excess cecotropes. When we first bought him home we gave him unlimited pellets (the same as he had been eating previously) and it was a disaster, there were cecotropes all over the floor and stuck to his bum. Since then I’ve just given him hay and introduced greens into his diet and his poos are really healthy, however when I feed him even a few pellets he gets cecotropes. I’d like to feed him pellets to help him put a little more weight on but I guess we might just have to up the veges instead 

[Sirius&Luna]

Ah, in that case I guess increasing his pellets is not a good idea! Oats can be used to help rabbits put on weight, but if you’re seeing the vet next week I would just ask for their advice he might well be perfectly sized!

[LittlePuffyTail]

I agree with S&L. Definitely talk to the vet about your weight concerns. If you don’t have one, get a food scale and monitor his weight. My small buns I used to weigh once a month and record in a calendar. That way you can see if his weight is increasing at all or decreasing.

[FlemishDad]

I would not worry about a rabbit with good diet, appetite, and activity being a little too thin. Mild underfeeding of animals even slows aging and extends life in most species.

[DanaNM]

Hi there,

I agree that the vet can help you assess. My vet actually prefers buns on the thinner side… you should be able to feel the spine and hips, just not super sharply.

I think the key is also to determine whether he is losing weight for an unexplained reason, or whether he is just a trim bunny. Weighing regularly at home can help you assess this.

Since he is so sensitive to pellets, he might have some underlying GI issues that might make it harder for him to gain weight. He is quite young still, so it might be that he was still adjusting to an adult diet when he was having issues before. Potentially increasing his hay variety to include richer hays might also help (like oat).

. . . 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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