Rabbit who doesn’t like eating

[Bun-chan]

I recently adopted a bunny who is 5 months old and very light (about 0.9 kg). He apparently was not fed well in his previous home so his growth is a bit stunted. He’s been living with me for about two weeks now, and he’s quite used to the new environment and seems very happy here (binkies, zoomies, flops and all).

However, he’s not eating that much. He does eat his hay, but doesn’t seem very food motivated. He doesn’t drink that much water either. I say “not much” in comparison to my other rabbit, who I think is normal and finishes all her hay very quickly/is very responsive to food. When they eat together, old bun finishes her food a lot quicker than new bun. With regards to weight, he’s been hovering at 0.9kg for a month, but old bun was already 1.5kg at 5 months and had a very fast growth weight. I remember old bun seemed to have pretty good appetite when she moved in with me, which is why I’m slightly worried about new bun.

In your experience with a new rabbit, do you think I should worry about his appetite? He’s seen multiple vets already, all have said he’s perfectly healthy. I wonder if he’s just very curious about his new home and wants to spend more time exploring than actually eating.

How have you tried to increase a rabbit’s appetite? I have an enclosure for him with his hay box, but I do give him free roaming time. I herd him back regularly so he remembers to go and eat. He seems to enjoy fresh veg and alfalfa hay too so I give that in addition to timothy hay. As for the water, I feed some ice cubes every now and then as he seems to enjoy licking the coolness and it gets some water in. One vet suggested I give him more pellets to increase his weight (he was a pellet rabbit before and does like pellets more than hay), which I have not tried yet.

[pinkiemarie]

Do you know what breed he is? Some breeds are smaller so that could be part of it. That said, if the vet said to increase his pellets then I would definitely do that. Is there a place in his free roam area where you can add an extra litter box with hay? That might also encourage eating.

[Wick & Fable]

It could be simply difference in food motivation, in which case I’d just make sure it is always available to be grazed on throughout the day (for pellets and veggies). One of my rabbits is pretty food-deterred. In the morning, she’d rather go to a new litterbox to graze on hay than eat pellets. Some days she doesn’t want to eat any veggies and other days she will. She is healthy, which is most important to get professionally confirmed before deciding that maybe that is how the rabbit’s diet is oriented.

If he is eating plenty of hay, that’s the best sign. A rabbit who is used to mainly pellet diets can have a different idea around food for one reason or another. Have vets looked at his teeth? Hay is needed to keep the teeth at a healthy, functionally level so if he hasn’t been grinding them down with hay, there may be something there making him shy to eat.

If there is the belief that he is underweight, you can feed more pellets to help him gain weight. Just know that may deter hay diet, so keep an eye on that.

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.

[LBJ10]

How long have you had him? He may still be cautious about things in his new home. Sometimes bunnies are apprehensive about eating when in a new environment.

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