Urine

[Dailymadness]

Is cloudy and yellow, is this normal rabbit urine ??

[Wick & Fable]

It is normal, but it can be a sign of a slight excess in calcium. The cloudiness can come from calcium working its way out. The common culprits are a veggie Diet with too many calcium rich items/large quantity, or too many pellets.

You want to avoid having many episodes of cloudy pees, because too much means a lot is running through, increasing the risk of a calcium stone build up.

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.

[Dailymadness]

Ty for the info, my guess is the pellets since he is growing still I give him two hand full a day. Should I not give it to him anymore for awhile ?? Also for how long to cut him from pellets. Problem is that he is still growing and needs them. He is about to be 5 months.

[Dailymadness]

Forgot to mention it’s not sludge or toothpaste like as some say. Quite watery just recently cloudy. I saw if it’s sludge then it’s of concern which I wonder how they even pass that. I just want to know should I continue to feed pellets or cut him off completely.

[Bam]

Don’t cut him off pellets. You can reduce the amount a bit if you like. Rabbits are different from most other mammals in that they absorb all calcium they eat, then they pee out the excess. A rabbits need for calcium varies of course. Lots of processes in the body are calcium-dependant, for example bone-renewal (constantly going on), dental growth (constantly going on in rabbits) and for muscle contractions. Muscles can’t contract if there’s too little calcium. But before that happens, the body will deplete the skeleton of its calcium content.

In the wild, female rabbits give birth to lots of kits during their life span, and that of course require lots of calcium. This + the constantly growing teeth could be the evolutionary “reason” why rabbits are so good at absorbing calcium.

Cloudy urine isn’t a problem if it happens now and then. Another day your bun might use up the calcium he eats. Rabbit urine should never be colorless and clear. Too little calcium in the diet can cause problems too, especially in house rabbits that get very little sunlight (if the diet is low in calcium, a rabbit needs help from vitamin D to take up all of it. Vitamin D is produced in the skin when the sun shines on it.)

If you’re worried, try to get more water in him. The easiest way is to serve him his veg freshly rinsed and soaking wet. More water means more rinsing of the kidneys.

[Dailymadness]

Ty Bam glad he doesn’t need to be completely cut off pellets since I just found a good balance of hay consumption and pellets. I will definitely try giving less though as you mentioned. Your informative post helps me better understand my rabbit and his needs, much appreciated.

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