Weight Gain for a special bun

[Shaunna]

Basically I have a little bun who will be 6 years old in February, she had E.C when she was 8 months old and has a permanent head tilt as a result.
Unfortunately 2 weeks ago we lost her bonded bunny friend, it’s broke both of our hearts. This being her second bonded friend in her life she’s lost I knew what to expect this time. Aka she stops eating. She is very strongly bonded to me, has been since her E.C and will eat when I tempt her lots and when she’s sat with me.
I need weight boosters though, she’s only a little bit anyway she’s always been under 2kg being a dwarf cross of some sort but she’s literally all bone. Vet checks are clear, just literally need her to gain weight.
Vets said to up her pellets but she has unlimited anyway, never limited her.
Any foods of any sort I can give her that will help her gain weight…

[Bam]

I’m sorry that you lost your other bunny.

If she will eat Critical Care mixed with something yummy like baby fruit/berry puré or unsweetened pumpkin-mash, that would be a great way to get all the nutrients she needs into her. Not all buns will eat CC voluntarily though, and force-feeding is of course so stressful that it should only be done in acute situations (like if she stops eating altogether).

We have a member called RedBunBun who for some time has struggled with getting her megacolon-bunny to gain weight. She has been quite successful. She has switched to a pellet brand called Science Selective that is alfalfa-based and has lots of fiber. She’s also given a little bit of oats and a little bit of pumpkin seeds and almonds. In this thread she writes a bit about it (scroll down to post nr 5 and read all posts by RedBunBun):

https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/143253/Default.aspx

Whatever dietary change you make, you should start with a very tiny amount of any new stuff since she’s not used to it, and you of course don’t want to cause stomach-upset.

[tobyluv]

A couple of years ago, I had an elderly bunny with health issues who was losing weight, even though he ate his normal diet. I wanted to add something to his diet that might help him gain weight or not lose any more. After reading through Lucile Moore’s book on rabbit nutrition, and seeing the chapter about fats and proteins, where fat content of some foods is listed, I decided to start adding a few sunflower seed to his pellet bowl. Their fat content is one of the highest on her chart. I used plain/unsalted/raw sunflower seeds. I asked my vet about it and she agreed that it was worth a try, even though it’s usually recommended that rabbits don’t have nuts or seeds. That chart also lists almonds and pumpkin seeds as being high in fat, and are a little higher than sunflower seeds. Peanuts and walnuts are also very high in fat. I’m not sure if the sunflower seeds helped with the weight issue, because my bunny had a lot of things wrong with him, and at that point, I doubt that diet additives would have helped much.

I know that the jury is still out on whether or not the Oxbow Natural Science tablets help, but you might want to give them a try. Maybe the Multi-Vitamin or Senior Support would be the most helpful for helping with weight issues.

I’m sorry about the loss of your other bunny. It’s good that you have a strong bond with your bunny now, which will help both of you while you are grieving. I hope that she will start eating good soon.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Ditto the Critical Care. I have a senior bunny that has a hard time keeping weight on. When his weight goes down, I feed him several servings of Critical Care daily. He eats it up right from the bowl mixed with warm water.

Your bun will probably prefer the apple banana flavor as opposed to the original (anise-licorice) flavor.

[Author]

Messages