Hello. I took my rabbit 3.5 month old ND female to vet yesterday for a general check up. She is healthy but one thing that worries me is that she already weights 1 kg. I read on internet that adults weigh up to 1.13 kg normally. Now I’m worried that I’m over feeding her. She gets unlimited hay, one spoon of pellets and some veggies daily. She is very active. Should I just stop giving her pellets? Thank you for any help. xxx
Netherland dwarf rabbit weight
- Thread starter Lenka
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John Wick
Well-Known Member
If you're only giving her a spoonful, it doesn't sound like you're overfeeding her. Perhaps she's not a true dwarf, so she'll be a bit larger than you expect? Unfortunately I don't know much about false dwarf weight ranges or what healthy progression would look like.
At about 3.5mo, my ND was only about 520g, but he was also a runt. I had to actually start giving him supplemental food for being underweight.
I'm sorry for not being helpful, but at the minimum, I can say that a spoonful of pellets shouldn't really cause a rabbit to become overweight. How long have you been feeding that amount for?
At about 3.5mo, my ND was only about 520g, but he was also a runt. I had to actually start giving him supplemental food for being underweight.
I'm sorry for not being helpful, but at the minimum, I can say that a spoonful of pellets shouldn't really cause a rabbit to become overweight. How long have you been feeding that amount for?
Thank you John. Nope she is definitely ND I have papers too. I have been giving her pellets for over 3 weeks now. And thank you for your reply.
John Wick
Well-Known Member
Again, unsure about breeding/breeds, but true and false dwarf is not actually about the breed and about the size they are genetically programmed to grow to. So I believe you can have a Netherland Dwarf who doesn't actually have the dwarf gene, so he/she will grow slightly larger than an ND with it. That may be incorrect and you may know more, but that's my initial thought!
There's a handy guide that isn't exact, but it can give you an idea of healthy and unhealthy weight: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a2/3c/f8/a23cf85b055e88de178021a2caefdb60.jpg
... Where do you perceive her being on this chart?
There's a handy guide that isn't exact, but it can give you an idea of healthy and unhealthy weight: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a2/3c/f8/a23cf85b055e88de178021a2caefdb60.jpg
... Where do you perceive her being on this chart?
Thank you John. Both of her parents weight 1.5 kg. I’m gonna cut down the pellets and see if there will be any difference. Thank you again. Looking at the chart she seems like pic 5 but again I could be wrong as I’m quite stressed at the moment 
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John Wick
Well-Known Member
Are both photos of the same rabbit? They look distinctly different. Is one a parent? The earlier image doesn't remind me of a Netherland Dwarf actually.
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Butterscotch
Well-Known Member
Did your vet agree that she was overweight? As a growing bunny the pellets may be helping her body grow properly. I wouldn't cut back on the pellets unless I was advised by my vet to do so.
No, he didn’t say anything
He even agreed that she can be spayed next Wednesday. I’m a first time owner so I’m not very confident.
John Wick
Well-Known Member
It can be so nerve wracking as a first time rabbit parent, indeed!
Your best ally is a good rabbit vet, and if you have a good one, really communicating with him/her and trusting their judgement, as well as asking about how or why for certain things.
Seeing the vet interact and talk about rabbits, do you feel he is experienced and is someone you're comfortable with?
I do agree with @Butterscotch that the nutrition which comes from pellets during the growing months is important.
I'm still wondering about her breed though. It could definitely be her age and she's growing still, but she doesn't have the same smooshed face, sphere on sphere look I expect to see from a nethie. She's cute regardless ... And at least from the photos, she doesn't look obese.
Your best ally is a good rabbit vet, and if you have a good one, really communicating with him/her and trusting their judgement, as well as asking about how or why for certain things.
Seeing the vet interact and talk about rabbits, do you feel he is experienced and is someone you're comfortable with?
I do agree with @Butterscotch that the nutrition which comes from pellets during the growing months is important.
I'm still wondering about her breed though. It could definitely be her age and she's growing still, but she doesn't have the same smooshed face, sphere on sphere look I expect to see from a nethie. She's cute regardless
... And at least from the photos, she doesn't look obese.Thank you John. I took another pic.It can be so nerve wracking as a first time rabbit parent, indeed!
Your best ally is a good rabbit vet, and if you have a good one, really communicating with him/her and trusting their judgement, as well as asking about how or why for certain things.
Seeing the vet interact and talk about rabbits, do you feel he is experienced and is someone you're comfortable with?
I do agree with @Butterscotch that the nutrition which comes from pellets during the growing months is important.
I'm still wondering about her breed though. It could definitely be her age and she's growing still, but she doesn't have the same smooshed face, sphere on sphere look I expect to see from a nethie. She's cute regardless
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Your Netherland Dwarf dosen’t look like a true Dwarf bunny. Also the parents seem to be not true dwarf. So it’s normal for your bun. I think your bunny will be around the parents weight maybe a little more.
My bunny brother weight around 1,7 kg while my own weight 700 grams. So you can see the difference on a netherland dwarf litter and the kits when growing up ^^
My bunny brother look a lot like yours and your bunny will be fully grown in 3 months.
My bunny brother weight around 1,7 kg while my own weight 700 grams. So you can see the difference on a netherland dwarf litter and the kits when growing up ^^
My bunny brother look a lot like yours and your bunny will be fully grown in 3 months.
I don’t have any pics of her parents All the pics are of the same rabbit.
I judged from the weight you told about them. At least they are not for show because netherland dwarf should weight under 1,5 kg as adults.
But netherland dwarf come with different weight and how they look like depending on the dwarf gene or no dwarf gene. And if the parents are for show or not. In your case your bunny don’t have the dwarf gene and the parents might not be show able bunnies. If they weight 1,5 kg
You have nothing to worry about your bunny being overweight. My netherland dwarf is overweight and he look a lot thicker than yours. Also your bunny it’s a growing kit and it’s important to get nutrients. Keep an eye on the droppings that they have a good amount of hay in them and around 6 months you can decrease the pellets amount ^^
Butterscotch
Well-Known Member
Lenka, your bunny is absolutely beautiful. I have two ND bunnies and my doe is a little over 2 pounds and not quite 5 months old yet. My doe went in for her well check 2 weeks ago and my vet said he would not spay her until she was at least 6 months old. He said it can be hard to see the little lady bits in these small dwarf rabbits when they are so young so he prefers to wait until they are 6 months old. It does no harm to a young rabbit to wait until they are 6 months old to spay.
He asked what diet my doe is eating and I told him unlimited timothy hay, unlimited young rabbit pellets, a very small handful of alfalfa hay at bedtime, and greens. He said that was "excellent" and to start limiting her pellets and eliminate the alfalfa at around 6 months of age. Let me tell you, my bunny is a little piggy and she is probably eating way too many pellets right now but she is active and healthy so I'll follow his advice and start cutting back in a month. I would estimate that my doe is eating 1/8 cup, maybe even a little more, of pellets a day. I'm not recommending that amount, I'm just saying that's what mine eats and she is at a healthy weight, so it seems to me that a spoonfull of pellets for your little doe should be just fine. This is just my own opinion though, I am not a vet.
If you don't feel confident with your vet, maybe you can find a different one? I would imagine that he would have commented on her weight if your bunny was overweight. It would be a red flag for me though if my vet wanted to spay my bunny at only 4 months old. I would start looking for a much more rabbit savvy vet in that case.
He asked what diet my doe is eating and I told him unlimited timothy hay, unlimited young rabbit pellets, a very small handful of alfalfa hay at bedtime, and greens. He said that was "excellent" and to start limiting her pellets and eliminate the alfalfa at around 6 months of age. Let me tell you, my bunny is a little piggy and she is probably eating way too many pellets right now but she is active and healthy so I'll follow his advice and start cutting back in a month. I would estimate that my doe is eating 1/8 cup, maybe even a little more, of pellets a day. I'm not recommending that amount, I'm just saying that's what mine eats and she is at a healthy weight, so it seems to me that a spoonfull of pellets for your little doe should be just fine. This is just my own opinion though, I am not a vet.
If you don't feel confident with your vet, maybe you can find a different one? I would imagine that he would have commented on her weight if your bunny was overweight. It would be a red flag for me though if my vet wanted to spay my bunny at only 4 months old. I would start looking for a much more rabbit savvy vet in that case.
