Skinny bunny

[ilovetegocalderon]

I'm getting pretty concerned about Rice. She is really tiny. When i took her to the vet awhile ago to get stitches the vet said she had lost weight which was odd because she should have been gaining. Beans is fine and Marshy is overweight so she is on diet but I've been feeding Rice the usual and she doesn't put on any weight. She eats really slow too. She's always the last to finish her food. I don't understand what's going on. Even my friends who know nothing abour rabbits say "oh wow, look at that one, she's so skinny." and i feel awful. She's moving around fine, pooping and peeing fine, just not eating as much. Why is she so skinny?

 

[Snuggys Mom]

Has Rice always been thin?

I have a Holland Lop who eats normally and never gains weight. She will be two in October and she's always been on the thin side.

She was taken from her mother too soon (she was four weeks old when she came to the pet store). I was told thay may be the reason.

 

[ilovetegocalderon]

Yea she has always been on the thin side but like i said, she lost weight according to the vet's records and she is looking even thinner. Should I try giving her more fruit? I mean, I don't want her to gain weight in a bad way but I just can't think of anything else. You don't think it could be worms or anything right??

 

[Snuggys Mom]

Did the vet check for parasites or anything?

Did he think the weight loss was abnormal?

If you think she is continuing to lose weight, she needs to be seen again. They can do blood tests and a fecal check to see if anything is abnormal.

 

[ilovetegocalderon]

ok. I'll bring her with me when I take Marshmellow for her first exam this weekend.

 

[Starlight Rabbitry]

Is her stomach big? I mean does she look like she has a pot belly? I would definitely bring her to the vet. In the meantime...give her some oatmeal. That will get some weight on her. Don't give her too much.

Sharon

 

[ilovetegocalderon]

Just regular oatmeal? do I cook it or give it to her out of the box? how much is too much? thanks!!

oh and her stomach isnt big. she is skinny all around, starting to scare me type skinny.


edit - I'm taking her to the vet saturday morning.

 

[peapoo_bunny]

what about her teeth? maybe you should get them checked.. i dont know about rabbits.. but i know that our dog lost alot of weight one time and it was because her teeth

 

[JimD]

ilovetegocalderon wrote:

Just regular oatmeal? do I cook it or give it to her out of the box? how much is too much? thanks!!

oh and her stomach isnt big. she is skinny all around, starting to scare me type skinny.


edit - I'm taking her to the vet saturday morning.

Yeppers....just plain Old Fashioned Quaker Oats. No need to cook it. All of my buns get a teaspoon every day. It actually isn't too fattening, but will help to add some bulk to her. Here's some info from a breeder that helped me with S'more's GI issues...


Lazyacre wrote:

Oats shouldn't put on fat unless fed too much, it is lower in cqalories than most feeds. When I feed oats i reduce the amount of pellets by the same amount as the oats, essentially this reduces the total protein and energy fed, puts nice firm flesh on my rabbits.

...in your case I wouldn't reduce the pellets and replace with oats....just give her the oats with her normal ammount of pellets.

Also, while you're at the vet you may want to have her teeth checked out. She might be developing some spurs or malclusion that is causing her discomfort while chewing. Just a thought.

~Jim

 

[Snuggys Mom]

All my bunnies go crazy for oats. I put a pinch on top of their pellets every morning. I think they like them more than Craisins!

Keep us posted on Rice. I'm glad you're taking her in for a check.

Laura

 

[bunnydude]

It's good that your taking her in. I'm sure the vet will find the problem and have a good solution. I'll be thinking of her!

 

[ilovetegocalderon]

Thanks everyone! I cant wait to get her to the vet tomorrow morning. I think you guys may be right about the teeth. I didn't check them this morning because I didnt read these posts til i got to work but this morning I noticed Marshy and Beans ate most of the food i put out for them last night and Rice barely ate hers.....at least she ate the piece of banana i left her....maybe she was able to eat that because its soft and mushy ???? anyways, she's got an appointment tomorrow morning (as does Marshy for her poopy butt). Can't wait to get to the bottom of this.

 

[naturestee]

Poor girl. Let us know what the vet says!

 

[JimD]

Laura wrote:

All my bunnies go crazy for oats. I put a pinch on top of their pellets every morning. I think they like them more than Craisins!

Keep us posted on Rice. I'm glad you're taking her in for a check.

Laura

Mine TOO!! In fact, I can't forget to give oats or it's a chorus of "THUMPS"

 

[Spring]

A bit off topic, but are quick oats ok too? I heard they can clump or something?

 

[JimD]

________________________________________________________
Spring wrote:

"A bit off topic, but are quick oats ok too? I heard they can clump or something?"
_______________________________________________________________

Yes, you can use quick oats. I used them on several occasions with no ill effects to the buns. I think the clumping thing is kind of urban-mythie stuff.

The only real difference is that the quick oats are ground finer to cook quicker. If I have to use quick oats, I give a little less that the regular.
As a matter of fact I keep a couple of packs of the quick oats in my bunny emergency stuff.

Jim

 

[Spring]

Oh ok. Before I was giving Pepsi a tsp a night, but I noticed that her bottem was turning a redish colour after, so I thought she might be allergic to it or have constipation from it. Thanks!

Hows your bun doing?

 

[naturestee]

How did it go? Did the vet find anything?

 

[ilovetegocalderon]

naturestee wrote:

How did it go? Did the vet find anything?

Nope, not a thing! He did note that she was a bit on the thin side but her teeth and everything were fine. I didn't have the money on me at the time to run through a million more tests so I said we'll leave it as is and if i dont see any improvement i'll bring her back on pay day.

I noticed she will gobble up these carrot stick snacks that i bought but im not sure if its okay to keep feeding these too her too often as they are "junk food" (i think). any opinions?

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

JimD wrote:

________________________________________________________
Spring wrote:

"A bit off topic, but are quick oats ok too? I heard they can clump or something?"
_______________________________________________________________

Yes, you can use quick oats. I used them on several occasions with no ill effects to the buns. I think the clumping thing is kind of urban-mythie stuff.

The only real difference is that the quick oats are ground finer to cook quicker. If I have to use quick oats, I give a little less that the regular.
As a matter of fact I keep a couple of packs of the quick oats in my bunny emergency stuff.

Jim

They say not to feed quick oats because of how fast they swell up. The can swell up in the throat and cause a blockage or if a rabbit eats too many very fast, they can all swell up in the stomach and create problems.