Too fat or too thin?

[Redrabbit]

We have two rabbits who are currently living separately but we’re about to (attempt to) bond them. I’m worried that our rex is slightly overweight and our lop is slightly under... are they going to fight over food? Is the lop going to be constantly hungry? I guess the real question is are my suspicions correct and if so, how do I make sure they don’t fight over food?
Thanks so much, any tips would be super useful!

 

[zuppa]

Hi, I would probably just separate them for feeding time I mean food pellets and maybe greens, hay should be unlimited so they just have access to it 24/7.
I have one girl who'd eat as much as she has in her bowl so if yours is same that the other one wouldn't get enough for sure.

 

[Semra]

Hi! For now, I would separate them at feeding when they are eating together, also are they purebreds, and do you know what kind of lop you have (if you don't, let me know her weight and I can tell you)? It is also really good to weigh them, your Rex should be a maximum weight of 10.5lbs. There are 4 breeds of lops (if I counted correctly ) but you don't have an English Lop. Also, your Rex should probably be put on a diet if he is overweight.

 

[Redrabbit]

Thanks so much, I will weigh them and post on here. Thank you

 

[Imbrium]

We have a bonded pair consisting of a californian boy (8 lb rabbit prone to obesity because the breed originated as meat rabbits) and a blue eyed mismarked dutch girl who was marginally underweight when we got her (less than 4 lbs). They eat together and I'm generous with the greens to make sure Harley Quinn gets her share since Barnaby eats faster (extra leafy greens won't hurt an obese bunny as they're very low in calorie). They both inhale pellets like vacuums; I scatter them on the ground rather than bothering with a bowl (since they're gone in a couple minutes anyway) and it's like watching a frantic game of hungry hungry hippos! They compete, but they never fight.

Cutting back on pellets is the best way to help an obese rabbit lose weight, so the thing to do with a bonded pair like this is to feed them a shared pellet ration that's conducive to getting the chubby one to a healthy weight and then sneak the other rabbit some additional pellets on the side (hand-fed as treats or put them with a very small bowl of them in another room for a few minutes) as needed to make sure they maintain a healthy weight. Be generous with greens for both rabbits and make sure they both always have access to fresh grass hay (refreshing the supply 1-2x a day to keep it smelling fresh and tempting). Hay should be 80%+ of their diet anyway and as long as they have unlimited access to it, no one will ever go hungry.

 

[Redrabbit]

Neither are purebreds, I thought our lop was a Holland but now I’m not so sure. The rex feels so much heavier but maybe it’s just the coat?
Thank you for the advice, I’ll feed separately at the start and monitor their weight. They always have hay so that they’ll have 24/7 but the greens/ pellets I’ll feed when they’re apart. Thank you

 

[Redrabbit]

@Semra Any chance you could let me know about their weights? Thank you so much

 

[PureKlutz]

Neither are purebreds, I thought our lop was a Holland but now I’m not so sure. The rex feels so much heavier but maybe it’s just the coat?
Thank you for the advice, I’ll feed separately at the start and monitor their weight. They always have hay so that they’ll have 24/7 but the greens/ pellets I’ll feed when they’re apart. Thank you

It looks like you have a mini-Rex and a Holland Lop. Are the weights lbs or kg?

 

[Redrabbit]

Thanks @PureKlutz I think that’s right, based on what others on here have said.

Our rex is 4.1lbs/ 1.86kg and our lop is 2.1lbs/ 1.2kg (according to the kitchen scales!)

 

[PureKlutz]

These weights are according to the American Rabbit Breeder Association’s “Standard of Perfection” book (2011-2015 edition). “Senior” just means an adult/older than 6months, and juniors under 6months.
Holland Lop:
Senior Rabbits- 4lbs or less
Junior Rabbits- Over 2lbs
So, he/she should be 2-4lbs. So, your rabbit is on the small size but not terribly, if they look thin than maybe shoot for 3lbs?

Mini-Rex:
Senior Bucks- 3 to 4.25lbs
Senior Does- 3.25 to 4.5lbs
Junior Rabbits- 2 to 3.75lbs
This one is way more specific. Your Mini-Rex is a good weight, so no issues there.

 

[Semra]

Oh, sorry for not being active, they usually email me my replies! Anyway, it seems you have a Mini Rex, not a Rex so ignore the 10.5lbs maximum weight. a Mini Rex's maximum weight is 4.5lbs so he is perfectly fine! You probably have a Holland Lop, which it's maximum weight is 4lbs (usually they stay on the smaller side) so no problem there. I would say your Mini Rex is fine, 2.1lbs is pretty good for a Holland but if you feel like he's underweight you can try to feed him extra servings. Hope this helps!

 

[Redrabbit]

Oh, sorry for not being active, they usually email me my replies! Anyway, it seems you have a Mini Rex, not a Rex so ignore the 10.5lbs maximum weight. a Mini Rex's maximum weight is 4.5lbs so he is perfectly fine! You probably have a Holland Lop, which it's maximum weight is 4lbs (usually they stay on the smaller side) so no problem there. I would say your Mini Rex is fine, 2.1lbs is pretty good for a Holland but if you feel like he's underweight you can try to feed him extra servings. Hope this helps!

Thanks so much. I’ve started the initial stages of bonding and can see that our rex finishes much quicker than our lop so one to watch when they’re together but great to know they’re about the correct weight