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Weight loss tips for a 'curvy' bunny

Stephanie Cutler

Warren Scout
Hello! Buffy's little over indulging problem landed us at the vets last week:(
It turned out she had munched a 1/4 of a sack of Wagg bunny munch that was left on a chair in the porch - cheeky so and so chewed it from behing so it was'nt noticable from the front!:no:
Obviously she had a very sore tum and bunnies cant be sick so she must have been in alot of pain. She is being fed Supa Rabbit Excell light but this hasnt made much difference. She has beeen baught special hay just for her- all different types- she lies on it! She enjoys playing chasey hay (dangle piece of hay infront of nose until bunny bites it or you witchever is closest!0 but she doesnt view hay as food! She loves her tea though- this is very exciting in our house as it consists of 16 bowls a 1/2 a cabbage 3 carrotts, 3 stcks of celary and an apple all chopped up and shared round. Buffy gets a very disappointing amount - less than a hand full :(
We can not make toast anymore as its not fair on her - she loves toast and will physically wrestle it out of your hand/ off the table/ work top (dnt ask) so she is very moody! to top that of her GHD 'ear' straightners are broke:lol::lol:
She has been given full garden privaleges and access to upstairs. (not easy when everyone else wants a turn:roll:) Not interested!

Apparently i quote- 'read the label - it says House rabbit thats H O U S E i dnt do outdoors! its cold and wet and my rug infront of the fire is much more appealing!'

Any ideas she is 4 yrs old ( acts like a stroppy 15yr old school girl) and if i dnt get this hay issues sorted i can see teeth problems in the not so distant future:cry: Also she has been spade but will not tolorate another bunny friend - we have tried 3 times. (All other buns are paired sucessfully

xx
 
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This is our girlie Buffy
 
Hello! Buffy's little over indulging problem landed us at the vets last week:(
It turned out she had munched a 1/4 of a sack of Wagg bunny munch that was left on a chair in the porch - cheeky so and so chewed it from behing so it was'nt noticable from the front!:no:
Obviously she had a very sore tum and bunnies cant be sick so she must have been in alot of pain. She is being fed Supa Rabbit Excell light but this hasnt made much difference. She has beeen baught special hay just for her- all different types- she lies on it! She enjoys playing chasey hay (dangle piece of hay infront of nose until bunny bites it or you witchever is closest!0 but she doesnt view hay as food! She loves her tea though- this is very exciting in our house as it consists of 16 bowls a 1/2 a cabbage 3 carrotts, 3 stcks of celary and an apple all chopped up and shared round. Buffy gets a very disappointing amount - less than a hand full :(
We can not make toast anymore as its not fair on her - she loves toast and will physically wrestle it out of your hand/ off the table/ work top (dnt ask) so she is very moody! to top that of her GHD 'ear' straightners are broke:lol::lol:
She has been given full garden privaleges and access to upstairs. (not easy when everyone else wants a turn:roll:) Not interested!

Apparently i quote- 'read the label - it says House rabbit thats H O U S E i dnt do outdoors! its cold and wet and my rug infront of the fire is much more appealing!'

Any ideas she is 4 yrs old ( acts like a stroppy 15yr old school girl) and if i dnt get this hay issues sorted i can see teeth problems in the not so distant future:cry: Also she has been spade but will not tolorate another bunny friend - we have tried 3 times. (All other buns are paired sucessfully

xx


Has a vet had a look at her front teeth and molars? If her teeth are fine, she should be eating plenty of hay (about 80 % of her diet). My suggestions are:

Make hay more exiting. Give her new hay every day as they seem to like it better the moment it comes out of the bag :lol: You can mix the hay in with fresh or dried herbs/flowers that you either buy at a pet shop or collect yourself. You can also try spraying the hay with for example some eple juice (not with sugar in it) to make it tastier. Also by reducing her other feeds she should become more hungry and eat more hay.

Switch her over on oxbow basics/T pellets and feed her 20 gram per kilo of her ideal weight. If shes a small/medium lop she should probably weigh between 2-3 kilos. Then you can try giving her about 50 grams og pellets. It's important that you weigh the pellets and that you weigh bunny regurlary so you can keep an eye on her weight loss. If you feed her pellets ad lib, you should probably reduce her amount of pellets gardually because it is not healthy for them tp loose weight too fast.

Also carrot is not good for over weight bunnies, so should not be fed ;) I'm sure once she starts feeling better and lighter she will become more active. Maybe you can play games with her in the garden to make her hop around more? :D
 
Thanks for the advice ill stop the carrot - probably like a cream cake to a bunny :p If i leave the bag of hay infront of her (this one is Excel forage food) she enjoys attacking the bag and ripping out bits of hay:lol: this is not very hygenic for the other buns that need to share this hay though:roll: Ill have to put some in an old hay bag and let her attack that!
 
our french lop had a habit of putting on weight...dont know how?!
we just cut back on her mix and greens a bit.
be careful of bananas , and carrots etc as these contain sugars (all be it naturally) which can make bunny fatter..:lol:
 
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