Rabbit Mystery

If it's not one rabbit, it's another. :roll:

I have my 12 week old Holland Lop named Mimi, and she has been producing excess cecotrophs (or possibly not eating them) since she came into my life at 8 weeks old.

I have switched her from alfalfa hay to timothy hay. Switched her from alfalfa pellets to timothy pellets. I made the change over about a week's time, as the alfalfa was the suspected culprit.

I had her on unlimited pellets, but then switched to 1/2 cup. Then I switched to 1/4 cup, and I don't feel comfortable going any lower. The poos returned to normal for a little while, then switched right back.

She has not yet been introduced to any veggies, except one tiny piece of romaine lettuce.

She is a vigorous hay eater and eats constantly.

I had a fecal sample sent out yesterday to check for parasites, but it all came back negative.

I'm out of ideas now. Has anyone ever had this problem or have any ideas of what it might be? I'm afraid that 1/4 pellets is too little for a baby with no veggies. Since she's producing these cecotrophs anyways, can I put her back at 1/2 cup of pellets a day?

I hate bumping this back up, but any suggestions would be really helpful. I just spent a bunch of money on Eddison's neuter and the meds he needed following it, so I was hoping to try a couple things before having to go to the vet's again.

What are the dangers of excess cecotrophs?

Some youngsters are slow at always eating all their caecotrophs.

Are the caecotrophs well formed ?

What is her accomodation like and is she housed with another Rabbit?

Have you checked her Incisors and are the nice and straight and wearing down evenly?

Jack's-Jane said:

Some youngsters are slow at always eating all their caecotrophs.

Are the caecotrophs well formed ?

What is her accomodation like and is she housed with another Rabbit?

Have you checked her Incisors and are the nice and straight and wearing down evenly?

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The cecotrophs look well-formed, although I'm not entirely sure I'd know what malformed ones look like. Just looks like a cluster of grapes to me, and they stick together well.

She is in a NIC cube condo by herself. My other bun has free run of the flat and visits her often, and she gets lots of time out of the cage every day.

I've looked at her incisors and they look good. The bottom two teeth have a little space between them, and are slightly off center, but they are not crooked. Wearing on all teeth looks even.

Additionally, I've seen her grooming her hind legs and tail, so I know she has no problem reaching the area.

There's about 2-4 uneaten cecotrophs a day. Is this possibly something she would grow out of and is it unhealthy for her?

sidereus7 said:

The cecotrophs look well-formed, although I'm not entirely sure I'd know what malformed ones look like. Just looks like a cluster of grapes to me, and they stick together well.

She is in a NIC cube condo by herself. My other bun has free run of the flat and visits her often, and she gets lots of time out of the cage every day.

I've looked at her incisors and they look good. The bottom two teeth have a little space between them, and are slightly off center, but they are not crooked. Wearing on all teeth looks even.

Additionally, I've seen her grooming her hind legs and tail, so I know she has no problem reaching the area.

There's about 2-4 uneaten cecotrophs a day. Is this possibly something she would grow out of and is it unhealthy for her?

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I suspect that she will grow out of leaving them.
Does she usually leave them around the perimeter of her condo and/or when out exercising?

Jack's-Jane said:

I suspect that she will grow out of leaving them.
Does she usually leave them around the perimeter of her condo and/or when out exercising?

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I haven't really been able to see a pattern with leaving them around the perimeter, but I pretty much never see them outside of her cage. (I honestly can't remember a single time, but I'll leave some wiggle room for my memory's sake :lol

What would that mean?

Also, you are amazingly awesome as usual. BUNNY HERO!

Sometimes youngsters will drop a few caecals when out exercising.
They can also leave a few about their 'home territory'

As long as they are well formed, she is not getting a mucky bum and its only about 2-4 she leaves I would not worry too much. I feel pretty confident that in a few weeks she will get into the habbit of always eating them