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Worried about Hedgehog

Hugo's There

Wise Old Thumper
:? :?

Spud-gun is growing well now and seems to be filling out :) But Hedgehog is still small and skinny, he looks no different to when he first arrived :(

He is getting lots of extra food too but I think his problem is he just isn't eating it :?

I've been watching him carefully the last few days, and although I always knew he wasn't quite right, I think it may be worse than I thought. He is always the first one over for food and gets stuck in straight away but he doesn't eat for long :? He is an extremely hyperactive bunny, always on the go and appears very happy. But the more I watch him I can see his behaviour is very repetitive. A couple of days ago i sat in the garden watching them once they had been fed. Both were munching for about 5 minutes then Hedgehog got distracted. While Spud-gun carried on eating Hogs was dashing through his tunnel, binkying then running through again, binkying. This went on and on and on exactly the same everytime. Then he reversed it and carried on again for ages, No stopping to go back to the food :?

He seems to be the same with his morning porridge, he only eats for a few minutes and then seems to loose concentration and forget its there :?

He never flops out but sits up with his eyes doing weird rolling :(

He is the brightest, liveliest little bunny and watching him play is amazing. t seems like he has the bunny version of ADHD :? But if he can't concentrate to eat, what am I going to do ? :(
 
Maybe sit with him when he eats? Keep bringing him back to the bowl, perhaps take him somewhere boring to eat where he has nothing to play with? Seems he really needs to eat more, as with any child or bun with 'needs', maybe he needs 1 to 1 care for munching times??
 
Do you feed him rabbit royale, I had a problem with Runt when he became very aggressive when he hit puberty, he had been neutered around the same time but things didn't calm down- he would launch himself at your knee and even bit my face when I picked him up once. I put him onto excel, he is now back on rabbit royale and is fine, but I do think it made him hyper at that point.
 
No he has always been on excel dwarf/junior. He is impossible to handle, the throws himself and bites a lot. He is as wiggly as an eel :lol:

He is only in a tiny cage in the morning for his porridge but he still gets distracted. I have tried to show him the bowl again once he starts looking around but once interest is lost thats it :?
 
Can you confine him to a small cage/area for a short while so he can concentrate on the job in hand ie eating :lol: ?

Once he's eaten what you consider a sufficient amount, then let him out to binky to his hearts content :love:
 
The other problem I have is he gets really upset when seperated from his brother and frantically chews the bars until they are reunited so seperating to fed doesn't work either
 
The other problem I have is he gets really upset when seperated from his brother and frantically chews the bars until they are reunited so seperating to fed doesn't work either

How about feeding him little and often? If he has a sort attention span then maybe giving him 5 pellets in a bowl every hour or two hours or something like that might work (and maybe you distract his brother with cuddles while he munches them?)

Just a thought....
 
Oh bless him, I really hope he is ok. He is a gorgeous little bunny.

Strawberry is incredibly hyperactive but he always eats first.

Snowdrop eats little and often, coming back to her breakfast throughout the day. I think thats the main reason she lost so much weight with Strawbs, he was eating it all!

I know its not pleasant but can you syringe him recovery to help build him up?
 
I have ruled out syringe feeding for now as he is impossible to hold, he really is a wiggly eel. Just getting him to his run is a bit hair raising :lol: and if I hold him to tightly he just latches on with his teeth :roll::lol: I still haven't managed to get all the knots out of him from when he arrived because of this, whereas Spud-gun has been knot free for weeks. He is such a little monkey, I have never known a bunny like it. He definately has some neurological issues :?
 
How about feeding him little and often? If he has a sort attention span then maybe giving him 5 pellets in a bowl every hour or two hours or something like that might work (and maybe you distract his brother with cuddles while he munches them?)

Just a thought....

That's what I was going to suggest!
 
No he has always been on excel dwarf/junior. He is impossible to handle, the throws himself and bites a lot. He is as wiggly as an eel :lol:

He is only in a tiny cage in the morning for his porridge but he still gets distracted. I have tried to show him the bowl again once he starts looking around but once interest is lost thats it :?

do you have one of those treat ball things, try putting his burgess in one of them, he might enjoy playing and eating at the same time
 
Funny you should say that. I tried it this morning and it didn't work either. He had no interest in it what so ever, he completely ignored it despite me showing him the food in it and trying to get him to roll it. He wouldn't even take any notice of the little pile of pellets next to it :? Its like he lives in his own world that has no bearing on reality :(
 
I tried to hand feed him some small apple slices. He was so excited about it for the first 2 mouthfuls and then that was it no interest in it at all, he wouldn't let me hold him to show it him. It might as well not have existed to him.

He obviously has some serious problems and I am really worried now :cry::cry:
 
Aw bless him Liz :(

If he likes running through the tunnel do you think sprinkling some pellets in there might help? Maybe he will stop and eat one on the way? :? I don't know just a thought.

I hope its nothing to serious for him x
 
No he wouldn't acknowledge them. I have been having to put one pellet in his mouth at a time and then he doesn't always take them, he is constantly distracted and hyper :(
 
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