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Uneaten caecotrophes

Alicia

Alicia

Mama Doe
I noticed this morning that in the hutch there was a little clump of really small soft poos. I assume they are from Izzy, as I have noticed before that she had soft poos (but the soft poos before looked like normal round pellet type poos) I thought rabbits were supposed to eat these? I assumed it was from Izzy, she is a little underweight because Archie's been eating her food, but Archie is also a bit overweight now because he's been eating Izzy's food, so it could be him because it's difficult for overweight rabbits to eat their caecotrophes. Why haven't they been eaten? What should I do?
 
I am confused !! Is it Archie of Izzy that is not eating their cecals ??

Reasons why a Rabbit does not eat their cecals include:

Dietary imbalance- too much protein/carbohydrate (found in concentrated feeds) not enough fibre (hay)

Dental issues- Dental Rabbits may have difficulty eating their cecals

Spinal pain/arthritis- Rabbit cant reach bum to eat cecals due to pain

Dysbiosis in the cecum- an imbalance of the bacteria within the cecum, possible causes of which are dietary issues (not enough fibre/too much carbohydrate), antibiotic treatment and some other medications

Environmental stress- could include bullying by another Rabbit(s), predators near the hutch, Fireworks, exceptionally windy weather..........


So first you need to try to identify what could be a possible culprit and then make any necessary changes. A Vet check to eliminate any physical problem would be a good idea if the problem continues :)
 
Everything Jane said!

I noticed mine had these especially when I fed them on Excel pellets. They are now on Science Selective. One of my bridge buns had a terribly messy bottom in her last few months. I was advised by the vet to put her on a hay only diet and the difference in her and her partners was incredible. All cecals were eaten and poos were much larger.

It might be worth decreasing the amount of pellets and veg they eat to see if this helps. I would also suggest splitting them for feed times to allow the thinner rabbit to gain some weight.
 
Thank you :) I'm not sure what rabbit it is. I can't seperate the rabbits to feed them because Izzy takes hours to eat her pellets if left alone to eat them, and on the days when I have college I wouldn't be able to leave her seperate for that long. I've been seperating them to feed them for a little while, and then feeding Izzy by hand every now and then, I'm giving her 50g of pellets to help her gain weight. I think I'm going to take them to the vets soon anyway because I don't really know what I should do about the rabbits weights, as Archie is now overweight and Izzy is now underweight so it's really difficult to feed them.
 
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