Lasting Effect of Calcium Defiencies?

Before Paige came to the shelter she lived at a home that knew nothing about rabbits. They would give her vegetables and hay from time to time, with lots of pellets. They kept her unspayed with her sister, Bailey, until they started to fight and then they put them in two tiny cages and only took them out to clean their cage, they would clean their cage every month or so. This diet led to a calcium defiency that ended up making Paige and her sister's bones very frail. So frail that when the shelter took them to the vet to be spayed Bailey got very scared and broke her back in the carrier. Paige was fed alfalfa for a short time to help her bones get stronger and now she is much healthier.

Paige has always been rather clumsy. She does not like going up stairs or walking on slippery floors, her feet spread out and she just sits their petrified. I know she is probably just uncomfortable, but when Paige jumps on or down from something her feet slide around too. Even though she has lived with us for a year and is allowed out of her x-pen every day she can't move like Toshi or Joshua. I was wondering if perhaps having a poor diet so young and so little exercise skewed her development a bit? And I was also wondering if there is anything I could do to help her improve, she can't land like the other bunnies and I don't want her to get hurt. Also has anyone else experienced something like this and are their long term health concerns to be aware of?

Aww, poor girl. It's really tricky to know anything for sure. Rabbits can be built differently, some bunnies are much more original bunny shape - long legs, slim body and quite athletic, whereas others have been deliberately breed more round and cute shaped so their legs/neck/body are shorter, lops are bad for this. Some of the changes can mean they are less agile and it can make a difference in how they move. It's also possible for genetics to effect bone structure in unplanned ways, or that poor diet could give them the equivalent of rickets.

I would try and make things easier so rugs, an extra step so she doesn't have to make sure a big hop - that sort of thing

Thank you for your reply.

Are rexes bred to be round and cute shaped? This is a picture of Paige, she's the black bunny:


Also we give her steps, but she insists on jumping straight up :shock: She has no problem hopping around in the bunny playroom or in the living room because the floors are wood/carpet.

Since she had a calcium defiency for the first two years of her life, would that make her more prone to certain illnesses?

I'd actually list rexes as a more normal bunny shape, the round cuteness is the fluff They can have less padding on their feet though - not sure if that would effect grip.

It might just be a confidence thing, a lot of bunnies dislike slippy floors because they are harder to run on.

It would make her more prone to teeth issues, but if it was going to be a problem it would probably have shown up by now.

Calcium deficiency is a worrying condition amongst reptiles where it is called MBD (metabolic bone disease). Reptiles are particularly vulnerable as they can't metabolise calcium without exposure to vitamin D3.

Rickets is more the description in mammals but it is essentially the same thing. The most affected areas are the larger bones especially the spine and skull. A skeletal radiograph would be able to define any signs of problems, but alternatively feeling along the spine and jaw for any lumps on the bones may assist in deciding whether the x-ray is warranted.