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Very Overweight bunny

P

Phill

Wise Old Thumper
Ok You may all know that Bootz came to stay with use last sunday and boy is she lovely! She is very grumpy and likes to nip your fingers but i lkove her to bits! She has such a character! And she talks too! She makes funny sqeeking growling nioses at me!!!

Now Bootz weighs 4.5kg! :shock: And Caira had tried her best to have her on a diet but as i now know the bun will eat anything and everything!!!!! I currently have her on a handful of A&P pellets a day, as much hay as she wants which is loads, and a few veg. Whats worrying me is that i was speaking to the vets about her and her weight and he said that i will need to be very carful until she does loose wieght as if she starts jumping up and down on things and lands to hard she could fracture a leg with the extra weight she is carrying????

Can anyone help? Reassure me that she wont break a leg!!! Or even a good diet to get her on.

Many Thanks Phillipa
 
I give my bunnies a handful of pellets a day and they aren't on diets - so she probably won't lose weight until you cut out pellets and sugary veg like carrot (well just a couple of slices won't hurt) - she may nip you a little more though - but at least she loves hay so she won't starve :)
 
Thanks Elve, thats what i was thinking but she is soooo grumpy i don't want to risk giving her anyless pellets, but i suppose i could cut them out completly and give her cabage and Hay diet!!! Ooooh Stay outa the shed!!!! :lol:
 
I stopped giving Holly pellets and she lost a few ounces. AS long as you give plenty of hay and water she should do fine. I have never heard of a bun breaking a leg from weighing to much though?
 
Is Bootz spayed or not ?? I cant remember. She's certainly a similar size to what Coco was wheen we got her. I didnt worry about her legs at the time ( perhaps because I didnt know any better, she was the first Rex Id had any dealings with) Susan ( our vet) said her weight would still be a worry on any other bun unless she'd known the weight she used to be - I think she's lost the best part of a kilo after her spay. Sorry cant remember exact figures. But definately lack of hormones and lots of exercise did the trick - she probably lost most of the weight just by losing her dewlap :lol:
 
Unfortunately vets won't (shouldn't) spay overweight rabbits because the aneathetic risk is higher.

I'd cut back the pellets more and make her work for them - spread them around her enclosure or get her a treatball :D
 
sorry to sounds like a meanie but I would cut out the pellets all together (she doesn't need them) and just give her hay, hay and more hay :D (and a snuggle to stop the guilt :wink: )

Make her work for her hay too by putting it in hidey holes too.

lol Pam
 
Thanks Guys! She is spayed Caira had her done for me before she came down so hopefully that might help. I think i will need to pretty much cut out most of her pellets and i will just give her a few in a treatball and loads of hay! (glad she likes Hay :lol: ) I will just have to have one very grumpy bunny!
 
jrn1310 said:
Phil

Have you a boyfriend she could chase about?

Janice
Click to expand...

totally aggree janice, phil i would start cutting down on the pellets slowly over 10 days then remove totally, my vet told me to remove pellets from there diets totally and veg! and to just feed hay and grasses, so i have done sort of i still give 25 grams of pellets (not much) veg once a week and instead of the veg i gave daily i gave a huge pile of ready grass (known as fattening in bunnys BUT NOT if thats there main food. i have been doing it for about 6 week phil and they look great!!! and there teeth have never looked so health, even the problem ones teeth are looking lots better!

my vet said concetrates are causing big problems in bunnys!

worth a try on a fattie maybe! :D
 
Thanks Eve!!!!! The buns all get adlib hay and a few pellets so non are overweight so i will just have to be strong and have a grumpy bun!!
 
Phill said:
Thanks Eve!!!!! The buns all get adlib hay and a few pellets so non are overweight so i will just have to be strong and have a grumpy bun!!
Click to expand...


none of mine are overweight phil! she said this was the best diet for any rabbit, so the reason i mentioned it was because it would defiantely fit with a overweight rabbit!
 
As i said yesterday phill lilac was huge when she came here!
I did cut down her food intake but i didnt cut out pellets,if given in moderation you can keep them in there diet which i have, i stopped feeding the dried grass though as the vets linked this to lilacs bladder problems
 
Tamsin said:
Unfortunately vets won't (shouldn't) spay overweight rabbits because the aneathetic risk is higher.

I'd cut back the pellets more and make her work for them - spread them around her enclosure or get her a treatball :D
Click to expand...

I dont think Coco wouldve been classed as obese, but she was definately solid. Too much bordom-eating at Petterden :) She sounds very similar to Bootz in temprement too - are Rex's naturally big eatters ?? Just a thought as my friend has rex cats and they're not known for ever turning their noses up at any food.

Are the anestheitic's possibly getting better ? As thats both Bootz and Coco been done whilst not at their "ideal" weight.
 
Over the years anaesthetics have improved and vets are using new anaesthethic agents, the problems with large rabbits (and all overweight animals including humans) is that they require more anaesthetic to anaethetise them and to maintain them in an anaethetised state. They take longer to wake up, there is increased pressure on their circulatory, respiratory and cardiac systems when compared to a normal wight animal.

Many vets will not anaethetise overweight animals due to the higher risk of problems which may occure

Janice
 
The vet told me I couldn't have Cracker neutered til he had lost weight. I drastically reduced pellets & carrots/grapes (high in sugar) & he was out of his hutch for longer each day. He's definitely thinner now, & I'm getting him neutered in January.
 
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