teejay
Warren Scout
Hi all, I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!
I have a lovely doe boarding with me at the moment, who I feel is way to skinny, so I thought I'd ask you very knowledgeable people for some tips on fattening her up a bit!
She's been with me since just before Christmas, and I've been on my mission to build up her body weight since she arrived. She was due to go home yesterday, but her owner has extended her stay so she's now with me til 7th Jan, so i now have an extra week or so to make a difference to her weight.
A bit of background; she's 6 years old, spayed, vaccinated for VHS & Myxi, and she lives with her friend, Fred. She had a broken back leg about a year ago, but is now fully recovered and her mobility doesn't seem to be impaired in the slightest. She's a lovely friendly girl, adores Fred (although she can display some dominance towards him on occasions) and loves human company.
She also seems to eat a lot! Her diet is Wagg Bunny Brunch, and while she's been with me, she's had access to all kinds of hay and seems to enjoy them all. I've had to restrict her veggies a bit though, as she seems prone to excess uneaten caecotropes, so she only has a very tiny amount every day. Ooh, also her poops are absolutely minute! There are loads of them and they're the normal shape, but they're tiny (I'd say she was an average sized bunny, so I'd expect her poops to be larger).
So, she's not a fussy eater at all, and as most of my 'tricks' are to tempt a fussy bunny to eat, I'm at a bit of a loss. With a fussy eater I would try things like:
- putting probiotics in the drinking water
- offering a wide variety of hay for interest (Oxbow orchard grass / timothy hay / meadow hay / hay with dried wild flowers)
- offering Readigrass
- offering fresh grass (difficult at this time of year)
- offering foraged leaves (bramble, apple, beech, whatever suitable leaves we can find)
- fruit or starchy veg (no good for her with her excess caecotropes)
- porridge oats, wet and dry (no good, as above)
- mushing up the normal pellets with camomile or fennel tea (again no good, as above)
- offering veggie baby food
- syringe feeding (as a last resort)
I've tried some of the above with this little lady and nothing seems to be getting any weight on her. She's especially thin over her spine and over her hips; you can clearly feel the bones. With her history of a broken leg, i suppose the skinniness could be muscle wastage. The owner has assured me that she's seen the vet on several occasions, and there's no medical reason for the thinness.
So does anyone have any ideas of foods I can try to get some weight on her while she's with me? All help and advice gratefully received!
Tracey
I have a lovely doe boarding with me at the moment, who I feel is way to skinny, so I thought I'd ask you very knowledgeable people for some tips on fattening her up a bit!
She's been with me since just before Christmas, and I've been on my mission to build up her body weight since she arrived. She was due to go home yesterday, but her owner has extended her stay so she's now with me til 7th Jan, so i now have an extra week or so to make a difference to her weight.
A bit of background; she's 6 years old, spayed, vaccinated for VHS & Myxi, and she lives with her friend, Fred. She had a broken back leg about a year ago, but is now fully recovered and her mobility doesn't seem to be impaired in the slightest. She's a lovely friendly girl, adores Fred (although she can display some dominance towards him on occasions) and loves human company.
She also seems to eat a lot! Her diet is Wagg Bunny Brunch, and while she's been with me, she's had access to all kinds of hay and seems to enjoy them all. I've had to restrict her veggies a bit though, as she seems prone to excess uneaten caecotropes, so she only has a very tiny amount every day. Ooh, also her poops are absolutely minute! There are loads of them and they're the normal shape, but they're tiny (I'd say she was an average sized bunny, so I'd expect her poops to be larger).
So, she's not a fussy eater at all, and as most of my 'tricks' are to tempt a fussy bunny to eat, I'm at a bit of a loss. With a fussy eater I would try things like:
- putting probiotics in the drinking water
- offering a wide variety of hay for interest (Oxbow orchard grass / timothy hay / meadow hay / hay with dried wild flowers)
- offering Readigrass
- offering fresh grass (difficult at this time of year)
- offering foraged leaves (bramble, apple, beech, whatever suitable leaves we can find)
- fruit or starchy veg (no good for her with her excess caecotropes)
- porridge oats, wet and dry (no good, as above)
- mushing up the normal pellets with camomile or fennel tea (again no good, as above)
- offering veggie baby food
- syringe feeding (as a last resort)
I've tried some of the above with this little lady and nothing seems to be getting any weight on her. She's especially thin over her spine and over her hips; you can clearly feel the bones. With her history of a broken leg, i suppose the skinniness could be muscle wastage. The owner has assured me that she's seen the vet on several occasions, and there's no medical reason for the thinness.
So does anyone have any ideas of foods I can try to get some weight on her while she's with me? All help and advice gratefully received!
Tracey
