Is new rabbit boycotting food from new owners?

I picked up a 4 month old new zealand rabbit from a breeder who had fattened up this guy for obvious purpose. Rabbit is 5 kilos and quite plump, built like a hydrant. Quite active and healthy otherwise. We noticed that his belly is very hard. he seemed to be force fed, almost.
It has been with us for less than 48 hours but is quite shy and somewhat fearful. We did try to get it some excercise by taking it out to back yard but for some odd reason, he is not eating. He did eat a bit of his old hay and pellets which we got from breeder but now he does not want to eat any more. He refused greens and whatever other treats we offered him but what really puzzles me is this - Why is he refusing offer of food by pushing away with his "arms" whenever food is offered to him?
I have seen rabbits not accepting food but this guy is actively pushing away as if in defiance.
Is he boycotting us and hence does not want anything from us? :x
Or maybe he is so full that he wants to lighten up.

Are you still offering his usual food he had with the breeder?

Is he eating hay at all? If rabbits stop eating completely they need urgent veterinary care as it can soon become fatal. I realise he's potentially a bit on the fat side but he still needs to eat and won't have actively made a choice to go on a diet to shed a few pounds. The fact that he has a hard belly is a bit concerning also. I would suggest getting him to a vet ASAP.

If he is not eating at all, I agree he should be examined by a vet.

If he is eating a small amount I would let him settle and see if his eating improves. Maybe if you left him by himself with some food he would feel confident enough to eat. Similarly, if he has been confined to a cage, I would introduce him to exercise slowly. It may all just be that he's feeling very insecure and overwhelmed.

Thanks for replying.
He is eating a bit of hay. I have provided him with his old hay and pellets. First day he ate pellets too but today just a little bit of hay. He did eat a bit more overnight so perhaps he is still feeling lost and does not want to eat during the day. His pushing away food with front paws is the odd behavior I don't understand. Checked his weight and he seems to have lost 1 lb already but his belly seems a bit soft now. Wondering if he was made to eat too much recently.

What is his poo output like ?

If he has been fattened for meat he must not go on a crash diet and it is essential he has a good input of high fibre low protein/carb food. If he looses too much weight too quickly he will damage his liver

Re exercise, again this needs to be introduced very slowly. He may have very poor bone density and fractures could easily occur, especially in the spine.

InspectorMorse said:

What is his poo output like ?

If he has been fattened for meat he must not go on a crash diet and it is essential he has a good input of high fibre low protein/carb food. If he looses too much weight too quickly he will damage his liver

Re exercise, again this needs to be introduced very slowly. He may have very poor bone density and fractures could easily occur, especially in the spine.

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Thanks for letting me know.
His poop pellet count is no more than 60-70 pellets and just once in the night. he prefers eating in the night and eats just a few stalks of hay during the day....if no one is watching! His social behaviour has improved, he is much more trusting now
BUT
I still don't get it why he pushed the food (or the hand holding food) away every time we try to offer him something.

Comet2020 said:

Thanks for letting me know.
His poop pellet count is no more than 60-70 pellets and just once in the night. he prefers eating in the night and eats just a few stalks of hay during the day....if no one is watching! His social behaviour has improved, he is much more trusting now
BUT
I still don't get it why he pushed the food (or the hand holding food) away every time we try to offer him something.

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It could be something he learned at his old home.

Maybe it is nothing to do with the food and just him telling you to get lost?! New home, possible poor experiences with hands in the past, could just be on the defense. Give him a few days without offering food, just put it available for him, and just be around him without interacting and see if he relaxes a bit.
As for the poo count, when mine first came it took a while before we saw that many poos but he was obviously eating a lot and perfectly healthy - we concluded that he was eating quite a few of them as he didn't feel safe yet. As he relaxed he was less bothered. He also only pood once or twice a day in a big pile, but that changed too as he settled.

dollyanna said:

Maybe it is nothing to do with the food and just him telling you to get lost?! New home, possible poor experiences with hands in the past, could just be on the defense. Give him a few days without offering food, just put it available for him, and just be around him without interacting and see if he relaxes a bit.
As for the poo count, when mine first came it took a while before we saw that many poos but he was obviously eating a lot and perfectly healthy - we concluded that he was eating quite a few of them as he didn't feel safe yet. As he relaxed he was less bothered. He also only pood once or twice a day in a big pile, but that changed too as he settled.

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Yes, it does look this rabbit had some really bad experience previously, or has some psychological issue !!
He is becoming better by the day, allows us to pat him, has even left his area once to look for us when we were in another room and is getting lot more comfortable. Some nose nudges too. But overall he still prefers to rest in a quite place away, away from our prying eyes.
More work ahead I guess