FAT FAT BUNNY – Update

[Roberta]

My Latest foster fail Starsky has not only gained healthy weight after being rescued from the dog pound in June, he has gone above and beyond… I’m talking basket ball figure..And yes I know it’s my fault, I got sucked in and felt bad withholding pellets… My vet is going to kill me and I’m and worried for the Starman.

He can still reach his cecals but at this rate not for long and I have seen him relocate so he could eat them at leisure away from the source.

Yes, pellets are being reduced slowly but I am pretty liberal with the greens too, does anyone know if there are some leafy greens I should be omitting too…

He needs to diet immediately, I am also going to need moral support as I feel dreadful taking away his favourite nosh… Poor bun had such a rough start I find it so hard denying him the luxuries.

[Deleted User]

Ha ha ha… I shouldn’t laugh, but how cute, being a fatty – I’d love to cuddle a big fat bunny! (I paid a fortune for my hubby to cuddle a tiger – not me, give me a fat cuddly bunny any day!). On a serious note – you have my support! And yes I agree it’s hard not to love your bun with food! (GUILTY!)Thinking of you….

[MoveDiagonally]

One of my bunnies, Dexter, is prone to being overweight…. I feed him the low end of the recommended amount of pellets. He’s just super lazy. He seems to be more active with the other bunnies now so hopefully that will help him loose some chubs. My husband calls him a “bowling ball”. >.<

Bunnies get most of their calories from pellets and non-leafy greens/fruit. Regular ole leafy greens shouldn’t be causing too much of an issue because they are all very low in calories. When I was looking into natural ways to make Monty gain weight I did find out that mint and kale are a bit higher than some of the others though.

Best of luck to you and Starsky!

[Roberta]

Kale, Mint and Coriander are his favourites…..

[Roberta]

After several weeks of blending the Starman got a big serve of the new healthier pellets this morning… The pellet dish was found upended next to the litter tray..

[Bam]

My bunny Bam was fat, I didn’t realize but the vet told me. The verdict was that he needed to lose 3-400 g (0,66 -0,88 Lbs).

I immediately cut down on his pellets, a healthy brand but I’d given him too much. I also stopped all carrots and apple-slices, raisins etc. And because it was spring I started picking huge amounts of leaves and lettuce and herbs for him. This would not have been possible during the winter.

And this worked excellently. He lost about 100 g/month för 4 months and became much less lazy and more agile probably because that much extra fat had made it bothersome for him to move about.

He had unlimited organic hay all the time, and he really ate loads of leaves and herbs, like 2 3-litre plastic bags per day. So he didn’t have to go hungry, he could eat rather like a wild bunny and still lose his excess fat.

After he landed on his target weight I increased the pellets a little + added a little apple-peel or cabbage or thin slice of carrot now and then. Now winter is emerging and he’ll have to eat more bought veggies and greens, I don’t know how it will work out. But he’s in excellent shape now + his tummy is in the best order ever, he had sticky butt and bouts of gas quite often when he was fat.

[Roberta]

Thanks Bam… I think I am going to have to see Dr Anita about a diet plan and GOAL…. Oh I am going to get the Stink Eye… But if I want my Starsky healthy I am just going to have to buck up and take the the lecture….

[Bam]

Oh yes, prepare yourself for major episodes of Stink Eye. For example if you try to eat peanuts or chocolate yourself. The poor, poor bunny will definitely remind you how deeply improper it is to munch away at such goodies when there are starving bunnies nearby.

[Roberta]

Oh yes, I’ll get the sad eyes from kissy boy Starman… The worst of the Stink Eye is going to come from my vet…..

[MimzMum]

Thanks for the link to here, Roberta.
Sadly, pellets tend to make our bunnies fat. The only time I’ve seen them as beneficial is while I’ve been trying to keep weight ON Mimzy after his headtilt incident almost two years ago now. While I feed him a variety of hays, when he is eating oat he tends to leave the pellets. I am guessing he’s regulating his own caloric intake.
Pellets tend to give bunnies poopy butt too, at least some of them. I’m hoping you can find Starsky a different treat. Is he a one much for herbs of any kind? Mint, Basil, Sage, Rosemary? Any of these, or the occasional carrot tops or kale could be substituted for the ‘bunny candy’.

It drives me crazy when they do have room to run and they don’t, and then you confine them and all they do is bomb around like they were running free. Pip is like this, I’ll set her in the xpen and she’s a lump in the corner…then she goes back to her night habitat and it’s popcorn binkies and litterbox tossing. Perhaps some new toys to get him interested in running about? Or scattering his food so he has to work for it?

Yeah, he might give you stinkeye, but it really is for his greater good. The alternative is he gets bigger and rounder and he can’t fit through the door.

Sending slimming vibes for the Starman.

[Roberta]

Hi MM,

Just checked the healthy weight range and its between 6-8 pound (3-4kg) I will weigh him again tonight… But even inside the range he looks to have the posture movement of being over weight incl rapid breathing on occasion. It has been hot here but the buns have aircon. He doesn’t have any squishy poops any more and I am not finding any extra cecals…. I need to get him to the vet for a check up… It’s just that I have 3 cats to be microchipped, and Pepper, Pipi and Blossom to get to the vet for spaying. I don’t mind the cost it’s getting the time to do it especially as my vet is closing an hour earlier these days.

[jerseygirl]

If he’s a lop mix that can make them look a bit tubby also.

Is he desexed now? (Theyll put on weight more easily after desexed).

He could definitely learn to love other things besides pellets. Then you won’t fell so bad.
I swear there’s something addictive in pellets from the way rabbits react.

[Roberta]

Have checked his weight and he is still 3 kilo’s… He just feels so round… Maybe it was because he came from the pound in such bad shape… He does lay down and pant which had me worried but then he pelts up and down the levels in his cage like his bum was on fire. He is not a big bunny… not a lop but he does have helicopter ears 60% of the time. It’s funny, there has been a spate of stray bunnies all very similar in colour and markings across Perth. WASAR and the other rescues have been wondering if a breeder is letting them loose of if some one has had them in a meat garden and they have escaped. My rescue group WASAR has atleast 5 in the same breed and colour, our merging rescue has another with a broken leg (operated on and mending) another baby was found this week and it would be the right age for offspring of the ones we have rescued.

[Sarita]

I really don’t think he looks fat. Obviously if you are photographing him from above laying down in a ball form he’s going to look like a ball :~)

My rabbit Bogie who has the same markings looks a bit tubby too but the vet has never said he is overweight.

[Beka27]

I’m going to lock this per Roberta’s request… the new thread is located here: https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/127761/Default.aspx#351622

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