How do you weigh your bunny? (And a question about pellets!)

[LuigiTheBunny]

Weighing Luigi at home is difficult. Unless resting or sleeping, he doesn’t sit still. That’s just the kind of bunny he is. The last time we took him to the vet, they gave his weight as 2.1 kg (4.63 lbs). He’s a neutered male Mini Lop (not miniature/Holland Lop!) of 7-8 months.

Earlier today, I put him in a carrier and tried to weigh him on the kitchen scales. He wouldn’t stop moving so I couldn’t read the numbers at all. I ended up weighing us all on the bathroom scale by holding the carrier with him in it. I did this a few times. His weight was 2.4 kg (5.29 lbs) after the deductions.

(Healthy weight range for Mini Lops according to ARBA is 2-3 kg, with 2.5 kg being ideal.)

Moments later, I stepped onto the scale alone and this time my weight had dropped by 0.3 kg. Could using the restroom (peeing) in between have made the difference? Since then, I’ve been worried that I wasn’t accurate. How do you guys weigh your bunny and do you have any tips for accuracy?

Also, the instructions on my brand of pellets say this:

 It also says:

I weighed out 60-70g of pellets and this came to about a 3/4 cup! Based on so many sources, the House Rabbit Society included, that recommend only 1/4-1/2 cup per day, doesn’t 3/4 cup per day sound excessive? What do you make of the discrepancy in these two sets of instructions?

I’ve been feeding him 1/3-1/2 cup per day, as he’s still a young bunny under 1 year old. Should I reduce it to 1/4 cup per day?

[Shan&Chibi]

My boy is exactly the same!
I put his tray on the scales (we have a digital kitchen one) while it’s off, turn the scales on and then put Chibi in the tray.
He moves around but I sort of put my hands in front and behind him, but not touching him, to try and steady him.
I give an approximate reading tbh, but I generally go with the number that it’s hovering over the most. If that makes sense!

As for pellets, I have weighed out what Chibi should eat, (which seemed a lot) but he never got through them all in a day so I’ve gradually just given him less and less until I’ve got the sweet spot of what he gets through.
I think the little pot I use for his daily pellet allowance is about 40g but Chibi is a funny little thing and sometimes he absolutely devours all his pellets and sometimes he’d rather his hay/grass.

Hope everything goes well with your bunny!

[Q8bunny]

I parent a VERY squirmy bun. So what I do is BEFORE breakfast, I take a kitchen scale, put it on the floor near him, place a large(ish) bowl or basket with a towel in it (to prevent slipping) on the scale, and zero it. Then I call him over for a treat and place treats (usually diced carrots) in the bowl. He’ll hop in to get them, and I take a quick reading of his weight. Then I dump the contents of the bowl in my lap and watch them act all offended.

For the pellets… Well, I’m not familiar with that particular sort. But you could try feeding the recommended amount (after you’e weighed your bun and done the calculation) and then very gradually reduce it if you notice that your bunster is not maintaining a healthy weight. Do notice, however, that the pellet bag mentions pellets and hay. Caloric intake from pellets will have to be reduced, obviously, if your bunny also gets nice green salads and generous healthy treats.

[Q8bunny]

Ooops, forgot about your discrepancy question. Simply put, not all pellets are created equal. Some offer better nutrition, some have more calories per serving, etc. So while the HRS site might recommend something based on a common pellet, it’s not a rule that will cover all types of pellets. Hope that helps.

[Pinkbun]

Hey luigithebunny

I see that brand also says to gives 1kg a day to Netherlands XD. I remember years ago when my vet told me that was far too much! She told me to use an egg cup to measure out the pellets and the difference it made was insane! I would advice that. As my buns get the lower amount (egg cup in mourning + night). Maybe you could give two egg cups in mouring and two at night? But I definitely saw a difference using the eggcup to measure as the rabbits lost weight. I’ve used it ever since!

[Bam]

There are two main types of pellets, extruded and not extruded. Extruded pellets are “fluffier” and weigh about half as much as non-extruded pellets per volume. Oxbow are not extruded. For a 2,5 kilo bun, 2 table spoons of Oxbow type pellets should be enough, because you dont want him to fill up on pellets, you want him to eat lots of hay.

But as Q8 points out, pellets can vary in other ways too. for example are junior pellets more energy- and nutrition dense than adult pellets. Pellets for show rabbits are as a rule way too nutritious and energy-dense for pet rabbits. Here is a wep page that has a chart that compares various brands of pellets and explains a bit about nutritional needs: http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/rabbit-food-comparison.asp

I weigh my bun in a pretty big kitchen bowl on digital kitchen scales. I put the scales on the floor in case the rabbit manages to jump out.

[Muj Mom N Bun]

I usually will slide the kitchen scale under BunBun’s liter box and zero it out, the give her a cookie or treat to get her into it and check the weight. It’s usually pretty quick and close enough.

[sarahthegemini]

I’m trying (and failing) to find a scale that is accurate enough for weighing bunnies. But what I do is place scales on a table and place a towel on the scales. Pick peanut up and put him on the towel and take the reading. Repeat 3 times to get an average. Unfortunately for me, both scales I’ve tried have been dreadful so the readings weren’t accurate.

I’m also currently working on picking Buttercup up. It’s not going well ? but Peanut is pretty easy.

[kurottabun]

We put some pellets in Kurotta’s carrier then place it on a digital kitchen scale and just set the weight back to zero. He’s a wee fella so the carrier isn’t too big – you could use a basket or something else with a flat surface so they can stand properly. We just quickly pick him up and place him inside the carrier – the pellets keep him distracted and still long enough for us to get a reading

As for the pellets, we give Kurotta two tablespoons of Oxbow Essential Adult Rabbit pellets daily. He’s a Netherland Dwarf and only weighs about 720g currently (aiming to get his weight up to 800g).

[Karrakov]

So I weigh my bunny once a week because he’s a sickly guy and I need to keep an eye so I’ve gotten a good routine down for us. I bought a plastic container just big enough for him to sit in, but not so big that he can wiggle around too much. I put a couple treats in the container and then put it on the scale and tare it (I got a small produce scale on amazon for $10) and then I put him in the container. He’s so excited by the treats that he eats them and doesn’t try to jump out for long enough for me to get a pretty solid reading. My other bunny is the kind of girl who refuses to be picked up so I can’t use the same technique. For her I have to kind of corner her and slide the scale under her and I can just barely get a reading. I’ve only done this a couple of times because I know she gets scared and I hate doing that to her, so it’s only if I suspect she’s really lost weight. Anyway, that’s how I do it!

[Karrakov]

So I weigh my bunny once a week because he’s a sickly guy and I need to keep an eye so I’ve gotten a good routine down for us. I bought a plastic container just big enough for him to sit in, but not so big that he can wiggle around too much. I put a couple treats in the container and then put it on the scale and tare it (I got a small produce scale on amazon for $10) and then I put him in the container. He’s so excited by the treats that he eats them and doesn’t try to jump out for long enough for me to get a pretty solid reading. My other bunny is the kind of girl who refuses to be picked up so I can’t use the same technique. For her I have to kind of corner her and slide the scale under her and I can just barely get a reading. I’ve only done this a couple of times because I know she gets scared and I hate doing that to her, so it’s only if I suspect she’s really lost weight. Anyway, that’s how I do it!

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