What foods make my rabbit gain unhealthy weight or get too fat?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is important to make sure that there is no other reason for Egg to be losing or not gaining weight such as issues with his teeth or chronic hair balls. He should be eating mostly a pellet diet that you can find in pet stores as well as free access to hay. As far as additional treats, there are various treats sold in stores. Fruits and veggies should be offered in small amounts. You can try carrots, green beans, green leafy veggies, apples, pineapples, and bananas. I recommend staying away from fruits with seeds. I hope this helps!

In my experience the most common reason rabbits gain weight is due to over feeding pellets. Rabbits only need about 1/4 cup or less of pellets a day. If you are feeding more than this, I would suggest slowly decreasing the amount over several weeks. Bunnies should always have very slow diet changes to avoid gastrointestinal problems. Thanks for using Pet coach and I hope this was helpful!

Hello, I would completely stop the pellets for Flopsy, hay & water only. Increasing exercise is very important, too. This may mean feeding the 2 rabbits separately, but there can be so many health problems associated with an obese rabbit, that it is important to try & get some weight off of him. Make sure that you are very careful with the treats he gets. He should only receive good greens, no fruit or high-calorie rabbit treats. Get a good food scale where you can weigh Flopsy weekly & monitor his progress. As he reaches a more normal weight, you can begin to add a few pellets back into his diet. Good luck & thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Feed as much timothy hay or similar grasses as possible. Limit or discontinue feeding commercial pellets. Offer about a cup of fresh greens daily. Avoid fruit and "sweet" vegetables such as corn or carrots. Try to increase Bun Bun's activity.

The biggest problem is obesity which leads to joint and back problems. Also it can cause fatty liver disease, heart disease and bladder problems. They can also get severe dermatitis (skin infections) since they will have difficulty fully cleaning under their skin folds and around the anus. The extra weight causes pressure on the diaphragm so they may also have difficulty breathing and be excessively tired. Hope this answers your question!

Pellets can predispose a rabbit to obesity. They may not provide the amount of fiber needed to maintain a healthy gut. You don't need to feed just produce. Ellie should be fed as much timothy hay, oat hay or similar grasses as she wants to eat. These grasses are relatively inexpensive. You can feed alfalfa until she is about 7 months old then discontinue feeding it. Supplement the diet with a cup or two of fresh, dark, leafy greens and vegetables daily. Up to 1/4 cup of commercial pellets can be offered daily.

I think this article will answer most of your nutrition questions. http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=18+1803&aid=1638 The only thing you need to limit as a rabbit reaches maturity is the pellets. They should make up less of the diet. She should be eating mostly hay and vegetables. Overfeeding pellets in mature rabbits can lead to obesity and other medical conditions. Hope this helps. After you read the article if you still have questions feel free to post again. Best wishes.