What happens if I overfeed my rabbit? Are there health concerns?

Concentrated foods such as fruits and certain vegetables are the main causes of rabbits gaining too much weight. They can also get fat by eating too many treats and certain types of pelleted feed. Rabbits should be eating mostly grass and hay. Other foods should be fed in moderation. For more information about rabbit diet, please read the short article at the link below: https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/rabbits-feeding I hope that helps and all is well with Egg.

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, and thank you for your question. I think your question got cut off, but I believe the neck fat you are referring to is the "dewlap", which is normal in female bunnies. This is where they can pull out extra fur to help make a nest if they were to have babies. It is perfectly normal. However, obese bunnies or ones with a very large dewlap may have difficulty eating and grooming themselves. They may also be more prone to skin infections of the area, so it is important to help your bunny with grooming the dewlap if she is having difficulty doing so herself. I hope this helps, and that Fluffy is doing well!

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.

You should always be concerned if an animal eats more than the recommended dosage of anything. That being said, vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamins and she should just excrete the excess amount into the urine. This should not be a problem in a healthy rabbit, however, I cannot be 100% sure that she won’t have any side effects. Just monitor her closely for any signs of illness and if any of those are noticed then get her to the vet for an exam as soon as possible. in the meantime, do not give her any of those treats for the next 10-14 days. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

As long as she is at a good weight and not too skinny then I wouldn’t worry about it. Most rabbits I see are over weight and a lot of the health problems are associated with their weight. She may be “saving” her appetite for her favorites. However limiting them is important so that she does eat some hay which is very important to keep a healthy GI tract. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Hello. It sounds like your rabbit may have signs of gastrointestinal stasis, which means the GI tract has slowed down, usually as a result of a rabbit that stops eating. Rabbits will stop eating for a number of reasons - their teeth may be overgrown, their tooth roots may be infected, they could also have any other systemic disease (respiratory, urinary, infection, etc). As you can see, the causes are many and its impossible to say what is the underlying cause for sure without an exam and testing (usually radiographs, blood work, etc). Regardless of the cause, GI stasis is potentially fatal if left untreated. Therefore, I would urge you to get veterinary care ASAP. In the meantime, syringe feed Hobie with a liquid hay diet, ideally Oxbow herbivore critical care if you can get some, or soak the hay pellets in warm water to make a slurry. The best thing to keep the GI tract healthy is fiber and hydration, so hay is the foundation of health. I see in the first picture a pellet mix with maybe some oats, corn, and/or seeds mixed with the pellets. This is not an appropriate diet for rabbits as they are selective feeders and usually pick out the concentrates. These pellet mixes significantly increase the incidence of dental disease and obesity. I recommend a 100% timothy hay pellet, ideally Oxbow brand. Feed 1/4 cup timothy hay pellets, free choice grass hay, and 2 cups fresh greens a day with fresh water available in a bowl and sipper.