How to fatten up my buck?

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mizemama

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Hey folks! I have a Silver Fox buck that is about 15 weeks old. He's my only rabbit at the moment since we're still waiting on his little girlfriends from the breeder.

Anyway, I think he's a little too skinny. I haven't weighed him, but I'm pretty sure he's dropped some weight since I brought him home at the beginning of April since he's feeling more bony. The breeder said to quit free feeding him at 16 weeks, but I won't do that until I get his weight back up.

He is acting totally fine, no diarrhea, etc. He is currently eating 18% pellets from Southern States, which is exactly what the breeder was feeding him. He also has free choice hay, orchard grass at the moment.

So, my question is, if I'm already feeding him all the pellets and hay he wants, how do I put some weight on him?
 
Run your hand down his spine and see what it feels like. If it feels spiky then I would worry about feeding him more. If the ridges are gentle when you run your hand across I wouldn't worry about anything. Another thing would be to weigh him and post in this thread. Smarter people than I would be able to tell you if that was normal for a SF at 15 weeks.

EDIT: I forgot to mention that if you have any dandelions in your yard that you can feed him those. They are very high in protein. But like anything else moderation is your friend.
 
Combination of both posts. If he's bony and you've been feeding him the same as the breeder did, give him the wormer. I give a wormer no matter what when I get a new rabbit just in case. Doesn't hurt anything.

He might have gotten worms from the hay he has been getting.

If none of those things are the issue, barley is another item we feed to bulk buns up as well as the previously mentioned boss and oats.

Also, check the pedigree. What is the weight on the sire and grand sire? It might just be he's not genetically going to get that big.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I suppose it is possible he has worms, but I think he would have had to come from the breeder with them. He is the only rabbit that has ever lived on this property and he's never been on the ground here.

What type of wormer do folks use for rabbits?

I guess after that I'll start feeding him some extra goodies. I'm sure he'll never forgive me for that, haha!<br /><br />__________ Wed May 01, 2013 5:40 pm __________<br /><br />Oh, I almost forgot. I don't have his pedigree, but I did meet his parents. They were huge! She told me their weights, but I can't remember. I wouldn't be as worried if he just seemed a little small, but I think he has lost weight. His back does feel a little spiky.
 
I definitely agree to worm him before doing anything else. I would check his teeth as well. If something is wrong with them, he won't eat or won't eat much.


Even though you're free feeding, could you estimate how much he eats a day? He may not be interested in eating much became he always has the food available. You could try only feed him once a day and see if only getting food at a certain time will make him more interested in it.
 
Pumpkin seeds or pure pumpkin is a great wormer. Definately talk to the breeder to see how their kits normally fill out.
 
Whipple":1e86mmfv said:
Pumpkin seeds or pure pumpkin is a great wormer. Definately talk to the breeder to see how their kits normally fill out.
Click to expand...

:yeahthat: There is another organic wormer in the Effects of Herbs thread but I can't remember what it is right now.

I've dewormed my rabbits around Oct each year just because of how plentiful pumpkin seeds are. I should probably keep some from now on instead of feeding them to rabbits and eating them myself.
 
Will canned pumpkin work for worming? 100% pumpkin, not the pie filling. How much should I feed him?

I really appreciate all the advice. Ya'll are such a wonderful group of helpful bunny people!
 
I'm having issues with a buck myself. I had a lot of rabbits loose a drastic amount of weight on Manna Pro. Switched everyone to Pen Pals and give oats and everyone is doing great and filled out... he was making progress then he plateaued He's always pacing in his cage,humming, buzzing, and nawing on the wire...He has enrichment and I try to let him out every day to have run of the rabbitry to get exercise, but he won't put on weight! Teeth are good, and he eats but he doesn't eat much. He's more interested in breeding than anything else and he does a great job! I'll probably worm him just in case since a few people here have mentioned it. Sometimes I just figure he's just burning all these calories with all the moving he does.
 
Peach":1seer2cw said:
I'm having issues with a buck myself. I had a lot of rabbits loose a drastic amount of weight on Manna Pro. Switched everyone to Pen Pals and give oats and everyone is doing great and filled out... he was making progress then he plateaued He's always pacing in his cage,humming, buzzing, and nawing on the wire...He has enrichment and I try to let him out every day to have run of the rabbitry to get exercise, but he won't put on weight! Teeth are good, and he eats but he doesn't eat much. He's more interested in breeding than anything else and he does a great job! I'll probably worm him just in case since a few people here have mentioned it. Sometimes I just figure he's just burning all these calories with all the moving he does.
Click to expand...


Its funny, I had the exact opposite problem, no one could keep weight on Penpals, I had to switch to Manna Pro
 
Anyone know how much pumpkin I need to feed for it be effective as a wormer? Thanks:)
 
I don't know exactly how much to use, sorry. I just took a handful every so often and put it in their cage. Hopefully someone else will know the answer.
 
I've only used pumpkin puree to help a dehydrated bun. But to worm we used the seeds and here are the directions for that.


The seeds of squash, pumpkins and many other vine crops contain a deworming compound called cucurbitacin that is more or less active depending on the parasite12. The seeds may be fed directly to animals as the Canadian pioneers once did, but it is better to extract the main ingredient using water, alcohol or ether, for an effect that is similar to that of pumpkin seeds. Aqueous extracts from squash seeds (dilution 1/50) are effective against Haemonchus contortus38.

Pumpkin seed dewormer24

- Shell and grind up the pumpkin seeds (or buy them at a grocery store).
- Mix 500 g of the seeds with three litres of water.
- Simmer (do not boil), while stirring, for 30 minutes.
- Let cool 30 minutes.
- Filter through a cloth, squeezing to remove as much juice as possible.
- Reduce over low heat to 150-200 ml.
- Make sure to remove oily scum.
- Refrigerate.
 
Thanks for that Glitter. I've always been curious about how to go about it.

And another from KY! YEAH! I was starting to feel so lonely.
 
Thanks again for all the info. While I try to track down some pumpkin seeds that won't cost me health food store prices, I've started Mr. Buns (the kids named him :lol: ) on BOSS and kitchen oats (cause that's what I had.) He's a sneaky fellow and won't eat them in front of us, but if I go back in 10 minutes it's all gone. Next week I should be able to give him plenty of dandelions but this week is apparently monsoon season in NC.
 
You might give him some probiotic paste- maybe he is lacking some beneficial bacteria needed for proper digestion.

I use the livestock formula of Bene-Bac by Manna-Pro.
 

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