More drama.. Rabbit won't eat.

[LadyKarli]

This rabbit had babies 2 days before I bought her. They all fell on the ground cause she was not properly cared for. No nest box & no baby barrier to save them. 2 survived but they did not see her feeding them so they took them away. I just started with breeding rabbits but I have done enough studying to know they didn't know what the heck they were doing & probably didn't care. This was about 3 weeks ago. ( this same person told me non of the females were pregnant so I was not ready for the little surprise I found on the ground from a different female.Lets just say she was wrong ) When you go near the rabbit she freezes. Doesn't bite or growl. Just freezes. Now she is off her feed. Hasn't touched it in 2 days. Also her eyes have looked weird the whole time. kinda bulgy but that could be a genetic thing. I don't know what breed she is. here is a pic from the first day I brought her home.

 

[TariLynn]

Do you know what they were feeding her? Maybe add some oats to the feed and see if that sparks her interest. Is she drinking her water? Do you have a water bottle or a bowl - maybe she was used to a bowl and doesn't understand the water bottle yet. If she isn't drinking much, she won't feel like eating. We had an older guy who appeared not to be eating for a couple of days and then on the third day he would eat everything...not sure why he did this but that was his regular eating habits.

 

[LadyKarli]

She has been drinking out of her water bottle. Not as much as the New Zealands I have but still a good amount.<br /><br />__________ Sat Feb 25, 2012 10:28 am __________<br /><br />She is a bit smaller than them>

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Are there any other symptoms? Was her stool normal prior to her going off of her feed? I haven't had this problem with my rabbits, so have no personal experience to go by, but I know that rabbits will not eat if they are not getting enough water- have you checked her water source to see if it is working properly? Even if she is using it, she may not be able to get enough- when I got my rabbits I had to use the ball valve water bottles for the first couple of days, and they were frustrated by them, and couldn't get enough water out. I would offer a water crock and see if she drinks- you might want to offer her pedialyte or add gatorade to the water. She also may not be drinking if she isn't getting enough salt, so it may be a good idea to give her a salt spool as well.

I would offer her some dry rolled oats (old fashioned kitchen oatmeal) and see if she will eat that, and give her some hay also if you can.

*I see that Tarilynn has beaten me to the post er- punch- but I'll let mine stand as confirmation of her ideas!

 

[MaggieJ]

I agree with the others. Give her a crock of water, give her kitchen oatmeal and hay in addition to whatever else you feed. She sounds to me as though she is scared. Rabbits are very subject to stress. Bother her as little is as consistent with good care and speak gently before you enter the rabbitry so as not to startle her. Is she peeing and pooping at all? You can put a sheet of newspaper under her cage to see what is happening that way.

 

[LadyKarli]

Okay I gave her plenty of hay & she is chowing down. I am relieved.