Hi,
first, I would ask the previous owner about his diet. Don't change food too fast, they need some time to adjust and to grow the right bacteria to be able to digest new stuff. If he isn't used to it you start with a few leaves of greens and increase that slowly for, say, a week.
Could the sticky poo just be cecotrope?
Hay is good, wouldn't give too much pellets for now, half a cup over the day. Also be sure that he drinks - some buns who are used to bowls can have difficulties to find out how to use bottles or vice versa.
I would wait with grooming him, if he's not used to it it may stress him additionally. Give him some time to settle in.
He sure looks chubby, but new zealands have a stocky build too.
I just took in a new boy yesterday. He's 3 years old an a New Zealand/lionhead mix. He seems to be pretty over weight. I tried weighing him on my scale and it appears he's roughly 11 lbs. Yesterday, his poos were very tiny. Smaller than my girls that is 5 lbs. Now today, he had a huge sticky poo stuck to his bum. Do you guys think it could be from stress of moving? He's also been breathing very heavy. I did give him quite a bit of greens yesterday...which he may not be used to. I don't know. So I'm going to just have him have hay and pellets for a few days to see if that helps. Have a vet appointment Wednesday morning for a check up. He has potty stains on his bits too. Not sure if it's b/c he's over weight or if he was in a dirty cage. His cage was a hutch style but he was kept inside. The owner said she never brushed him either...so I've been working on getting all that fluff brushed out. Do you guys have any tips? I've never had a large breed before. How much should I be feeding him?
