Pellets are soft

[_Moby_]

Hello, I have noticed the last few days that my Netherland Dwarfs poo pellets have been rather squishy. They are not cecotropes. He seems healthy. He is nearly 6 months, his diet is a handful of pellets in the morning, a cup of veggies in the evening, and a constant supply of hay (oat, timothy, orchard grass). He gets a grape every morning. Why might his poops be soft?

Though I think I already know the answer... he is so adorable and always begs for treats, so he usually gets one more in the evening because I just can't resist his big doe eyes :cry1:
Is an extra treat really that harmful? I know they can easily become obese and it is hard to lose that weight. It's also probably not a good habit because he is becoming used to receiving more than one treat a day. Every time I enter my bedroom he gets excited because he thinks he is going to get one.

 

[PaGal]

Too much sugar in their diet (typically from fruits) can cause GI issues so yes you want to be very careful with those as treats and really limit the amount. You also need to be cautious about any new foods. Only a tiny amount at first and only one new food a week so if your bun reacts to a particular food (gas,etc.) you will know which food caused it and can avoid that food in future.

 

[Blue eyes]

What veggies?

If he loves "treats" you can use sprigs of greens as treats.

 

[_Moby_]

What veggies?

If he loves "treats" you can use sprigs of greens as treats.

This last week he has been getting cilantro and parsely. I usually only get two different greens per week when I go to the store, because anything more than is too much for one bun and goes bad. He usually gets either romaine, kale, cilantro, parsely, or turnip greens. Is it okay to only have two types every night, as long as I switch it up each week? I'm assuming the more variety the better.

I also recently introduced celery to him, in small amounts. Maybe that could be it as well.

 

[Aki]

Hello, I have noticed the last few days that my Netherland Dwarfs poo pellets have been rather squishy. They are not cecotropes. He seems healthy. He is nearly 6 months, his diet is a handful of pellets in the morning, a cup of veggies in the evening, and a constant supply of hay (oat, timothy, orchard grass). He gets a grape every morning. Why might his poops be soft?

Though I think I already know the answer... he is so adorable and always begs for treats, so he usually gets one more in the evening because I just can't resist his big doe eyes :cry1:
Is an extra treat really that harmful? I know they can easily become obese and it is hard to lose that weight. It's also probably not a good habit because he is becoming used to receiving more than one treat a day. Every time I enter my bedroom he gets excited because he thinks he is going to get one.

If you know the answer, stop giving treats. Your rabbit wouldn't even know what a treat is and wouldn't beg for them if you didn't give them in the first place. He is relying on you to make the right decisions and keeping him healthy - it's a rabbit : if you stop giving treats for a few days, he will lose that bad habit and forget everything about them. He won't be sad, he will just eat something healthier. Stop giving them completely and see if that fixes the problem. My rabbits get excited when I come in the room too - to give them HAY. If it doesn't fix the problem, you'll have to stop with the vegetables and reintroduce them one by one to pinpoint what's the culprit