Excessive water drinking and urination?

[cwebster]

Adopted Arnold recently. He is a 2 yr old lionhead cross neutered bunny. He loves to eat hay. He also seems to drink a lot more water than our spayed female lionhead. I switched him from a dish to a bottle because he is kind of messy. He drinks so much his litter box is always wet. I have to empty and wash and dry it daily. He just saw the vet about two weeks ago for a well check, the day he came to live with us. Is excessive drinking something to worry about? Dont know if he is bored and drinks a lot because of that or has something wrong. He seems otherwise fine.

 

[VioletRose]

This might help? Don't panic though

https://wagwalking.com/rabbit/condition/excess-thirst

 

[cwebster]

VioletRose, thank you for the link. Am going to measure how much Arnold drinks and ask the vet about whether he may need tests to make sure he is ok. He is twice the size of our other bunny (5 1/4 lbs) so hope his drinking is in proportion. It seems like a lot of drinking and peeing

 

[JBun]

Some rabbits do drink more than others, but if it seems really excessive there are some health problems that can cause excess thirst/urination. Your vet doing the appropriate tests would be the way to find out if there is an underlying health condition.

Generally rabbits will drink about one ounce per lb of body weight, but that can vary with each rabbit and depend on what their exact diet is like. High environmental temps can also be a factor. Excess salt in the diet(either from overuse of a salt lick or from improper amount in the pellets) could be one nutritional cause of excess thirst.

 

[cwebster]

JBun, thanks. Will measure exactly how much he is drinking each day.