How Old is this Netherland Dwarf?

[Minerva]

Hello all,

I spotted this little gal while picking up cat/bunny/reef fish food at the store. She seems awfully young and small. She was only a quarter to a third of the size of the other rabbits. Usually the breeder that supplies that store (a small, local place) is pretty responsible about bringing them in at a good age so I'm not sure what happened with her.

Of course I ended up coming home with her. The others were mostly lops that were far too large and rowdy for this little gal.

Anyway, I was hoping to learn how old she is for my own reference. I'm guessing 5-6 weeks but was hoping for some confirmation. I thought the breeders' section would be the best place to ask. Here are a handful of pictures.

Oh, and she weighs 11 ounces, if that helps.

Thanks in advance!

 

[bhoffman]

aww what a sweetheart!! I couldn't say what age she is.. but I bought a "lop eared bunny" this past Saturday that looks much like your little girl. And mine even weighs close to the same. My guy weighs 10 oz.

 

[JBun]

Looks about 5 weeks old, 6 at the most, though if it was a runt it could look younger than it actually is too. Because of her young age, you'll want to be pretty careful with her diet and watch out for her poops getting soft. They are just much more vulnerable to diet problems when weaned so early. But in any case, she is a very cute little bun

 

[Pipsqueak]

I agree probably 5-6 weeks, just look at her little ears! She's such a cutie.

 

[Ilovemyrabbit]

Yes, probably 5-6 weeks old. What a cutie! She is too cute for words! Congrats on the bunny!

 

[Elliot]

Oh I love her! Congrats!:hearts

 

[Minerva]

Thank you everyone! She's as cute as a little fluffy button and very sweet, though of course that could change once she gets older and more comfortable!

That's about what I thought on her age but I wanted to make sure she wasn't any younger than that. A big part of the reason I got her was because of the potential for dietary issues; I did not want someone inexperienced to buy her on a whim and start feeding her garbage that would make her ill. Last month I adopted a young and emaciated lionhead with megacolon for the same reason.

And I have to admit, the ears are totally what did me in! :bunnyheart

 

[JBun]

Sounds like this little bun is lucky you found her, and she is very cute!

I'm curious about your lionhead with the megacolon. I have two rabbits with it, and know it can be tricky to feed them a diet that doesn't cause them problems. Have you had to feed her a special diet, or encountered any problems with the illness? It's not a very well known health problem in rabbits, so usually most of the info about it online, comes from peoples personal experiences with their rabbits. But even then, there aren't very many accounts of it.

 

[Minerva]

I noticed that there isn't much information about it. I'd love to compare notes because the poor thing has several issues and I cannot tell whether or not they are all related.

One of my primary concerns was reading some accounts of megacolon bunnies passing away suddenly as early as 3-4 months, or around 2-3 years. I've been trying to research if megacolon bunnies always have shorter lifespans or if other factors played a role (like poor diet). I'm hoping that she can still live a long and otherwise healthy life.

As far as feeding goes, she mostly has to stick to pellets and hay. Anything with sugar really causes her problems which is unfortunate because she is a total chow hound and loves sweets. I have a feeling that any sort of fruit and some vegetables like carrots will always be off-limits. The early addition of greens has really helped to even out her poops, though I still have to space her out and not allow her to eat too much at one time. As long as I let her have a small amount of greens two or three times a day she has really nice, mostly regular poops. She has been shedding right now though so they have been chained together with fur for several days now.

She has some other problems as well. There was nothing to her when I got her; I could feel every vertebrae and rib and her tiny hip bones. Even with three weeks of constant eating she has just barely gotten to one pound. I'm not sure if this is also due to the megacolon... perhaps an issue with the intestines absorbing nutrients or something. I don't think she sees well (if at all) either, which I've read may be due to a vitamin deficiency. I'm not sure if all of these are related or if she just wasn't well-cared for. :dunno

 

[JBun]

Yeah, they do seem to have more problems, because of the poor absorption of nutrients and the nerve problems in the digestive system. I think it can vary a lot on how severe the megacolon is, with each rabbit. Luckily my two don't seem to have extremely bad cases. One of my boys got megacolon after getting a bad case of GI stasis. After that I couldn't feed him pellets any more or he would get stasis again. My other bun was born with it. Both of them are on pretty strict diets and can't have any treats either. The one that was born with it, can tolerate a small amount of a non sugar/low starch pellet. So I feed him a small amount of that, then he also gets some alfalfa hay to help keep his weight up, unlimited timothy, and some leafy green veggies. My other bun can't have any pellets at all. I've tried a few times to reintroduce them into his diet, and each time he starts to get an upset stomach. So I now have him on timothy hay, a small amount of alfalfa hay, and a few specific leafy greens. I don't even dare to try anything sugary with them, so no fruit or carrots, I don't want to risk trying cruciferous veggies either, so I try and just stick with leafy greens that seem to be easier on the stomach. So far they both seem to be doing well and their condition seems stable at this point.

So what other health problems are you having with your little megacolon girl? Is it just the weight gain and eye problems? If you are concerned that she isn't absorbing enough nutrients, there are some vitamin drops that you can get at pet stores.