I have 2 rabbits, a male and a female who live together, the male was neutered nearly 12 months ago, the female about 4 months ago.

What would be the chance of the female being pregnant, the reason I ask (i know it sounds daft) is that she has put on a lot of weight in the last 2 - 3 weeks.

I am taking my kitten to the vet tomorrow for her jabs so am going to bend the vets ear as he did both operations on both rabbits. Just wondered if anyone could advise before i go!

Thanks in advance

Mike

If the female rabbit has been neutered then their is no chance that she could be pregnant as everything is removed during the spay. She could just be filling out? Im not a huge expert on rabbits sorry!

If the doe is spayed there is no chance that she could be pregnant at all.

ditto , if she lives out then maybe shes stocking up for winter

to be honest thats what i thought, its just really strange that she is nearly double the weight that she was this time last month, she has always lived outside and I have never known her get so big, well ever since we got her!!

Well, i feel a bit of a plonker now but at least i have put my own mind at ease! looking after the kitten is hard enough without lots of baby rabbits as well!!

What are you feeding the rabbits on and how much exercise are they getting?
If you're feeding a muesli mix, they tend to 'cherry pick' the bits they want to eat and it's the fattening bits they like.

Could it be a 'chubby' dewlap under her chin that's making her look a bit porky?

Is she happy and healthy in all ways, e.g eating, drinking and pooing lots?

hi i forgot to mention that a lot of pets (female)usually put on weight after they`ve been spayed. just keep an eye on her make sure she`s doing all the things rabbits do

TBH Its very hard to see a female putting on weight until near the end of pregnancy and then its only around the belly.

It is very common to gain weight after neutering in both genders.

I would suggest altering her diet so she has more hay and less pellets/mix to help her loose weight as obesity can lead to a variety of health problems. Best to nip it in the bud now.

thanks for the advice, she eats lots of hay and grass, she also has some rabbit mix from the pet shop but the majority of her diet is hay . She is also drinking plenty of water, as usual and pooing as much as ever!

I will keep an eye on how she is going.

mike

If you think about the time factor here then it's perfectly reasonable that she's gaining weight in the last month (although the sheer amount of weight gain is something that you possibly should be looking at). Weight gain after spaying doesn't start immediately because it takes a month or two for the hormones to get out of their system, so that's right on cue at 4 months.

It's also the exact time of year that if they're going to feed their faces to store fat for winter then they'll be doing it now. In evolutionary terms they aren't aware that you're going to make sure that they have plenty to eat in winter- their bodies are preparing for lean times in winter and early spring.

If she's been spayed it's not like being sterilised where it could go wrong and they could still conceive- they actually perform a total hysterectomy so even if they left an ovary behind conception would be impossible.

She's feeding her face and showing you how happy she is- you may need to adjust how much food she gets though.

thanks for the advice, she eats lots of hay and grass, she also has some rabbit mix from the pet shop but the majority of her diet is hay . She is also drinking plenty of water, as usual and pooing as much as ever!

I will keep an eye on how she is going.

mike


I would suggest switching her from a mix onto a pelleted diet which will be higher in fiber and most importantly lower in protein.

Science Selective or Burgess Excel are both good although SS is more palatable and Excel has been known to cause excess ceacals in some rabbits.