When breeding animals - for example, rabbits - for meat, good appetite is considered a positive factor.
However, do not rely on self-control animals.
Excessive food intake can soon lead to obesity.
Learn how to deal with this problem.
What is obesity
Obesity is a dangerous pathology, and rabbits here are no different from other animals. This is a common problem that results from overfeeding and lack of movement. Due to abundant fat deposits, animals start having problems with the heart, liver and other organs.
Did you know? Rabbit meat is in second place after turkey meat for protein nutrition and tenderness. All this is due to the fact that it has a minimum amount of elastin.
The normal weight of both the adult and the young rabbit depends on the breed of the animal. To determine if your pet is overweight, you need to know how much weight is considered normal for a given breed and age. 
On average, an adult rabbit, as well as a rabbit in different periods of life, should have the following weight:
- a newborn baby weighs 0.06-0.08 kg;
- the little rabbit at the age of 30 days weighs 0.5-0.8 kg;
- at the age of 60 days - 1.4-1.6 kg;
- at the age of 90 days - 2.1-2.6 kg;
- adult individual at the age of 4 months weighs 2.9-3.5 kg;
- at the age of 5 months - 3.2-4.6 kg;
- at the age of 6 months - 3.6-5.5 kg;
- at the age of 7 months - 4.2-6.3 kg;
- at the age of 8 months - 5.2-7.0 kg.
When breeding rabbits, it is important for you to know what rabbits are prone to: pasteurellosis, coccidiosis, myxomatosis, encephalosis, rhinitis, VGBK, and also find out what kind of eye, paw, and rabbit ears are.
Causes
The following are the most common causes of obesity in these animals:
- sedentary lifestyle;
- unhealthy diet;
- metabolic disease.
Often, obesity is the result of great love of the owners for their pets. It is also a frequent problem for inexperienced farmers who do not bother themselves with taking care of the proper diet of rabbits, which is necessary for their full life.Important! The specificity of rabbit nutrition implies that the animal often eats - the number of approaches to the feeder can reach 30 times per day. If the feed is not balanced, the animals may become fat.
How to determine obesity in rabbits
To determine the presence of excess weight in these animals in the first stage is difficult - the excess fat is hidden under the thick fur. In addition, rabbits belong to animals that always gain weight quickly, so at first this process will cause the owner joy, not anxiety.
But we must try not to miss the moment of onset of obesity, because it is easier to prevent the disease than to deal with the consequences.
Did you know? Vitamin D is excreted on the surface of rabbit ears. Washing, they lick it, thus bringing it into the body.
Signs of the onset of the disease:
- The spine and ribs hid under a layer of fat - normally all bones should be felt under a thin layer of muscles. In order to verify this, one should daily touch suspicious individuals with their hands.
- The chin of the animal has increased significantly in size and hangs almost to the ground.
- Animals have become inactive, poorly caring for themselves, with no health problems.
- Liver problems can also be a result of the presence of excess weight.
How to deal with this disease
Any actions aimed at getting rid of excess weight should begin only after consulting with a specialist who will take action based on the physiological characteristics of the animals.
The first thing to do is to be examined to eliminate the possibility that the appearance of excess weight is a symptom of other health problems. Only then can you proceed to other actions permitted by the veterinarian.
In adult rabbits
When diagnosing obesity at an early stage, it is easy to deal with it - a regular diet is used for this, reducing the proportion of concentrated feed in the diet and simultaneously increasing the amount of grass. In order for an animal to lose weight, grass and hay must make up 80% of the total mass of a serving of food.
In more advanced situations completely eliminate feed, moving to hay and succulent feed.
In addition, animals in this state need to move more. It is important to provide them with free range.
Important! In order to reduce the number of feedings and, at the same time, occupy the rabbit with something, it is recommended to put special toys in the cage or ordinary branches for grinding teeth.
Such actions lead to the appearance of visible results no earlier than 30 days. 
Young
Young rabbits are less susceptible to obesity, as they grow rapidly and are constantly in motion. The only thing you can do is remove harmful foods from the diet, such as sweets and bread, replacing them with grass.
In addition, the growing rabbit is recommended to give nutritional granules, which are rich in protein, as well as hay of legumes.
So, it is possible to cope with excess weight, but this process is complex and lengthy. Therefore, it is better not to start the situation and constantly monitor the condition of your pets. Caring for them should be shown not by overfeeding, but by observing the right diet.
