When Your Rabbit Has to Diet

Recently, some of the members of our rabbit club where visiting my house. Maia, my two year old minlop, hopped into the room. Someone said, "Boy, is she fat!" I looked around the room and everyone was nodding vehemently in agreement. I was defensive immediately. "But I only fill her bowl once a week!" I protested, avoiding the fact that I also give her many starchy treats. Now, Maia's not grossly overweight, and to me she looks healthy and happy. But, as her guardian, I knew it was up to me to reduce her weight. I weighed her the next day: 6.5 pounds. A few days later we began the new diet. Some of you may remember Maia's dietary antics from "Starch Raving Mad". I was sad at the prospect of ending our breakfast bagel ritual, and vowed to keep the sense of ritual while transitioning to new foods. We still eat together, but she has vegetables while I have breads.

Maia did not like this new diet one bit, and wasted no time in telling me. The first few days she was constantly underfoot, clinging to me, following me from room to room. She'd look at me with those mournful brown eyes, and pangs of guilt shot through me. I even thought I saw her looking rail tin, but knew it was just that illusion that rabbits can conjure up. After she emptied her weekly alfalfa quota, she broke into the supply closet and shredded open a bag for herself. The houseplants suddenly looked quite appetizing, and she scaled furniture to get to them. The day I went grocery shopping she sat in the doorway of the kitchen watching me wash and put away the vegetables. Her eyes locked on my hands, and she'd dive into the crisper as I filled it. I knew she wasn't hungry because she'd just eaten. Rabbits are such creatures of habit. At night we'd lay together snuggling and she'd chew on my clothes, my hair, the bed sheets, anything. It was like living with a teenage rabbit again. I tried to put myself in her place, and gave her extra petting and attention to help her through the transition. As time went on, I noticed her rationing her pellets. Instead of gobbling them up in one sitting, she'd have a few left over at the end of the day. Whether she got wise to the new plan or her metabolism adjusted, I don't know.

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