Let’s Talk Poop
When it comes to rabbits, guinea pigs, and most other small animals, you can get a general idea of their health by their poop and pee. The smell, consistency and colour are things that directly reflect your pets’ digestion health and whether or not it their diet needs adjusting. It is important to try and stick to a scheduled routine when feeding your rabbit as changes in when and what they get fed may negatively affect their health. Try to feed your rabbit every morning or evening while supplying hay at all times to maintain that schedule they need.
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Colour
The colour of your rabbits waste is probably the easiest way to judge their health. The general rule of thumb should be the lighter your rabbits poop and pee are, the healthier they are. Colour of their poop should be a bit darker than the colour of hay they are eating. The urine should look similar to a humans, though it's normal to see a hint of red in old urine. If it is very dark you may want to try providing an open water bowl to encourage them to drink more. If it is foamy and white they likely have too much calcium in their diet. This is a common problem if a pet is being fed alfalfa hay or overfed on pellets. Alfalfa hay should only be provided to babies and nursing mothers.
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Smell
To start, your pet shouldn’t be able to clear a room with the smell of their bathroom breaks – only you and your gasses should be able to claim that victory. For the most part, your pets’ poop should be almost odorless, while the smell of their urine shouldn’t be strong. If you are noticing a strong odor from your rabbits pee, it is likely that your pet is producing high levels of ammonia due to the lack of variety in their diet or possibly not drinking enough water. If you are noticing a smell from your rabbits poop it’s likely that they have either eaten something that they are unable to digest properly, or they don’t have enough variety in their diet. Providing more timothy hay for them during the day along with some vegetables a few times throughout the week will help balance out their diet. Make sure your rabbit has fresh water at all times of the day as well to ensure they remain hydrated.
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Consistency
Your pets’ urine shouldn’t change in consistency, though ideally their pee should look (not taste) similar to apple juice. Poop wise, a healthy rabbit will produce dry, crumbly poop. With gloves, you should be able to squeeze the poop between your fingers and have it crumble apart. If it just squishes between your fingers, or comes out really wet or slimy your pet needs more hay in their diet and maybe less treats, especially sugary ones. Very hard black poops can be a sign that they are being fed too many pellets. Healthy poops are almost perfectly round and dry while unhealthy poops are oval or misshapen and moist/wet.
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The proof is in the pudding.
The top feces is what your rabbit or guinea pigs' poop should look like. Notice the brown colour and crumbly fibrous texture. The bottom is a bit dark, and could likely be fed more hay and/or safe veggies.
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A healthy diet is extremely important for your small pets. Please make sure to feed appropriate portions and always introduce new foods slowly in small portions. Drastic changes in their diet can lead to life threatening issues like G.I. stasis even if feeding safe foods.
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You may also see some small stringy poops. Don't be alarmed, this is usually normal and caused be digesting some fur from grooming. If this is a regular occurrence please take your pet to the vet.
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You may also see some small stringy poops. Don't be alarmed, this is usually normal and caused be digesting some fur from grooming. If this is a regular occurrence please take your pet to the vet.