Hi guys, I have a bit of a complicated question and I want to know y’all’s opinion.

I’ve noticed that the diet recommendations from US vet med and European (particularly German?) vet med is WILDLY different.

US medicine recommends hay priority diets, with decent amount of fresh greens and small amount of pellets. The healthy standard for droppings is large, round, golden poops. This implies that they are getting enough fiber in their diet to manage teeth.

EU medicine recommends primarily fresh greens, with decent amount of hay and small amount of pellets. The healthy standard for droppings is dark, moist, even sized poops. To them it implies good hydration and nutrient intake. From what I understand, a leading reasoning for this being ideal is that it is reminiscent of wild bunny droppings and therefore indicates normalcy.

Here’s my problem tho, that doesn’t really make sense for domestic rabbit physiology? Like, for one, bunnies are cecotrophic and the poops we see are second passes. In my mind, the second-pass poop we see should be dry and devoid of nutrients/moisture because it implies that the bunny absorbed what it needed through eating the first-pass poop (cecotrophs). Seeing that moisture/nutrients in the second-pass implies an EXCESS. I mean, we see it all the time when we over-feed our rabbits with treats or nutrient dense veg where their poop gets smaller, dark, misshapen, etc. for a while until it passes through their system. We don’t really see the poops that EU medicine prioritizes unless the rabbit is either getting the diet EU recommends OR is deregulated (we’ve all seen our pets poop go dark and smaller during moments of stress or change, I’m sure).

My second point is that it’s not scientifically sound to base theory for diet around what WILD rabbits experience. For one, the domestication of bunnies has changed their physiology in a number of ways. It’s just not fully comparable to wild rabbits, similar to dogs and wolves. They need different things at this point in their genetic differences. And secondly, the environmental factors of a wild rabbit are so starkly different (stress, food/water availability, etc.) to domestic rabbits that it is, AGAIN, not scientifically sound to compare the two’s needs, let alone design diet theory around.

Idk this is just my understanding of it. I’m a vet assistant and planning to study vet medicine, so this topic has been on my mind lately. I’d LOVE to know your guys’s thoughts/opinions, especially those from Europe. Pls keep the discussion civil and fact-based!

My rabbit is only 10 months old and has suddenly started having trouble moving around and I’m worried it might be something involving his spine or back legs. He can’t hop into his litter box or bed anymore, and he’s been losing his balance and falling onto his side. Sometimes when he falls, he can’t get himself back up. He’s still eating, drinking, and pooping normally though.
I took him to the vet today and they noticed he was underweight. I don't feed him pellets because i'd believed that once rabbits got to a certain age they were better without them, but with him being underweight me and the vet agreed he definitely should be. As far as leafy greens I give him primarily romaine lettuce, which I just learned has a high water content and is probably another reason for his low weight. The vet believes he’s just weak from not getting enough nutrients. They offered bloodwork and X-rays, but it would’ve cost over $1,000, which I can’t afford right now.
It’s been a few hours since the vet visit and he’s showing some improvement. He’s able to walk around slowly now, but he still can’t hop into his litter box and occasionally loses his balance and falls over.
Has anyone experienced something similar? I’m worried this might be a spinal or neurological issue rather than just weakness from his diet. I feel horrible and I will do whatever I can to get my baby healthy again. I'd really appreciate any advice or insight.

I made these rabbit fur gloves completely by scratch! From rabbit to finished product. I did the leather and everything. I’m so proud of these! 🥹🫶