The short answer for a rabbit
For a rabbit, health shows first in the gut: steady hay eating and heaps of large, dry, round droppings mean the system is moving as it should. Add bright eyes, a dry nose, quiet nose-breathing, a clean bottom, even front teeth, and unmarked hocks, and you have the core of a weekly home check. Rabbits conceal illness well and their digestion slows dangerously when they stop eating, so this check is less about finding drama and more about catching the first quiet change in appetite, droppings, or posture before it becomes urgent.
Eating and droppings tell the story first
Watch her at the hay rack before you handle her. A well rabbit pulls hay steadily, moves about, and produces droppings of consistent size through the day; you may also see soft, shiny cecotropes, which rabbits normally eat directly and should rarely be left lying around. Droppings that dwindle in number or shrink in size, a rabbit who picks at food and turns away, or one sitting hunched with teeth grinding softly are changes to act on, not admire from a distance. Look under the tail as well: the bottom should be clean and dry, because a soiled bottom in warm weather can attract flies quickly and becomes a serious problem in hours.
Lifting safely and checking the head end
Always lift a rabbit supporting the chest with one hand and the hindquarters fully with the other; a rabbit who kicks unsupported can injure her own back. On your lap or a low table, look at the eyes for brightness and the nose for dryness and clean fur, remembering rabbits breathe through the nose and should do so silently. Stroke under the chin for wetness or matted fur, which can accompany tooth trouble, and glance at the front teeth for even meeting and normal length when she takes a treat. Check inside and outside the ears for crusting, flaking, or head shaking, and run your hands over the body for lumps, scabs, or thinning fur.
Scent glands, hocks, and weight
Rabbits have scent glands in folds of skin on either side of the bottom that collect a waxy, dark build-up; a gentle look during your check tells you whether they look clean or clogged and sore, and your vet can show you safe cleaning at a routine visit. Turn attention to the hocks, the long hind feet she sits on: the fur should cover them fully, with no red, bald, or broken skin, since sore hocks worsen quickly on hard or damp flooring. Feel the spine and ribs for body condition, and weigh her weekly; a rabbit can look unchanged under a full coat while steadily losing condition underneath it.
The same-day rule for rabbits
A rabbit who has stopped eating, produces few or no droppings, sits hunched and grinding her teeth, breathes with her mouth open, has a fly-soiled bottom, or cannot hop normally needs veterinary care the same day, not tomorrow. Head tilt, discharge from the eyes or nose, a new lump, or hocks that become open sores also deserve prompt appointments. Bring notes on when hay intake changed, what the droppings have done, and her last few weights; for gut problems, that timeline shapes the vet's first decisions. Gathering those weekly observations in KinsLe inside the Pet Passport means the evidence is already organised when a worrying check sends you to the phone.