Yes, keep one — a Rex gives you two good reasons. First, that short, velvety coat springs back under your fingers and makes hands-on body checks unusually informative, so a log pairing weight with feel paints a true picture. Second, Rex rabbits are known for sensitive feet: their hocks carry less protective fur padding than many breeds, and extra weight pressing down on those heels raises the risk of soreness. A weekly record watches both stories at once.
The weekly Rex weigh-in and feel check
Weigh on the same day, on the same scale, with your Rex settled in a low box on a non-slip surface — skittish footing makes for wriggly readings. Write the weight, then stroke backwards gently over the ribs and hips: a healthy Rex feels firm and smooth, with bones present but cushioned. Note coat condition in the same entry. The Rex coat should feel dense and even; thinning patches, flaky skin along the back, or a coat that suddenly feels coarse are health clues worth dating, since skin and fur often register a diet or health change before behaviour does. Curly whiskers and a plush rex coat are breed hallmarks, not problems — log changes, not traits.
Hock checks: this breed's signature log entry
Once a week, lift each hind foot gently or watch the heels as your Rex sits, and record what you see: furred and pale, thinning, pink, or sore. Pair the note with where the rabbit has been living — new flooring, a damp run, extra time on hard surfaces — because hock trouble usually has a mechanical partner. If pinkness appears twice running, the log tells you to soften resting areas and reduce weight pressure early, rather than after the skin breaks. Movement notes support this: record reluctance to hop, shorter exercise sessions, or favouring one foot, dated as they happen.
Eating, droppings, and general entries
The standard lines still earn their space. Hay consumption, pellet amounts, water intake, and droppings quantity and shape complete the picture, and for a Rex they help separate appetite change from foot discomfort when activity dips — a rabbit eating eagerly but moving less points you toward the feet, while one moving normally but leaving hay points toward teeth or gut. Add molt periods, nail trims, and any skin treatments suggested by a vet, dated and brief. One more entry proves surprisingly useful for this breed: a note on resting-surface choices. Record whether your Rex seeks out the fleece pad, the bare floor, or the hay pile when free to choose, because a rabbit quietly abandoning a once-favourite hard floor spot may be protecting sore heels days before the skin itself shows anything for your weekly check to find.
When the Rex record calls for help
Bring the log to routine visits so the weight trend and hock history inform the examination, and call promptly if eating stops, droppings disappear, a hock becomes raw or swollen, or your Rex stops bearing weight comfortably. Those are not watch-and-wait entries in any rabbit, and sore feet least of all. Filed in KinsLe's Pet Passport, the weights, coat notes, and heel checks for your Rex stay in one complete packet, ready for the vet or a trusted sitter to read at a glance.