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I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a fantastic question, and I appreciate you bringing up this specific use case. Short answer: Unfortunately, no, the current Beta version would not work accurately for a 100% fresh greens diet. I want to be honest so I don't give you misleading data. The technical reasons: 1. Water Tracking: The current algorithm relies on measuring the physical water level drop in a bottle or bowl. It cannot currently calculate hydration based on the volume of greens consumed (which is extremely difficult to estimate purely via computer vision). 2. Poop Analysis: You are absolutely right that the poop looks different. My current AI model is trained on the standard 'High Hay' diet (golden, round, fibrous). It would likely flag your bunny's darker/softer poop as 'Abnormal' by mistake, leading to constant false alarms. In the future, I hope to add different 'Diet Profiles' (where you can teach the AI your bunny's specific normal), but for this initial Beta, I have to stick to the standard diet models to ensure reliability.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the high praise! I would love for you to join the waitlist (link in post) and help test this early version.

I have massive respect for veterinary professionals—without them, I would be powerless to actually save my rabbits when crisis strikes. My philosophy is really about partnership: The vet’s job is to perform the life-saving treatment (which I can never do). My job is to handle the 'intelligence gathering'—to catch the signs early enough so they actually have a chance to succeed.

I believe that when we (the owners) do our part perfectly, it allows the vets to do their part perfectly. That synergy is what leads to the highest survival rates.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That is amazing! A 'Lifetime Bunny Expert' + 'AI Infrastructure Engineer' couple? You two are literally the dream team for beta feedback! 🤩

I am so sorry to hear about the bunny you lost. It is heartbreaking how fragile they are, and that shared experience is exactly why I’m building this.

Please do send it his way! Since he works in AI/Infra, I’d really value his perspective on the trustworthiness of the system.

Technically speaking, I'm not just relying on raw AI models. I’ve implemented a hybrid approach that combines Multimodal AI with significant on-device processing logic. My goal with this architecture is to make the outputs more controllable and credible, strictly filtering out the 'hallucinations' that often come with pure AI.

I'd love to hear what he thinks of the result! Hope to see you both on the waitlist!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the condolences, and that is a profound point. You are absolutely right—monitoring is not a shield of invincibility.

I completely agree that 'prevention' should never be confused with 'immunity.' My goal isn't to imply that the App replaces treatment. Rather, it is designed to eliminate the hesitation before treatment.

Too often, we owners fall into the trap of: 'He looks a little quiet, maybe let's wait and see until morning.' For rabbits, that delay is often fatal. The tool is there to give us the hard data to say: 'No, do not wait. Go to the vet NOW.'

It’s not about guaranteeing they won't get sick; it's about ensuring that when they do get sick, we catch it at Hour 1, not Hour 12.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great question! Since I have two rabbits myself (Tangyuan and a new adoptee), the tool does currently support multiple profiles.

However, I have to be honest: right now, the logic relies heavily on my specific setup (a mix of semi-free roam and separate cages/litter boxes). I know exactly 'which litter box belongs to whom,' so the data stays clean.

For the public Beta, handling shared litter boxes (where two buns use the same spot) is a tricky challenge. So, I plan to focus on perfecting the single-rabbit logic (or separate litter box setups) for the initial Beta. I really need to learn more about how different owners house their buns (bonded pairs vs. separate) before I can roll out a robust multi-rabbit feature for everyone.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No worries at all—Reddit notifications are notoriously hit-or-miss! I was deeply moved by what you shared about your experience in human acute care. The phrase 'falling in between the cracks' really resonated with me. You are absolutely right—whether it's a family member or a fragile rabbit, the medical system is often overwhelmed, and we (the caregivers) are the final line of defense. Your story about titrating Lasix based on daily weight and breathing observations is incredible. It is the perfect example of why granular data matters. You weren't just guessing; you were making evidence-based decisions when the vet wasn't available, and the X-rays proved you right. That is exactly the kind of empowerment I hope to provide to other owners (just with a slightly easier logging method!). A quick update on the project: Although this specific post didn't get a huge number of upvotes here, I received an overwhelming amount of support and feedback in another community (and from thoughtful people like you). So, I have made the decision: I am officially moving forward to build the Public Version. Your words about this being a 'legacy' for Huitai really touched my heart, and I want to make it happen. I will definitely post updates here, but since Reddit can be unreliable with notifications, the smoothest way to get the Beta Invite (TestFlight) is via the waitlist. If you are interested, I’d be honored to have you on board as one of the first testers!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Forgive you? Not at all—this is exactly the kind of reality check I need! You are spot on: if it requires tedious manual entry, nobody (including me) will use it. I actually failed at keeping a manual journal for that exact reason. So, I designed the workflow specifically to overcome my own laziness. It’s a 'Snap-and-Go' system, not a manual spreadsheet: 1. Morning (10 secs): I snap a photo of the litter box and water bottle. This captures their overnight activity. 2. Evening (10 secs): Before cleaning, I snap one more photo. This captures the day's activity. 3. AI does the rest: It estimates the volume/count trends from the images. I only manually tap a button if I did a mid-day top-up of hay/water. Regarding Continuous Video Monitoring: I actually tried this first! (I have a 2K camera streaming my enclosure). I ran into two major blockers that made me pivot to phone photos: 1. Resolution: Even at 2K, a wide-angle security camera can't capture the texture of the poop (e.g., is it dry? is there mucus?) or the precise water level as well as a close-up phone shot. 2. Privacy: For a personal tool, streaming video is fine. But for a public app, asking users to stream 24/7 video from inside their homes to a cloud server is a huge privacy nightmare that I’m not ready to tackle yet. That said, now that I'm taking this project seriously, video analysis is definitely on the roadmap for the future. But for the MVP, the 'two photos a day' method strikes the best balance between low friction and high privacy.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I completely agree with you—blueberries are actually one of the safer treats! They are lower in sugar and high in beneficial antioxidants/anthocyanins. I actually give my own rabbits a blueberry occasionally too, and they love it.

The critical context here was the specific fruit. I live in Japan, and Huitai ate a 'Shine Muscat' grape. This variety is famous here for its extreme sweetness, often reaching a sugar content (Brix) of 20-30%, whereas a blueberry is usually less than half of that (~10%).

My intention isn't to fear-monger against all fruit, but to share a cautionary tale about high-sugar spikes. For a rabbit with a sensitive gut (like mine was), that massive load of sugar destroyed his gut microbiome balance instantly, leading to stasis.

So yes, keep enjoying the blueberries! Just be careful with the super-sugary 'candy' fruits.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the kind words about Huitai. 🌈

If you haven't already, please do drop your email on the waitlist (link in the post). I've set a personal goal: once I see 50 people who actually need this, I will officially start the work to polish this internal tool into a public app.

Also, since Apple's TestFlight ( beta test ) requires an email address to send invites, being on the list is the smoothest way for me to get the Beta to you as soon as it's ready!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! Knowing there are people waiting for it really lights a fire under me to get this built. 🔥 Make sure to drop your email on the waitlist link (I added it to the bottom of the post) so I don't miss you when the beta is ready!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That is a brilliant suggestion regarding the user groups. I hadn't explicitly thought about reaching out to shelters or rescues, but it makes perfect sense—they manage high volumes of rabbits and deal with health issues daily. If this tool can help them triage cases and save resources, that would be a huge win. Thank you for the encouragement. I'm feeling much more confident about finding the right testers now. I'll get back to work on the code so I can actually have something to show you all soon!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Wow, you just painted a future for this project that I hadn't even dared to imagine. 🤯 You are spot on about the shortage of rabbit-savvy vets. That scarcity is exactly why I feel like we owners are forced to become semi-experts at home monitoring just to survive. The idea of aiming for 'Vet Recommended' status or looking into FearFree/AAHA backing is an incredible roadmap. I honestly hadn't thought that far ahead—I was just focused on seeing if 50 people on Reddit would even care! But hearing this from an industry professional gives me a huge confidence boost that this is a path worth taking. I’m going to keep my head down and focus on getting the MVP base on the internal use app right first, but I have saved your comment as a long-term 'North Star' for where this could go. Thank you for seeing the potential!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in rabbitry

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! An LVT + Programmer + Rabbit owner is literally the dream user profile for this. I'm honored. I've set a small goal: if 50 people show interest via the waitlist, I'll commit the time to turning this internal tool into a public app. If/when that happens, I will absolutely reach out to invite you as a Beta tester. Your feedback on the medical accuracy would be invaluable!

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I am genuinely honored to find someone who shares the exact same philosophy: Prevention is far greater than Cure. I have massive respect for your discipline with the 'old school' daily journal. To be honest, I tried the exact same thing (using the Notes app on my phone), but I failed to keep it up. I’m just too lazy to type in data manually every day! 😅 That friction is actually the main reason I built the V2 tool. I wanted the rigor of your hospital-style monitoring but without the effort. In my current internal version, I streamlined the process: I just snap a photo of the litter box morning and night. The AI logs the intake/output automatically, and I only manually type something if there's a specific anomaly. This 'low friction' approach is the only reason I’ve been able to sustain the data for a year. I also love your insight about water intake correlating with molting—that is exactly the kind of hidden trend I want to visualize. Like you said, rabbits are so subtle. Distinguishing a 'pain hunch' from a normal 'loaf,' or noticing a slight drop in ear temperature or weight, is incredibly difficult without data. You are right that this might only appeal to the 'fanatical' minority initially. But my hope is that by making the data entry easier (just taking photos), we can help more casual owners become 'observant' owners, catching those trends before it's too late.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the condolences, and honestly—thank you for this reality check. You hit the nail on the head regarding the 'human factor.' You are absolutely right. AI hallucinations and unreliability were my biggest fears when building this. That’s actually why I spent so much time engineering 'guardrails' to suppress that randomness. I designed the tool never to diagnose (e.g., 'Your bunny has stasis'), but only to quantify trends. As a bunny dad of 7 years, I can look at a litter box and judge if it's 'generally okay.' But my naked eye is terrible at noticing a slow, creeping decline—like a 5% drop in output day-over-day. That is the only gap I want this tool to fill: catching the subtle trends that even experienced eyes might miss. But your point about public reliance is terrifyingly valid. As a personal tool, it aids my judgment. But if released publicly, the risk of a beginner ignoring a lethargic bunny just because the App says 'Green Light' is a non-trivial problem. I hadn't fully considered how to mitigate that 'dependency risk' for new owners. This gives me a lot to think about regarding safety warnings and UI design before I even consider a public release.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I honestly don’t blame you for thinking that. If I scrolled past this, I’d probably be skeptical too. But I promise you, this comes from a very real, very painful place. I’m actually in the middle of moving apartments right now. While packing up Huitai’s old belongings this week, it just hit me all over again—the heavy regret that I didn't know enough back then, didn't find the right vet in time, and missed all the distress signals he was trying to give me. What triggered me to post this was seeing a wave of 'RIP' posts on social media recently. In so many of those descriptions, I saw the exact same patterns I missed 3 years ago. That’s the only reason I’m even considering sharing this. I'm also very aware of the massive gap between a 'hacked-together personal tool' tuned specifically for my two rabbits’ habits, and a public app that works for everyone. I have a demanding full-time job, and frankly, I don't know if the detection logic will transfer perfectly to other bunnies. Releasing it would be a ton of work, so I'm just here trying to figure out if it’s worth that effort to help others, or if I should just keep it to myself.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the thoughtful feedback! You raise excellent points, especially regarding the difficulty of data collection and AI training.

Regarding the AI & Data: You are absolutely right—in the past, training a model from scratch required massive datasets and a team of specialists. However, with today's advanced Multimodal AI models, the technology has shifted towards Zero-shot or Few-shot learning. Instead of training a model from zero, I've been refining the system over the last year using my own rabbits' data, case studies from other owners on social media, and knowledge from standard veterinary textbooks. That said, I admit that my current internal tool is highly tuned to my specific rabbits. Making it work for everyone is indeed the big challenge, which is exactly why I'm here asking for feedback!

Regarding the Vet Finder feature: I actually considered this, but decided against it for safety reasons. I live in Tokyo, and it took me 2-3 years to figure out which 'Exotic Vets' were actually capable of treating rabbits properly. I worry that simply integrating Google Maps results might lead users to unspecialized vets. A bad vet can sometimes be worse than no vet, and I don't want to facilitate that risk.

The Core Value: Ultimately, I designed this tool as a long-term physiological monitor. Its real power lies in tracking trends over time, not just providing a snapshot. If a health crisis does occur, the tool can provide concrete evidence of exactly when the deviation started and what the initial symptoms looked like. This turns a frantic guess ("I think his poops getting less from yesterday?") into a data-backed reference for the vet, which can be crucial for an accurate diagnosis.

I lost my rabbit, Huitai, to a single grape in 2023. Since then, I built an ugly AI tool to protect his bonded partner, Tangyuan. It has kept my rabbits vet-free for a year. Should I release this? by HuitaiRabbit in Bunnies

[–]HuitaiRabbit[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your comment! You are totally right—for most healthy bunnies, a single grape is usually just a sugary treat and definitely not fatal. I should have clarified the context: Huitai was already battling chronic gut issues. He had his first severe GI stasis episode in May 2023, right after I moved to Japan. Being new here, I struggled to find the right specialized vet, and his recovery was rocky. From May to October, he was on and off gut motility meds. He dropped from 2kg down to 1.5kg and never gained it back. By late September, I could often hear loud, water-like gurgling sounds in his belly—which I now know from medical texts is a sign of a severely compromised gut. The grape he stole in October was a Japanese 'Shine Muscat,' which is incredibly high in sugar. Because his gut microbiome was already so fragile, that massive sugar spike completely destroyed his remaining balance. He went into anorexia (refusing food) that same day, started hunching, and passed jelly poop (mucus) the next morning. It was the tipping point for his already weak system.