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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum DIET & CARE Mystery issue?

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    • MissBunns
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        To try and sum up a long, and [still] stressful past few days:

        Wednesday: Bunny was normal, ate her veggies that evening with gusto, perfectly fine and dandy.

        Thursday: Bunny sat in the corner, not wanting anything to do with the pellets (in the morning) and uninterested in everything (including banana!) Called vet, mine wasn’t in, the other didn’t do rabbits.”Force fed” her Critical Care and some Mylicon throughout the day. That evening nibbled a sprig of parsley. That was it. But I figured she was getting back to normal. Temperature was fine.

        Friday: Same as Thursday morning. “Force fed” her some CC & Mylicon before work again (only 2 hours) then came home and set up appointment with vet. They gave her fluids and a metacam injection. Ran a fecal (came back fine) Got her home and she was nibbling on hay!

        Saturday: Thought everything was good…pooped in the morning. Ate a few pellets. Figured she was on her way to recovery, told vet she was doing well. Yay. Got her in the evening to give her her pain meds…she feels bloated, wouldn’t eat her veggies (“nibbled”) and had some alfalfa. Massaged her tummy for an hour, gave her some mylicon…

         

        What is wrong with my baby!? Last time she had bloat (a year ago, because apparantly she can’t handle turnip tops) they gave her fluids and she was good to go (thankfully) She’s on and off again okay. She’s slightly more active, pooping tiny poops, and nibbling on treats. I have no idea what else to do? I’m calling the vet again in the morning. Try x-ray and bloodwork.

        Has anyone experienced anything like this? It’s been an emotional rollercoaster thinking she’s okay one minute…then not…then is..then isn’t.

         


      • Tate
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          In the meantime, do some belly massages and get Pedialyte. I swear by that stuff! My boys both love the strawberry flavor. Her gut may be slowing down so the electrolytes in Pedialyte will help by stimulating her muscles and getting her to pass whatever is in there.


        • MissBunns
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            I had no idea that was okay for them! That’s awesome, I’ll definitely be sure to get some. I’ll take you and your boys’ recommendation and go with the strawberry.

            Is it possible for them to have too much?


          • Tate
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              My vet completely ok’d it and said “I’ve never heard of any complications from too much Pedialyte”. There is sugar in there though, so keep that in mind. For reference, I gave my rabbit about a cup to a cup and half of Pedialyte per day when I was seeing his gut movements slow down. He’s three lbs. After 2 full days, he got 1/2 cup of Pedialyte mixed with 1/2 cup water for a few days.
              Other than that, wait and talk to the vet.
              Also, depending on the rabbit, certain meds can impact motility. It’s like humans in that what some people feel totally fine on, others do very poorly on! That may take some adjusting as well.


            • MissBunns
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                Oh that’s awesome! Thank you so much for the info, I reallllyy appreciate it. And between it being strawberry, and sugary, I’m pretty sure she’ll love it!

                Thank you, thank you, thank you! *hug*


              • MimzMum
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                  I just want to point out here, please be careful with Pedialyte products, that you don’t get any containing xylitol or other ‘left-handed’ sugars, as they are highly toxic to just about every animal.
                  That being said, I may have to try this avenue the next time one of my bunnies has a stasis problem. It’s difficult to go in to my vet for sub-q fluids due to driving distance…that and my bunnies always have medical troubles at late night weekend periods…if I can get fluids into them orally, then so much the better. I didn’t realize that Pedialyte came in strawberry flavor, we usually just see the yucky orange one in our stores.

                  Hoping your bun is feeling better soon! (((((((((((((((healing vibes))))))))))))))))))


                • Sarita
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                    Is Bunny a Holland Lop? If so, have you had them check her teeth? Holland Lops are notorious for having dental problems.


                  • Kleo fr. germany
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                      Yes, let check the teeth and let make a fecal test (we collect poops for three days) to make sure that she hasn´t worms, cocczidiosis or something else which could lead to this problems.


                    • MissBunns
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                        I’ll definitely be sure to look out for those in the Pedialyte. I’m pretty sure though that if there’s things that scare me on the ingredient list, I may chicken out…

                        Her fecal came back clean, and chompers are perfect

                        Do you think it would be worth running blood work?

                        She did eat some pellets today, and drank a lot of water though (yay)


                      • jerseygirl
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                          Got her in the evening to give her her pain meds

                          Did she improve a bit again after you gave the pain med at home? I agree about the teeth or trying to find source of her discomfort. Not eating and gut slow downs are often symptom of the rabbit suffering some discomfort from something. Sometimes that could be from something they ate but commonly can be from something entirely different.

                          Get your vets ok about force feeding. You don’t want to force feed if there’s a blockage.

                          {{{Bunny!}}}


                        • Sarita
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                            Did he look at her teeth?


                          • Tate
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                              Posted By MimzMum on 07/30/2011 11:12 PM
                              I just want to point out here, please be careful with Pedialyte products, that you don’t get any containing xylitol or other ‘left-handed’ sugars, as they are highly toxic to just about every animal.

                              I never thought of that! I just threw out my bottle but I looked up the ingredients online and it looks like Pedialyte uses fructose and dextrose as sweeteners, which should be fine. Maybe xylithol is in the store brand versions of Pedialyte?


                            • Stickerbunny
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                                Pedialyte changed their formula in 2000 to use aspartame and sucralose rather than xylithol – but it is still artificial sweetener (sucralose is what splenda uses to be sweet).

                                * Pedialyte Ready to Feed Strawberry / 1-L Bottle / Case of 8

                                Water, Dextrose. Less than 2% of the Following: Citric Acid, Potassium Citrate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Citrate, Natural Flavor, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Zinc Gluconate, FD&C Red #40, and FD&C Blue #1.

                                The UNFLAVORED does not contain either and just uses dextrose. All flavored use one or the other or both, like the strawberry.

                                http://www.janethull.com/newsletter/1206/health_alert.php more info on the change / sweetener use

                                Ingredients list of pedialyte flavors : http://abbottnutrition.com/products/pedialyte

                                And from their official FAQ on Pedialyte’s website:

                                Why are sweeteners added to Pedialyte? Why not just add sugar to make it sweeter?

                                Pedialyte contains the quantity and ratio of sugars (dextrose and fructose) and minerals (electrolytes) recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. This precise balance of sugar and electrolytes makes Pedialyte effective in the management and treatment of diarrhea with or without vomiting.

                                Without added sweeteners, Pedialyte is not sweet enough for many children to drink. Adding sugar (sucrose) to Pedialyte may make diarrhea worse by drawing water into the intestine, increasing the risk of dehydration. Adding sweeteners like ace K (acesulfame potassium) and sucralose makes Pedialyte taste good without the risks of adding sugar (sucrose). When Pedialyte tastes good, children drink enough of it to maintain hydration and replace needed minerals when they are sick.


                              • Tate
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                                  Posted By Stickerbunny on 07/31/2011 10:03 AM

                                  Pedialyte changed their formula in 2000 to use aspartame and sucralose rather than xylithol – but it is still artificial sweetener (sucralose is what splenda uses to be sweet).

                                  * Pedialyte Ready to Feed Strawberry / 1-L Bottle / Case of 8

                                  Water, Dextrose. Less than 2% of the Following: Citric Acid, Potassium Citrate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Citrate, Natural Flavor, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Zinc Gluconate, FD&C Red #40, and FD&C Blue #1.

                                  But aspartame isn’t listed in the ingredients? If it did contain aspartame, I wouldn’t use it! That stuff is SO bad! Is acesulfame potassium derived from aspartme? Hmmm… Maybe stick to the unflavored from now on…

                                   


                                • jerseygirl
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                                    You know what really annoys me though? The colours added. Gotta make it look good too otherwise the children won’t drink it.
                                    Good thing it’s something only given for a short time (for rabbits & kids)
                                    I’m happy as I can get hold of the unflavoured, clear kind in sachets. So I can add it to diluted juice if needed. I think fructose is a sugar rabbits can process pretty well.


                                  • jerseygirl
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                                      Gah! I just looked up Acesulfame Potassium and found some not so happy stuff. Course the internet will spew lots of warnings bout lots of stuff but still….also scary stuff about sucralose.
                                      Maybe we are better sticking to diluted pure pineapple juice! Add some mineral salts. I dont know! I’ve always been wary if a vet prescribed pineapple juice but now I’m thinking it’s better then some of these artificial sweetners.


                                    • Stickerbunny
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                                        Mmm, oops, you’re right it uses Acesulfame Potassium (Ace K, or Sweet One) and Sucralose as sweeteners. I guess they changed the formula again since that article.

                                        I don’t really know how dangerous Sucralose or Acesulfame Potassium is for rabbits. Just looked up the ingredients and stuff real quick in case anyone was interested.


                                      • Tate
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                                          The unsweetened Pedialyte looks fine… Maybe mixing that with pineapple or apple juice OR you could cut up some favorite pieces of fruit (like strawberry or watermelon) and put them in the Pedialyte so the flavor soaks in? I do that with my water (not for bunnies, just me ) so maybe that would work if the unflavored has a funky taste. Hmf.


                                        • jerseygirl
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                                            We have a product here called Gastrolyte that I had been thinking the unflavored kind would be useful to have on hand but it’s pretty much fallen out of favour with me now. Think I’ll use plain old water.

                                            I wonder about lactulose though. That’s an osmotic laxative (pulls water into the gut) and the form of sugar is indigestable. I’m wondering if it could be beneficial for rehydration or not… Doesn’t contain the beneficial mineral salts though.

                                            ETA: scratch that (re:lactulose) Just my mind wandering. I’m going to use water for my rabbits unless my vet can suggest something better.


                                          • MissBunns
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                                              Her teeth are fine. Great. Fantastic. Nothing is wrong with her teeth. Both the vet and I checked them. She was hoping it was as simple as her teeth. But her teeth are perfect.

                                              Did she improve a bit again after you gave the pain med at home? I agree about the teeth or trying to find source of her discomfort. Not eating and gut slow downs are often symptom of the rabbit suffering some discomfort from something. Sometimes that could be from something they ate but commonly can be from something entirely different.

                                              Get your vets ok about force feeding. You don’t want to force feed if there’s a blockage

                                              She did improve a bit after the pain meds, but she’s still not as gung ho about everything as she usually is. How long does it take after a stasis like (or stasis?) before they’re back to being ravenous?

                                              And my vet told me to force feed. But I don’t even have to force feed Bunny. If I just put it up to her lips, whatever it is, she will lick it all up. She’s the best, I swear. (I’m biased, obviously )

                                              You know what really annoys me though? The colours added. Gotta make it look good too otherwise the children won’t drink it.

                                              Agreed. I went to get some today, and I was so peeved by all the sugar and colouring that I went with the unflavored. She’ll be fine with it. It’s another brand, but all it has is: water, dextrose, citric acid, potassium citrate, sodium chloride, sodium citrate. It all sounded safe to me. I was overly paranoid, I don’t know how long I stood there reading labels.


                                            • jerseygirl
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                                                She did improve a bit after the pain meds, but she’s still not as gung ho about everything as she usually is. How long does it take after a stasis like (or stasis?) before they’re back to being ravenous?

                                                I don’t think there’s a definitive answer to that unfortunately. It really depends on what’s going on for her. The pain med could have temporarily relieved whatever the trouble is enough for her to show interest in food. I think continuing with the pain relieve, mylicon and fluids is a good idea until you can more input from your vet.

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                                            Forum DIET & CARE Mystery issue?