UTI Questions Should I Go To The Vet Appointment?

[mocha200]

 I think Lulu might have UTI or something wrong with her bladder. Some of you mentioned it before when she was sick. Here is why I think she is sick. She is dribbling pee. She did it twice on the towels next to the water dishes and once in her favorite spot to sit. It could be Mocha but since Lulu was sick and there is pee in her favorite spot to sit I think its her. Although mocha sits their with her sometimes.

So my questions are:

1. Should I take her to the vet?

2. What should I be prepared for/what questions should I ask if I go to the vet.

3. How do I know for “sure” its Lulu

I will probably add more questions soon.

 

[Sarita]

Many times when a rabbit “dribbles” it is due to a UTI and most likely I think it would be the female. So, yes, if you suspect a possible UTI she needs to see a vet as she needs antibiotics to help clear up the infection.

[bunnyfriend]

I guess you can’t really know for sure if it’s Lulu unless you actually see her do it. When I took in Totoro thinking he had a UTI they pushed on his bladder to try to get a sample, he was empty so they kept him over night. The test costed $45. Have you seen other signs of a UTI from Lulu? Like straining to pee? I hope Lulu is okay!!!!

 

[mocha200]

no i havent seen any other signs but i have been gone tue whole weekend and just got back late yesterday.

[bunnyfriend]

Ohh okay, I think it would be a good idea to take her in

[mocha200]

just scanned the condo floor with a flash light to see if there was any other pee spots and i found one. But, i couldnt tell if it was a full pee or just a dribble ( i am pretty sure it was a dribble though because there wasnt much to clean up) also it was right next to the litter box

Edit: What do you guys think I should expect/ ask the vet?

[LBJ10]

Is it possible to separate them for a few hours. Or at least until somebody dribbles?

[mocha200]

hmm. now i am not sure if it is UTI/some sort of blader problem or she is just not able to get in the litter box because mocha is gaurding it. i say that becaus there is a LOT of poos right next to the litter box. i know they are lulus as hers have always been smaller then mochas. i only have 1 litter box because two dont fit side by side, but i think i may need to put another one on the 2nd level for lulu to use. I know mocha may be gaurding it because he is always in it eating hay, pooin/peeing or just sitting. she still could have UTI i am just now not so sure now. should i call the vet tommorow or put another litter box in tye condo and see if it gets better?

[bunnyfriend]

Hmm yeah that sounds like it could be a possibility, I would try adding another litter box and if nothing changes then call the vet

[mocha200]

I should really be in bed right now but I couldn’t wait to post this. So. I was in bed when I hear someone digging in the litter box. I look down and see mocha digging all his litter to the other side of the box and then pee where there was no litter. So i got up to get some litter to soak up what he just peed when I noticed this.

^ a pile of poo and pee. I haven’t ever seen pee this deep of orangeish redish before. I know rabbits pee can vary in color but since there has been dribbling going on I was wondering if there is blood in this urine. I have read you can’t always see the blood in urine with the naked eye, but what do you think? I haven’t fed her anything different.

This is a close up. The paper towel on the left is the pee I soaked up from Lulu and the paper towel on the right is the pee I soaked up from where mocha peed with no litter. Their is quite a difference. What do you guys think?

[Huckleberry]

I think you should separate them, isolate the bun that is doing it and then take the bun to the vet.
Do you feed the buns a lot of carrots/strawberries or other fruit/veggie that has a lot of beta carotene in it? That could explain why the urine is red, but just in case, I suggest getting the bun to the vet because even if it is just a food coloring problem, it could still be a UTI or something more serious. Better to know than face the worst. 🙂 Good luck, hope it’s nothing!

[mocha200]

i already know it is lulu as her poos were right next to it. Also, I added another litter box and mocha has taken that over to! Lulu will just stand out side and eat and not go in. Ahhh. i am a little mad right now. also, i am very careful with yivijg my bunnies treats. they maybe get one small treat per day. the treat i gave them was a small peice of diced papaya, i guess the color could be from that. I just dont know what to do! I do not yave a job and have to pay for the appointment and any tests by myself and i dont want to go and find out nothings wrong, but i dont want to not go and find out she is sick

[Roberta]

Hmmm… My babies occasionally wee this colour but they are happy and healthy and it only happens after their carrot treat. 
I’d take the little one to the vet, many will work out a payment plan especially if they know you well but you ‘d need to discuss the option with them over the phone before going in.

[Sarita]

Roberta, it is mocha’s parents.

I think it is possible as well that the urine does not have blood but is the orange/red color.

[mocha200]

just read an article and they said that this color is normal. I called the vet and tyey said that tyey cant get her in until Fri. but if she stops peeing altogether to call them. I just watched her pee in the liter box. i couldnt really tell if she was straining or not. she would munch on hay and i could year her poop and tyen for a momment she stoped and looked strait ahead, then she wrnt back to munching on hay. ahh. why does it have to be so difficult.

[Roberta]

Hi Sarita,

Thank you, yes.. I was thinking of the wrong person.

[mocha200]

I called this morning and made a vet appointment for Friday. My vet is off work until Thursday and they must be booked all day. So Lulu will be going to the vet on Fri. at 11:30. I hope they find out whats wrong!

[bunnyfriend]

((((((vibes))))))

[mocha200]

The vet appointment is tomorrow but I am not sure if I should go. She hasn’t shown any more signs of UTI. No spotting and no peeing outside of the litter box since before I rearranged their litter box area (now I have two litter boxes side by side so Mocha and Lulu can be in their own litter box). She has been leaving little piles of poop around and I also found some extremely tiny poops! I am wondering if that is just territorial poop (since I rearranged their cage) or if territorial poop can’t be that small. If you guys could give me any input that would be great!

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By mocha200 on 01/12/2012 12:30 PM
The vet appointment is tomorrow but I am not sure if I should go. She hasn’t shown any more signs of UTI. No spotting and no peeing outside of the litter box since before I rearranged their litter box area (now I have two litter boxes side by side so Mocha and Lulu can be in their own litter box). She has been leaving little piles of poop around and I also found some extremely tiny poops! I am wondering if that is just territorial poop (since I rearranged their cage) or if territorial poop can’t be that small. If you guys could give me any input that would be great!

 

I would still bring her in.  Better safe than sorry.

[mocha200]

Hmm, ok. I called the vet and they said it was up to me. My Mom really doesn’t want me to go.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Ever heard the saying an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?  I’d try and explain to your Mom that if you wait, and it DOES end up being a UTI or something else, and it gets worse, then it’ll be more expensive in the longrun.  Best to bring her in and catch anything early.

[rabbitmom]

Hi! I am new to this forums. Thank you for all very useful informations posted. I am just curious if anybody ever fed kefir to rabbits for probiotic. Some articles on the internet says it is beneficial to boost immune system and prevent UTI, but vet says I should only give probiotic formulated for rabbit. Has anybody suggestion?

[Sarita]

Hi rabbitmom, I would suggest you start your own topic :~) instead of putting your post in another topic. You will get more answers that way and you won’t be tagged on to someone elses thread. If you need help on how to start your own topic, please let us know.

Thanks.

[mocha200]

Its just hard for me to take her in if she doesn’t have the symptoms anymore. I am starting to think she just had bad litter habits because mocha wouldn’t let her in the litter box.

[mocha200]

My parents mant to know if I am going tomorrow or not. I am really unsure as I have only gone to the vet once besides the bunnies getting fixed.

Reasons to go. ( all signs of UTI)
Her wet bum when she was sick last week
found dribbles of pee
loss of litter habits

Reasons not to go.
No more dribbling pee
litter habits are 100% better.

So, My question is, If Lulu had UTI (or something else) wouldn’t her symptoms continue? I would appreciate it if someone answered as I am at a loss. I am soooo sorry I am bugging every one but I don’t want to put the bunnies through the stress of going to the vet for no reason!

[Usagi5]

I would take her in because it would be horrible if something happened to her and it made her worse. The safest thing to do I would think is just to take her in.

[Roberta]

You already know the answer and everyone has confirmed it. You’re still concerned… So if you’re still concerned there is your reason to go
Another good reason to go is that any animal following a health scare whether they appear to be recovering or not should go in for a check up ASAP to make sure they are in fact on the mend and its not just the calm before the onset of the really bad stuff.
You are going to feel better if you take her in and she is going to feel better with you not being stressed out and checking her every minute to make sure everything hasn’t gone pear shaped. So, you take her in and she’s fine you can go home feeling reassured. You don’t take her in and she takes a turn for the worst in the middle of the night when the emergency vet is miles away which prolongs her discomfort and increases the amount of time before you can get treatment when every minute might count. Seriously, which one is the better option ?

[mocha200]

yeah. your right. thanks. Its just really hard when every time i tell my parents I want to go they say ” why? there is no reason to go, she is fine.” But i will just have to have more trust in myself which iis something i strughle with

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By mocha200 on 01/13/2012 07:00 AM
yeah. your right. thanks. Its just really hard when every time i tell my parents I want to go they say ” why? there is no reason to go, she is fine.” But i will just have to have more trust in myself which iis something i strughle with

Just remember, YOU are your bunny’s advocate. Sometimes you have to speak up for them even if someone else is saying otherwise. 
 

[Monkeybun]

It’s good to get an over all check up anyway

[mocha200]

Just got back from the vet. Her thought was bladder stones or sand in her bladder. Since her symptoms went away she wasn’t sure though. She said if it happens again to bring her in for x-rays. I told her I fed them 1/8 cup of pellets 2-5 cups of veggies per day, and unlimited hay from a local farm, and she said to remove the pellets from their diet. She said that they aren’t necessary and since she had small poop it could have been stasis or extra calcium and she would be better off without them. She said they are both healthy and that I take great care of them. She said mocha could be a little bit chubby but she said she wouldn’t worry about it and said once he doesn’t have pellets it will slim him down a little bit. I asked her how many different kinds of veggies I should feed and she said what I am doing is great! My Mom apologized for being so mad about taking Lulu to the vet, but still thinks it wasn’t necessary. Thanks for all your help!

[BinkyBunny]

I am sorry you don’t have the full support of your folks regarding seeking out vet care. But at least they allowed you to make your decision and follow-through. I can only imagine that it must be tough to be fearful of something wrong with the animals you love and yet have to justify reasons for seeking help. I’m sure your folks have their reasons as well as they don’t want to spend $$ just based on fear or what they may consider overly cautious (???) However, when it comes to rabbits, because they can go downhill so quickly, within 24 hours or less, it is good to have a vet check things over when something odd has happened.

Jack had calcium issues, even had a stone, but most of the time he acted normally, however, by taking him in when something seemed a little off ended up saving his life and prevented him from severe suffering later on if it had continued on unnoticed. I’ve also been in situations where nothing was found and all went back to normal.

It’s not about waiting until a bunny is too sick and it’s terribly obvious, it’s about exactly what you did — if there is something off, and it seems to continue (whether it be on and off), then for the sake of the bunny and your peace of mind, if it can be managed, then a vet visit is an important thing to do…especially with animals that have prey instincts and will hide their illness.

You are the one that notices the subtle differences, and reads and has educated herself with many important facts, and so don’t feel bad for making sure your animals are okay when you notice changes. It’s important and it can be life saving– even if every situation isn’t serious. (We are not vets, so we can’t jknow that about our own rabbits for sure)  Many rabbit owners know all to well that it’s the “waiting” until it’s serious that makes it deadly. So be proud of yourself for doing well by your bunnies.

[mocha200]

Thanks BB. I feel so bad taking their pellets away! My bunnies run and binky when they here me come in to feed them pellets. Oh well, Guess I just gotta suck it up and not give in to those cute little faces, LOL.

You didn’t feed pellets to Jack did you BB? I am wondering if I don’t feed pellets if I should split their salad in half and give them half an the morning and half at night.

[bunnyfriend]

Posted By mocha200 on 01/13/2012 07:00 AM
yeah. your right. thanks. Its just really hard when every time i tell my parents I want to go they say ” why? there is no reason to go, she is fine.” But i will just have to have more trust in myself which iis something i strughle with

Don’t worry, my dad used to get so angry when my mom had to take one of the pets to the vet. Don’t be too hard on yourself

 

Glad to hear that Lulu is feeling better!

[mocha200]

Bunnyfriend: thanks.

[RabbitPam]

No pellets is no problem. I agree with you about giving them greens twice a day not just once. I actually do the opposite since I can give pellets which is pellets only once a day but the veggies twice. No refill on the pellets, so cutting them out altogether is often perscribed.

You can get some healthy treats from the store if you want an occasional crunch treat, like the crackers and treats in the BB store that consist of ground up hay. There are at least 3 or 4 that come to mind. Just one of those is a treat, and even a training tool, but not nearly as much or as fattening as the daily pellets.

Also varying the hay will be great for mocha more will get eaten without the pellets available.

[mocha200]

younmean different kinds of hay? If so I cant. I get my hay from a local farm and the only kind I have is orhard grass. I do have some mixed grass I purchessed. Maybe the buns would like some of that.

[mocha200]

tganks for the help every one!

[RabbitPam]

If she likes the hay you use it’s no problem if you never vary it. Just an idea.

[BinkyBunny]

Posted By mocha200 on 01/13/2012 08:41 PM

You didn’t feed pellets to Jack did you BB? I am wondering if I don’t feed pellets if I should split their salad in half and give them half an the morning and half at night.

Yes, that is what I did.   That did help.  Also, I dont’ know why this works but if they have hay left over hay in their bins, take it out, mix it up with the big bag of hay and put a fresh handful of hay in their bin. (and I know…it’s the same hay!)  For some reason that seems to always work with my bunnies.  So that may entice them to fill up on hay as well.    I think partly the reason that the new handful works is because a stronger fresh scent comes out of the bag, and also, they many times will eat their favorite types of pieces of hay first. and leave the rest for later nibbling. 

 

[mocha200]

Haha. Picky bunnies. My bunnies tend to not eat the hay that’s been sitting in the hay racks for a while either. :p

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