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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 HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Stasis again?

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    • Phwoffy
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        Hi,

         I’ve just joined and was looking for a bit of help/advice, if anyone would be so kind! 

        We adopted Monty about 5 months ago from a home who no longer had time to look after him. We were told that he had never been to the vets, so as soon as he was settled he was taken in for his jabs and a check over – all fine. He will be 2 next month, is an unneutered, medium-haired lop x lionhead (or… something like that. His ears are almost on the ground and he has a very fine mane…). Since moving in, we have taken him to the vets twice for what appear to be bouts of stasis. He is the first rabbit I’ve had as a house bunny, and the first I’ve had as an adult, so really, it’s all new to my partner and I. Having been fine the previous day, we’ll open his hutch door in the morning and a very lacklustre face will peep out, and promptly bury himself behind his hutch. Whilst ill he will be very reluctant to eat (won’t, really, until starting to feel better) and won’t go to the toilet.

        Anyway, this morning he was utterly fine. Throwing himself around the house, clambering onto our bed (we have bought a stool for the purpose. Never say he’s spoilt!) and doing excited hops, munching hay from the bag while I cleaned out his house. Now, he is tucked behind his hutch, quite hunched and refusing kale/blueberries/anything and everything we are trying to offer.

         I suppose, really, I am just looking for any advice in making him more comfortable/getting him better, and preventing this from happening! If he is still like this tomorrow, we will take him to the vet first thing but as it is Sunday… For a little bit of background information, we live in Shetland (a little bit of land that floats somewhere between Scotland and Norway!) and if you want anything to happen on a Sunday, you have to do it yourself. Our closest vet is a half hour drive away (and there is only one other practice on the island, which is over an hour from home). The vets have always been very kind, but I am tempted to say that they perhaps don’t know as much as they should. Unfortunately, they are our only option. Having worked as a receptionist in a vets before we moved up here, I know that there are plenty of vets who don’t specialise in bunnies, so am not hoping for miracles! But, if the vets aren’t going to be able to offer much advice, I know the best people who can are the ones who know bunnies and love them as much as we love our Monty!

         

        Any advice or information will be very greatly appreciated!


      • Roberta
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          What is his current diet ? Does he get plenty of hay ?


        • litheandgraphic
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            Roberta‘s question would be my question. Additionally, is he getting groomed every day to every other day?


          • Phwoffy
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              He has access to A LOT of hay (upstairs and downstairs in his house, plus scattered about ‘his’ room where he spends most of his time). I would say it’s the majority of his diet, followed by food.

              His food is currently not very good stuff – when he arrived he was on a supermarket own brand and we have bought a variety of different bags which we have tried to introduce with no luck. We currently have a new bag of pellets that seem MUCH more suitable and he will eat them if offered, so we are gradually trying to exchange the two. As I said, we adopted him a few months ago, so for most of his life he has only been eating the supermarket stuff (which, of course, he picks at). Work in progress, on that front.

              He gets a fair bit of fresh stuff – his favourite (by which I mean the one thing he hasn’t gone off seconds after we’ve bought a ton of it) is kale. He has leafy greens, a little bit of something like carrot or cucumber, and a few slices of a fruit every night.

              Aside from his non-pellets, my main concern is his water intake. When he arrived he would happily drink from his bottle, but in the last few months, the bottle has been completely ignored. He has two bowls of water – one out of his cage, and one in – which he will drink from once or twice a day, but I really don’t feel his water intake is high enough.

              He’s groomed pretty much every day – I start off brushing him, which he loves, and gradually work up the courage to use the thin-toothed comb, which he hates. A lot of fur is coming off at the moment – he’s been moulting for a little while and we can see where it’s coming to an end, but yes, every day to every other day, with a little bit of a sulk on Monty’s behalf!


            • jerseygirl
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                Welcome Phwoffy & Monty : )

                Do you know if he had veggies in his former home? If he didnt, his reduced water intake could be because he’s getting water via veggies now & not needing to drink so much. Could be worth trying a different water source though to see if it helps.

                Sometimes buns can get gas pain and stop wanting to eat. During his episodes, have you noticed him repositioning himself a lot or pressing his tummy to the floor?
                I know I have to go easy on kale with some of my rabbits (not that I can find it much ) but some will do absolutely fine on it. I give Infacol (simethicone) when I have a rabbit off food & suspect gas. It’s helped on many occasions.

                Could there be something in pellets that triggers his episodes? So when he does occasionally eat more then usual, he’s getting some discomfort? Since he’s not terribly interested, you could try eliminate them from his diet for several months (or permanently) to see if it helps.
                Particularly since he’s a great hay eater which is fantastic.
                Is is a grass hay he has?

                2 hidden reasons I can think of that can be behind tummy issues are dental pain or skeletal pain. The latter sprang to mind after reading how active he was right before his last episode. Maybe he has an old injury or something affecting the spine and he was over active??

                What did they do for him at the vet during these times? I’d talk to them about having some things at home so you can help him through these episodes since you have limited options with vets there. Subcutaneous fluids, pain medication, gut motility meds, assisted feed formula, possibly some Zantac.


              • Roberta
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                  I would slowly start adding some extra greens if he is only getting Kale and fruit at the moment… Sweet Basil is a bunny favourite, nasturtium leaves and flowers, cilantro/coriander, celery leaves, spearmint, parsley, Cos lettuce (not iceberg) bok choy…. Only introduce one at a time though and give a few days in between to make sure they don’t upset his tummy. Soak and rinse them well and shake off the moisture so they are still damp. To change over pellets mix in new with the old and gradually transition into the new one. I usually put it into a big tub and start by adding a cup of the new. Each time I take some out I add more of the new and less of the old to top up until the old is completely gone.


                • Phwoffy
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                    Hi,

                    Apologies for the delayed response – Monty is now feeling much better, and was by the next morning. Of course, they like to worry us.
                    Thank you all very much for the advice. He’s very much enjoying his pellets at the moment, and they are still sharing space with his old food. We’ll take as much time as needs be with that one.

                    We have bought a bottle of Infacol, to keep in the cupboard. Have seen simethicone mentioned a fair bit in regards to rabbits. How much is best to give to him? He was 2.5kg at his last vet weigh in (a few months ago).

                    Again, thanks very much for all of the advice!


                  • jerseygirl
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                      A lot of places you’ll see 1-2mls of simethicone is recommended but Infacol is stronger then much of the baby gas meds you’ll see mentioned in rabbit articles. Those are 20-40mg/ml whereas Infacol is 100g/ml.
                      I usually give 0.4mls of Infacol for my rabbits that are around 2-2.5kg.
                      You can give a dose each hour for the first 3 hours.
                      When gas is the problem, I’ll usually see a result 20min after a single dose of Infacol.

                      A little video I watched the other day. Demonstrates massage we can do to give relief.
                      http://youtu.be/LbyC6CWbm5M

                      ETA: I should note, it’s advised never to do massage when there is bloat. So when the stomach (up near the ribs) is super tight and you can barely press inwards. That’s an emergency situation & massage could increase pain.
                      With a gassy bun that’s not bloated, you’ll often see they’ll let you massage as it feels good for them. I imagine a bunny with bloat wouldnt even let you try.

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                  Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Stasis again?