Bunny shedding / Buprenorphine

[Emilykatelyn]

Hello! So, the other night me and my boyfriend noticed my bunny Lucy was acting very different. I had offered her a treat that night and she didn’t want it, which is completely unlike her because usually she goes bananas for treats. Then for the rest of the night her personality had changed, and her breathing was extremely fast and stressed. as the night progressed she wasn’t eating, drinking or pooping. I began to panick and started researching information. I knew she had been shedding a lot , and her a few of her poops a few days prior were stringing together. What came up with her symptoms when I had did research was that she may have had “wool block.” So I had some critical care on hand, and I gave her some. Once the critical care was digested she seemed to be better and had popped a little. Although her poops were still strung together. The next day I took her to the vet, I showed the vet a video of her breathing and explained her symptoms while also showing her some of her poops. That day Lucy wasn’t showing any of the same symptoms from the night before. She had ate, drank and pooped prior to the vet visit and her personality was starting to come back. The vet told me she believed Lucy was in the first stages of GI stasis. She then gave Lucy fluids and buprenorphine. She prescribed me buprenorphine, critical care and probiotics every day until Lucy starts feeling better. She told me I didn’t have to give Lucy the buprenorphine until the next day. After the vet trip, for the entire night Lucy was completely loopy. She spent the entire night not eating, pooping or drinking. She stared at a wall for hours and was completely not herself and unaware of her surroundings. I researching buprenorphine and it said that it should have only lasted 20 minutes and then the bunny would be ok and back to normal. I gave Lucy critical care before I went to sleep, and the next morning she still had not eaten, pooped or drank anything. And was also still acting extremely loopy and drugged out. She finally pooped and started eating a little around noon. Now I am scared of give her the buprenorphine again because I feel as if it isn’t helping her if she is blocked up with hair. It seemed as though it slowed her digestive track even more! I was wondering if anyone had any experience with wool block and buprenorphine? Should I continue the buprenorphine treatment? I have not given it to her in over a day now and she is pooping, eating and her activity is increasing. Her poops are still strung together but not as much as before. Please give me any options on this situation or personal experiences. Thank you.

Also any information on how to nurse my bunny back to good digestive health and get her poops to stop stringing together. Please!!

[LBJ10]

Hmm, not sure why your vet would prescribe an opiate if GI stasis was suspected. They slow the nervous system, including the nerves controlling gut movement. I would think a NSAID would be more appropriate.

What makes you think your rabbit has “wool block”? I ask this because there is much debate about the condition even existing. Rabbits have fur in their digestive tract. They groom themselves, so it is inevitable. This doesn’t mean that the fur is the true cause of “wool block” and many vets argue that other digestive issues are what cause a blockage, not the other way around. That’s one of the reasons hay is so important because the fiber keeps everything moving and the fur will just naturally pass through.

Here’s an article that you might find helpful:
http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-7/gi.html

Did the vet do an x-ray? Is there a mass in her intestine? There is the possibility that it’s just gas.

[Bam]

I too was wondering why your vet chose buprenorphine for stasis. It is an analgesic (pain killer), but as LBJ points out, it slows the gut peristalsis. I found a very interesting study http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2696831/

It IS common to give bunnies a pain killer when they experience stasis, but generally, you get Meloxicam (Metacam).

As for hair-balls, it’s often thought nowadays that they are a RESULT of stasis, not the CAUSE. Here’s my favorite article on stasis:
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

TLDR: I think your bunny could do without the buprenorphine. A motility drug can be given if the bunny’s gut is sluggish. You should discuss this with your vet if your bunny doesn’t come around soon.

I always give simethicone (baby gas drops) when my bunnies have gas issues, there is little hard evidence to support its efficacy but it is considered harmless. I also do tummy rubs. This is nice video on how you can do it, but you have to find a method that your rabbit will accept. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnuxGLa2reg

[Sarita]

Did your vet do an x-ray to see if there was an actual blockage? They do need pain meds – I agree that buprenorphine while it is safe and I have used this, is probably not the best pain meds for a rabbit who isn’t eating. I’ve never had a rabbit act “loopy” on this pain med though.

[Emilykatelyn]

I honestly just gathered that conclusion myself through a few different things I read online. But it seems the more I give her critical care and benebac the better she continues to do. The doctor didn’t give her an X-ray, she didn’t perform any tests on her at all. She made the assumption that she had GI stasis because she wasn’t eating or pooping as much. Which like you said slowed her nervous system down and she didn’t poop at all when she was on buprenorphine. And since I haven’t given it to her she has been slowly recovering. Also when I gave her the baby gas drops the first day I saw all of these problems I gave it to her along with the critical care and it definitely seemed to help.

[Emilykatelyn]

There was no x Ray or any tests given to my little bun. They just assumed she had stasis from her symptoms. The only time I have ever seen Lucy acted to loopy staring at walls and being completely out of it was after her spay. It was exactly like after her spay where she just sat in a corner all night staring at the wall

[Bam]

A bunny sitting very still can be an indication of pain. It is one of those observandums a bunny owner is “always” looking out for. I do think that an opiate may cause a bunny to be come a little “stoned” though, maybe that’s what you saw both this time and after the spay.

I’m glad she seems to be doing better! If she’s perking up and producing poop now with the help of CC and benebac, it’s just perfect. It may have been “just” gas. Continue to monitor her eating and pooping. I find it easiest to start out with a totally clean litter box so I more or less can count the individual poops =)

[Emilykatelyn]

I agree! I’ve been cleaning her cage every day to make sure I can monitor her pooping and eating. thanks for the advice! I’m hoping I won’t have to use the buprenorphine I just really feel like she’s doing better without it

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