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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 Sick bunny

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    • lillian
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        My little boy is again having tummy troubles and im not sure what to do. When i arrived home from work this morning i noticed he hadnt eaten or drank much from the previous night, and he had very little poops. Those he did produce were strung together with what seemed like fur.

        I quickly gave him some critical care, and went to sleep with an alarm for 4 hours later, hoping it may just pass over. Woke up to still almost no poop production and no food or water drank. I made another, more watery batch of critical care and massaged his belly. Repeated 4 hours later.

        His stomach still feels soft but has had very little poop production. I have listened to his belly (which is hard to do as his heart has always been so loud haha), and i was able to hear a little gut movement. I only have one more chance to give him critical care tonight before i go to work for an 8 hour shift plus 3 hours worth of driving. Im scared to death to leave him alone but i am unable to miss work and i have no one who is able to give him medicine throughout the night. I will not be able yo get him to a vet until tomorrow afternoon.
        He goes back and forth with being energetic and lethargic (he is usually asleep right now after all)

        Is there anything i can do? Anything that will help him in the next 4 hours before i have to leave for work?


      • Q8bunny
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          Can you entice him to eat his favourite treats or fresh herbs or leaves before you leave? It sounds like he could use more long fiber.
          Do you have any ranitidine (Zantac)? It’s used to stimulate gut motility in buns but I’d call my vet to quickly ask for a recommended dose.

          I hope the little guy’s ok… (((healthy tummy)))


        • lillian
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            I dont have any. Would it help even if hes not pooping? It seems to be a blockage not gas

            He is sprawling out and not curling up like i would expect him to do if he was in pain. Is that a good thing?

            He still seems to get some enjoyment in going over and harassing his brother


          • Q8bunny
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              The Zantac stimulates gut motility in buns. It’s pediatric simethicone that’s best for gas.
              If you suspect a fur blockage, fiber and water are your best friends. Also a bit of banana. The trick is getting your furball to eat them.


            • lillian
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                He pooped a tiny bit this morning but it was very small poops, dark black, and not many.
                I try to stringe feed him water as he is still refusing to eat and drink on his own, but most of it ends up on the towel.
                He was showing more signs of pain today but when i rubbed his belly the pain seemed to subside some. It felt like he had some gas in his belly but im not sure.
                Is it safe to give him Zantac if its a blockage?


              • Q8bunny
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                  If you suspect gas, try some pediatric simethicone first (baby gas drops). The gas pain may be what’s keeping him from eating, and no food would result in few and tiny poops.


                • Bam
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                    I agree about the baby gas drops, sometimes they do wonders for a gassy bun and gas absolutely can make a bunny stop eating. Simethicone drops can be bought in pharmacies and food stores like Walmart. Give 1 ml every hour for 3 hours, then 0,5 ml every 2 hours. Combined with a very light tummy massage it can be very effective.
                    Zantac (ranitidine) is not good when there’s a blockage, but if it’s just gut slowdown with gas, Zantac can help. My 6 pound rabbit gets 1/8 of a 150 mg pill for humans dissolved in water.


                  • lillian
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                      I have a vet appointment in 3 hours. But i honestly dont think i have enough money for them to do xrays or anything. Im terrified as he is back to being lethargic and not pooping. I am still giving him critical care


                    • Bam
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                        If you can make him move around a bit and/or give him very light tummy rubs, it can help gut motility.

                        If there’s a blockage, hydration is key. You can syringe him water, the vet can give him sub q fluids. Try to keep him warm until you get to the vet, bunnies often go hypothermic when they’re unwell and that adds to the problem. Wrap him in a fleece blankie and sit him in your knee, f ex. That way your body-heat will warm him.


                      • lillian
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                          Thankfully he has began pooping again. Not normal poops at all (wet, pretty squishy), but poops at least. The vets screwed up and forgot to save his appoinment so now i have to wait til tomorrow though… no other vets in town are taking appointments this late and the only emergency vet that takes rabbits wants a $500 deposit, which i don’t have.
                          I am giving him lots of belly rubs, trying to listen for gut movement, and doing my best to syringe him water, although he puts up so much of a fight that most of it ends up on his towel. I am getting him to move thankfully, and the lethargy is seeming to fade some (although he gets real lethargic right after critical care). I am trying to keep the house a little warmer as well as give him a warm bottle with a washcloth over it. He hasnt used it though


                        • Bam
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                            Poop is so great! If there’s poop, it’s not a blockage. You can expect his poop to be squishy or malformed for a while, because his tummy is upset and needs time and food with high fiber-content (like CC) to get back into shape. Moving about is great too!
                            You always spill water or CC on the bunny when you syringe-feed, as long as some of it goes in the bunny, it’s not a big problem. Just messy. If the bunny tries to clean himself after being fed, that’s a good sign too.


                          • lillian
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                              More poop finally, very small size but at least coming out some. There does seem to be bits of fur in some of the poop so i assume maybe that is the issue or at least part of the issue.

                              When i give him CC he gets very lethargic. Like, i could poke him and he would fall over lethargic. Im not sure if that is normal, but it doesnt last long. He has been lazily cleaning himself after it though.

                              I gave him two options for water in hopes maybe he would drink (one bottle, one small open container). He will drink just a little bit if i harass him enough but wont drink on his own.

                              He isnt bunching up and grinding his teeth, as most people describe that as how buns show pain. (He actually has a few times but a belly rub seemed to do wonders). He is actually sprawling out, legs back, head resting on his paws. Is that a sign he isnt in too much pain?


                            • Q8bunny
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                                Sorry – it was night here and I just got up.

                                It sounds like some of the pain has dissipated if he’s doing the sunbather pose all stretched out.

                                Continue with warmth, water, CC aIf he won’t eat hay or fresh leaves, and the simethicone and belly rubs if you have it. Like Bam said, if it had been a blockage, no poops would’ve materialized, so as long as he continues pooping after some sort of fibrous food, just monitor him closely until his vet appt.


                              • Bam
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                                  The sunbather pose (as Q8 so eloquently describes it!) is good. What’s NOT good is if the bunny stretches out like he’s about to do a push up, the butt slightly elevated, the belly pressed against the floor. That’s a typical sign of gas. I’ve never seen the bunny rest it’s head on the floor at the same time though.

                                  I don’t know why he goes lethargic after CC. It could perhaps be pain when the food lands in his tummy? Ask your vet about gastric ulceration/dyspepsia, it’s fairly common in bunnies and can be a secondary effect of GI stasis. The treatment is Zantac (ranitidine). A pain killer is recommended with bouts of stasis, because pain causes inappetence, but your vets should prescribe a safe one, don’t use aspirin because it’s very hard on the tummy. Sub Q fluids are also recommended with stasis, it’s often very effective. My vet adds vitamin B 12 to the fluids.

                                  His gut microbiota is off, that’s why the poop isn’t right – and it can take weeks to right itself with time and food and possibly a probiotic like Benebac.


                                • lillian
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                                    We got him to the vet, and they gave us pain medicine and taught me how to give him the subq fluids. They didnt seem to worried yesturday but he seems in worse shape today.

                                    When i arrived home from work, he was laying in his own pee like he had no energy, and he didn’t. We gave him the subq, CC, and the pain medicine. He had a short burst of energy but it didnt last long.

                                    I woke up 4 hours later to him grinding his teeth in pain, laying down, again covered in his own pee. As i gave him the CC, he had energy to fight me but not much. He was so busy grinding his teeth that most of the CC just dribbled out.

                                    I gave the vet a call and they gave me a motility medicine, but, the vet sounded like the future is very bleak for sweet little quick silver. We sadly began discussing the “what if” and if we may need to put him down… i truly dont want to do that, i dont want to give up, but i don’t want him to suffer anymore either. He seems to be in constant pain, always grinding his teeth. Im not sure what i should do


                                  • Bam
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                                      I’m really sorry to hear this, I thought he was on the mend
                                      Do they have any idea what’s wrong with him? I mean the root of the problem, that he has tummy trouble is obvious.


                                    • lillian
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                                        I dont have the extra money for them to run all the needed tests

                                        We ended up taking him in last night before they closed to see if they thought he maybe still had a fighting chance, as my father and I realized, although very painful for us, if it was time for him to go then it was time.
                                        Luckily when we got there he started pooping so they told us keep trying to fight for him.

                                        Now its the next day and hes practically back to where he was… hes lethargic, weak, chattering his teeth. The only difference is he constantly has mucusy poops coming out. No other kinds of poops. The vet said the poops arent good but at least he is pooping. Its been almost 20 hours though and hes had no change in his behavior, so im truly scared he is just suffering, and all the medicines are just barely keeping him going. The vet is closed until monday so i just have to keep giving the medicine until then. I really hope maybe the medicine is just making him lethargic


                                      • Bam
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                                          I’m sorry he had a relapse. Mucousy poop is obviously not good and it often requires antibiotics. It can be bad bacteria, it can be an intestinal parasite, in any case it means the intestine is irritated and secrets mucus to protect its lining.
                                          Fluids are vital now, of course, since dehydration can happen fast with loose stools, sub Q is the best way since oral water might not get absorbed. The pain-killer can affect his behavior and make him less active.


                                        • Benthebunny
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                                            I just read this, I am so sorry, if you are desperate for money, gofundme.com is the only thing i can think of atm. When my bunny gets tummy problems, I feed him wet romaine lettuce. Soak lettuce in water for five minutes and give it to him soaking wet.


                                          • lillian
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                                              He wont eat at all on his own sadly.

                                              His poop first was barely existant, then little black poops, then runny poops, and now the mucousy poops. It seems to be most mucousy around the first two hours after the Sub Q, which im doing every 12 hours. Its like 70% mucous. Close to the time im ready to do the Sub Q again, its like 10% mucous. The poops that are coming out with it look the same color as the critical care, and im worried if his body is even absorbing the nutrients from it or not.


                                            • LBJ10
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                                                Were you given any pain medication?


                                              • lillian
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                                                  Yea. He is on pain medicine, mobility medicine, critical care, and the Sub Q. The pain medicine doesnt seem to be helping much though


                                                • Benthebunny
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                                                    Awwww.. Give him some head rubs for me. Probably keep him warm. Poor little guy . I hope he gets better <3


                                                  • Q8bunny
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                                                      I’m sorry your little one is struggling. Like others have said, lethargy can be attributed to the painkiller and the fact that he’s poorly, and the subQ fluids are vital, but motility meds, while helping the CC get through, are not addressing the underlying problem.

                                                      Is there any way you can set up a reasonable payment plan with your vet to have his poops and blood tested? Labs are often not super expensive and it would give you a lead to follow. If not, would it be possible to get a dewormer or some other antiparasitic dose of meds just in case this is caused by parasites? It wouldn’t affect your bun, should be very inexpensive, and might just hit the nail on the head (I would suggest antibiotics too, but it’s trickier not knowing what to target).


                                                    • LBJ10
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                                                        What did they give you? Metacam?

                                                        Mucus is simply a sign of inflammation/irritation of the intestinal lining. It could be caused by a number of things, including parasites. However, since he is experiencing a slowdown and tummy upset, it isn’t unreasonable to assume the mucus could be because of that. Bunnies will often have mucus-coated poop after GI stasis. It’s possible there is a lot of mucus being produced and the sub-Q fluids are flushing it out, hence the increased amount soon after administering the fluids.

                                                        Okay, so he’s been looking better and then looking worse again. He isn’t pooping much, but he is still pooping some. He’s getting critical care, belly massages, motility meds, and pain meds…. plus sub-Q fluids for hydration. Did I miss simethicone? has he gotten that too?


                                                      • lillian
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                                                          Im sorry i have not responded on this and for bumping an old post. Sadly he did not make it and they put him down. Thank you guys for the help and support


                                                        • Bam
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                                                            You are very welcome to bump this post. I’m very sorry you lost him. Sometimes all our efforts are not enough but you did all you could for him.

                                                            Binky Free, sweet little one.


                                                          • LittlePuffyTail
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                                                              I’m so sorry. ((((Binky Free))))))

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                                                          Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Sick bunny