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FORUM HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Change in bathroom habits is ruining our lives

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    • lisa
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        I have an almost 6 year old, Holland lop (spayed female) who has been having some urination problems.  The vet did not seem to be very helpful so I was hoping someone on here could share their thoughts on what it might be/what my next step should be.

        She used to be litter box trained and she always had free run of the house.  Over time she has stopped using the litter box (for pee and poop).

        She started urinating a lot more than normal and all over the place. In addition to the large puddles of urine that she leaves, there are also many spots where  I notice the urine is in a line as if she was peeing while she runs (which I have seen her do).  All of this is a change from her normal/past behavior.  

        I brought her to a small animal vet that also works on rabbits.  They did a urinalysis and said it seemed normal. They said her exam seemed normal.  They gave me antibiotics which I gave her for about 10 days.  They also gave me probiotics (which I could not get her to eat). I have not seen a change since then.  The vet told me that she only does bloodwork as a last resort because she needs to sedate rabbits for it and there is a chance of them dying from the sedation.

        Her diet consists of Oxbow pellets, Timothy hay and a small amount of dark greens (Kale).

        The only other medical issues that I notice is that she has ISC and she seems to be drinking more than normal. The ISC has been going on for a while and I do not know how to get rid of it. 

        The saddest part of this whole thing is that my poor bunny went from living free all the time to living in a cage 100% of the time.  She used to love to run and bink and hang out with me and now shes just in the cage and I feel like she has no quality of life.  I cant even let her out for small periods because she instantly pees or has the soft stool.  

        If anyone has any thoughts on why her tests would come back normal, her appetite and personality is normal but she is having these bathroom issues please contact me to let me know!


      • Kokaneeandkahlua
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          Any sudden change in an animal you want to get a medical opinion. The only issue is it sounds like you tried-and your vet didn’t stack up. Do you live in a big city-is a second opinion an option?
          Animals don’t just decide to change and do bad stuff, and most animals do not urinate while moving around-I’d wager you have some health issue happening here.
          Super weird that they need to sedate for blood work-usually you do blood work before sedation, so it’s doable unsedated. Maybe if you are comfortable posting where you are from we could help you find another vet to try?


        • LBJ10
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            I agree. I would try to get a second opinion. It could be something as simple as arthritis. You said she is almost 6 and arthritis can start setting in well before that.


          • lisa
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              I agree…. I do not think she is doing this to be bad.  I feel horrible for her.  Shes such a good girl. I just moved to Melbourne Florida which is about one hour away from Orlando so I’m sure there is a vet around but I do not know the area yet.  I already spent money on the first vet which didnt help but it sounds like I need a second opinion!


            • tobyluv
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                Here is a link to a list of vets in the Orlando area: http://orlandorabbit.org/rabbitvets/rabbitvets.php. You might also want to start a thread here, asking if people have recommendations for vets in your area. Did the vet do any x-rays? If she has bladder stones, they would show up in an x-ray. X-rays might also show if there is any degeneration of her joints or if she has arthritis, like LBJ10 mentioned. I hope that you can find out what is causing this and find something that will help her.


              • Bam
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                  I agree there’s sth wrong and that the vet you saw doesn’t seem very bunny-savvy. Drinking more and peeing more (a lot more) is always sth to take seriously imo.
                  To improve her quality of life while you get this sorted, maybe you could put a diaper on her so she can have playtime outside her cage? I’m not normally a fan of diapers on bunnies, but your case is obviously special.

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              FORUM HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Change in bathroom habits is ruining our lives